The-Tibetan-Book-of-Living-and-Dying

Acknowledgments
IN THE TASK OF PRESENTING the teachings contained
in this book authentically, and yet in a way that reaches out
to modern minds, I have been continually inspired by the
example of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, and by how he
embodies all the authenticity and purity of the tradition while
displaying an all-embracing openness to the modern world.
There are no words to express the depth of my gratitude to
him; he is a constant source of courage and inspiration not
only to the Tibetan people, but also to countless individuals all
over the world whose hearts have been moved and whose
lives have been transformed by his message. I have been told
that the connection I have with him stretches back over many
lives, and in the strength and closeness of the affinity I feel for
him, I somewhere know this to be true.
For their inspiration and their teachings, the essence of
which are this book, I thank every one of my masters, and I
offer it to them all. Jamyang Khyentse Chökyi Lodrö, who
recognized me and brought me up, gave me the ground and
the meaning of life; he gave me in fact the two most precious
things I have: devotion and understanding. His spiritual wife,
Khandro Tsering Chödrön, the foremost yogini in Tibetan
Buddhism, has, in her love and care, been truly like a master
to me as well; for me she is completely inseparable from
Jamyang Khyentse, and I only have to think of her to see his
majestic presence reflected in her. She is like a spiritual mother
to me: I feel always protected on account of her prayers and
her love, and I pray that she lives for many, many more years.
It was Dudjom Rinpoche who made flower those seeds of
understanding Jamyang Khyentse had sowed in me, through
his personal kindness and his teaching. The affection he
showed me was almost, I sometimes think, as though I had
been his own son. And then Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche was
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