Akong Tulku 1994 Taming the Tiger - Tibetan Teachings for Improving Daily Life. London: Rider.
In this book Akong Rinpoche offers a simple approach to finding the sort of happiness for oneself that also brings happiness to others. The first half of the book is a commonsense and easily understood explanation of Buddhist principles which can be applied to everyday life. The second half of the book is a practice manual for developing the mind and enabling the reader to put into practice the advice in the first section. It consists of a series of meditation exercises which Rinpoche recommends as practise for those who want to acquire the self-knowledge and self-healing which will serve them in their daily lives.
Rinpoche is an experienced teacher of meditation and master of Tibetan Buddhism and co-founder of the Samye Ling Tibetan centre. He is also a doctor of Tibetan medicine and has formed several organisations to aid the poor, refugees, and distressed peoples.
In this book Rinpoche has a style which exudes wisdom and authority with enormous humility. His writing is simple, clear and straightforward and the reader has a real sense that he sees the world with clarity and deep spirituality. His words therefore have a very direct impact and one knows that here is a writer who lives his own advice, who practices what he preaches. Not that Rinpoche ever presumes to ‘preach’. He has too much self-knowledge, humility and compassion for that. He tells us his truth and his experience of the world and seems to exemplify the Buddhist principle of vidya. This is a truly enlightening book which is compelling and easy to read and delivered with kindness and compassion for fellow sufferers on the human path,
The ‘Tiger’ of the title of the book is the mind – the root of all our experience. Rinpoche describes it thus
“The mind can be compared to a wild tiger, rampaging through our daily lives. Motivated by desire, hatred and bewilderment this untamed mind blindly pursues what it wants and lashes out at all that stands in its way, with little or no understanding of the way things really are.” p.7
Rinpoche exhorts us to face and control the wildness within, to look inside ourselves for the cause of our suffering if we want to preserve our freedom and energy and stop harming ourselves and others.
“Only by taming the mind therefore can the endless search for gratification be pacified and our understanding be developed.” p.9
But he suggests that we approach the task with compassion, dignity, diligent effort and acceptance of ourselves, in order to transform what is negative and to put the power of the tiger to good use. He recommends a ‘middle way’ – neither too harsh nor too soft, accepting our limitations as human beings. Acceptance of our own suffering and unfulfilled desire, he asserts, will help to create compassions for others who, like us, just want to be happy. The answer is to simply accept that
‘Desire arises in the minds of others just as it does in our own’ p.9
From this come compassion, kindness and true friendship to all. Rinpoche urges us look after ourselves but not to be too involved in our own concerns, to appreciate our lives, to count our blessings, to contribute to the world we live in and to put into practice the aim of benefitting everyone we meet.
“Every moment can be accepted as it comes, whatever its emotional colour; and even when there is great suffering, at least we are feeling something and can try to relate to the quality of the experience.” p.23
I had never considered that ‘impermanence’ had true value until I read this book, having previously seen it as something to be feared yet accepted as a harsh fact of life. In Chapter Three Rinpoche describes the essence of impermanence in everything around us as something very beautiful because it is impermanence which brings change and variety in our lives.
If we try to make things more and more fixed then we suffer more when change occurs. We attach and resist and this causes us to suffer emotionally. Everything changes and a sound understanding of this can inspire us to spend our time here in worthwhile way which has long term benefits.
“Rather than directing all our energy into futile attempts to make life perfect, we could be using some of this effort to develop our tolerance and appreciation of the way things are. Such inner peace brings deep and lasting happiness; whilst the joy derived from worldly pursuits, object and other people is invariably impermanent.” p.39
‘Taming the Tiger’ is essentially about learning how to accept and deal with the ordinary situations of our lives. Effort and the right motivation are necessary and the exercises and meditations in the second half of the book, used with skill and care, provide the means to mature the mind.
“By training the mind we can learn to confront and deal with what we currently perceive to be painful or distressing……… Once we are ready to accept the way things are, even the apparently hellish aspects of life can be transformed.” p.38
The exercises in the second half are intended to help people bring their minds into a state of compassion and maturity. Rinpoche provides clear guidance on how to do the exercises, posture and relaxation. Some deal with suffering and negative emotions we normally prefer to avoid; others deal with bad habits and mistakes we have been making all our lives. Rinpoche suggests that if we learn to face these situations then they can be confronted and dealt with properly. We can re-educate ourselves, bring ourselves to a place of balance, and learn how to deal with difficult situations, enjoy more freedom and increase the value and usefulness of our lives.
I particularly like the sentiment of the dedication at the front of the book
“This book is dedicated to the growth of humility, peace and understanding in the world.”
I recommend its wisdom and its use as a practical guide for improving daily life.
Liz Igoe 8/8/08