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The Way of the Bodhisattva
Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche

"May bodhichitta, precious and sublime,
Arise where it has not yet come to be;
And where it has arisen may it never fail
But grow and flourish ever more and more."
-Nagarjuna

The concern of the Mahayana Buddhist is the relative happiness and ultimate liberation of all sentient beings. An individual practicing Buddhism with such a motivation may be termed a bodhisattva.

The Way of the Bodhisattva (Bodhicharyavatara) is a pragmatic and staightforward guide for this path, revered because of it's lucidity, profundity,and humor. All ten chapters are in verse, and are a vivid and extremely inspiring exposition of the practice of the mahayana path. With brilliance and force, it challenges the habitual thought patterns that bind us to suffering, while presenting the liberating Bodhisattva path of selflessness.The initial chapters present the bodhisattva's understanding and practice within the relative truth that constitute our present reality, while the ninth chapter on wisdom is a presentation of ultimate truth.

This teaching was composed in the eighth century A.D., by the great sage Shantideva [685-763], who was both a scholar-monk at the great Buddhist university of Nalanda, and one of the famous eighty--four mahasiddhas--great accomplished masters. The Padmakara Translation Group's new translation ("The Way of the Bodhisattva", Shambhala Pubs) is recommended as study material.