The heart of Dharma practice is meditation. The purpose of meditation is to make our mind calm and peaceful. If our mind is peaceful we shall be free from worries and mental discomfort, and so we shall experience true happiness; but if our mind is not peaceful we shall find it very difficult to be happy, even if we are living in the very best conditions.

If we train in meditation our mind will gradually become more and more peaceful, and we shall experience a purer and purer form of happiness. Eventually we shall be able to stay happy all the time, even in the most difficult circumstances.

By training in meditation we create an inner space and clarity that enables us to control our mind regardless of external circumstances. Gradually we develop mental equilibrium, a balanced mind that is happy all the time, rather than an unbalanced mind that oscillates between the extremes of excitement and despondency.

Compiled from Introduction to Buddhism by Geshe Kelsang Gyatso with the kind permission of Tharpa Publications, London. © Geshe Kelsang Gyatso and Manjushri Mahayana Buddhist Centre, 1993.

Meditation Techniques

Many different meditations are taught at Kadampa Buddhist Centers, from simple breathing meditations, through the twenty-one meditations of Lamrim, up to the most advanced Tantric visualisation methods of the Vajrayana.

To find out more about the meditation techniques that are offered at Kadampa Centers, or to receive instructions on how to put these techniques into practice, please refer to the Home page to locate and contact the center nearest you.