Geshe Tsultim Gyeltsen is a sagacious monk who escaped Tibet in 1959 and has lived and taught in England and the United States since the early 1970s. At present, he is director of a center for the study of Buddhism and Tibetan culture in Los Angeles. In this book he presents his commentary on two classic Buddhist texts.

Gyeltsen begins with an interpretation of "Eight Verses on Thought Training." Here are concrete ways to combat negative mental states and conditioning. A few of the practices include seeing others as supreme (pacifying arrogance), holding difficult persons as dear, accepting defeat, and regarding those who harm us as teachers. These are all Buddhist delineations of compassion.

"The Thirty-Seven Bodhisattva Practices" have been defined over the ages as the path of a person who has been awakened. Some of the steps include being free from distractions, treasuring the spiritual friend, returning praise for insult, taking on the suffering of others, perfecting patience, and being alert. Compassion: The Key to Great Awakening by Geshe Tsultim Gyeltsen is filled with deep Buddhist wisdom.