In a teaching of outstanding completeness and clarity, the Dalai Lama sets out the key principles of Buddhism, showing how the mind can be transformed, and suffering overcome, through love, compassion and a true understanding of the nature of reality. Illustrating his brilliant overview of the path with his own personal experiences and advice on how to integrate the practice, the Dalai Lama literally brings the teachings to life. The heart of this teaching is the innermost nature of the mind and the clear light, and here the Dalai Lama delves deep into the teaching of the Great Perfection or Dzogchen, highlighting its unique features, and drawing on the writings of the realized masters of the past. His immense enthusiasm and respect for this profound tradition shine through as he comments on an important work by the great Dzogchen master Longchen Rabjam, Finding Comfort and Ease in Meditation on the Great Perfection.

This teaching, with its remarkable sweep and richness, was originally given to an audience of ten thousand at Lerab Ling in France in 2000, and this book which includes the Dalai Lama's other talks at the time, conveys an evocative feeling of the atmosphere and majesty of the occasion. As Sogyal Rinpoche said, "All of us were moved by the depth, relevance and accessibility of His Holiness's teachings; there were those who said that they were among the most remarkable they had ever heard him give. To receive these teaching from him was the opportunity of a lifetime."

Blending the highest wisdom with the deepest compassion and humanity, The Vision of Enlightenment offers the reader a unique glimpse into the Dalai Lama's wisdom mind, and a panoramic view of the path of Buddhadharma.

The Vision of Enlightenment, The Dalai Lama, The Terton Sogyal Trust, Paperback, 448 pages, $24.00

His Holiness the Fourteenth Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso, was born in 1935 to a peasant family in northeastern Tibet and was recognized at the age of two as the reincarnation of his predecessor, the Thirteenth Dalai Lama. The world's foremost Buddhist leader, he travels extensively, speaking eloquently in favor of ecumenical understanding , kindness and compassion, respect for the environment, and above all, world peace.