The first seven verses of the Eight Verses for Training the Mind deal with the practices associated with cultivating the method aspect of the path such as compassion, altruism, aspiration to attain buddhahood, and so on. The eighth verse deals with the practices that are directed toward cultivating the wisdom aspect of the path. The first three verses from the Eight Verses of Training the Mind along with the commentary by His Holiness the Dalai Lama were given on 8 November 1998 in Washington D.C. The remaining five verses are extracted from the book Transforming the Mind by His Holiness the Dalai Lama.