Not for Happiness – A Guide to the So-Called Preliminary Practices, book

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by Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse

Do you practise meditation because you want to feel good? Or to help you relax and be “happy”? Then frankly, according to Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse, you are far better off having a full-body massage than trying to practise the Dharma.

Genuine spiritual practice, not least the Ngöndro preliminaries, will not bring the kind of comfort and ease most worldly people crave. Quite the opposite, in fact. But if your ultimate goal is enlightenment, Ngöndro practice is a must, and Not for Happiness your perfect guide, as it contains everything an aspiring practitioner needs to get started, including advice about:

• developing “renunciation mind”
• discipline, meditation and wisdom
• using your imagination in visualization practice
• why you need a guru

Shambala (2012), 240 pages