In The Small Golden Key, Thinley Norbu Rinpoche explains in simple, concise language the important ideas and practices of Buddhism, with special attention to the Vajrayana teachings of Tibetan Buddhism. He discusses the origins of Buddhism in India and its spread to Tibet; the important lineages of Tibetan Buddhism, with emphasis on the Nyingma school; the difference between the Hinayana, Mahayana, and Vajrayana teachings; the outstanding features of the Mahayana; and some of the special qualities and practices of the Vajrayana.


Small Golden Key, Thinley Norbu, Shambhala Publications, Paperback,
114 pp, $18.95

Thinley Norbu (1931-2011) was a master teacher of the Nyingma lineage of Tibetan Buddhism, with many devoted students in the West as well in Asia. Revered as an emanation of the fourteenth-century master Kunkhyen Longchenpa, Kyabje Thinley Norbu Rinpoche was a scholar, writer, poet, and translator, whose prolific publications include A Cascading Waterfall of Nectar, his masterwork on the ngondro, or preliminary practices; The Sole Panacea, on the Seven-Line Prayer of Guru Rinpoche; and A Brief Fantasy History of a Himalayan, an illustrated account of personal reminiscenses.