The Thirty-Seven Practices of a Bodhisattva
May the virtue that arises from working with this text
Contribute to the liberation and happiness of all beings.
The title in Tibetan is The Thirty-seven Practices of a Bodhisattva: a Summary of the Heart Essence of a Bodhisattva’s Conduct. This full title indicates two points: first that the text condenses all the Mahayana sutras, which teach the conduct of a Bodhisattva; and second, that it summarizes the heart essence of a Bodhisattva’s conduct, of which there are thirty-seven main practices. In Tibetan, the word for “practice” literally translates as “to bring into experience.” So, 37 practices can actually be brought into experience.
While The Thirty-seven Practices of a Bodhisattva contains a few stanzas on the progressive stages of meditation on emptiness, the text deals primarily with meditation on the relative.
Its purpose is to help us with our motivation!
