The Meaning of Life: Buddhist Perspectives on Cause and Effect

Each of us struggles with the existential questions of meaning, purpose, and responsibility. In The Meaning of Life, the Dalai Lama examines these questions from the Buddhist perpective, skillfully guiding us to a clearer understanding that can liberate us from the prison of selfishness and suffering. The Dalai Lama bases his explanations on the Buddha's teachings of dependent arising, showing how every aspect of our suffering-unhappiness, pain, even old age and death-is ultimately rooted in our misunderstanding of our true nature. Through detailed discussion and lively questions-and-answers, the teachings of The Meaning of Life address the myriad challenges we meet daily-dealing with aggression from both within and without; facing illness and helping someone who is dying; expanding our capacity to feel love for all beings; and reconciling personal responsibility with the doctrine of selflessness-all suffused with the Dalai Lama's incomparable intelligence, wit, and kindess. Useful attention is given to our understanding of dependent arising, and the meaning of the Wheel of Life.