This refers especially to transforming self-centeredness into cherishing others. If we have been selfish, egocentric, or indifferent to others, these are indeed afflictions of the mind that should be transformed. But stay the same, the author also says.

The point is very subtle, as Geshe Rabten brought out when he discussed this point of practice: Indeed transform your mind, but make no obvious transformation of your external behavior or speech. This is not to say that we should leave all our external behavior unchanged. If our speech tends toward exaggeration, slander, or deviousness, if our physical habits are clearly unwholesome, we should definitely abandon such actions. There are many cases when overt wholesome action is appropriate, but the advice here is to be discreet about it, without calling attention to ourselves.

Why? Because we are gratified when people notice how much we have changed, it is very easy for our spiritual practice to become tainted by the eight mundane concerns. Even though we start out with pure motivation, we may still wind up concerned with our reputation. Will people like us more if we practice? Will they praise us behind our backs? Will they give us nice things that we want, or perhaps special advantages? It is very easy to feel superior when we see actual transformations in our being. Showing off our virtue to others feeds this, and this should not be where the priority lies.

Many of these practices are concerned with the refinement of actions that are already wholesome. On doing something kind for another person, we have a natural inclination to say, as if waiting for gratitude, "By the way, did you notice how clean your windows are? Did you notice what's in the refrigerator?" The motivation is self-centered and impure. This is not to say that the act is evil; but let's fine-tune it to see if we can simply be satisfied with the act itself, discreetly, instead of looking for a dividend in others' gratification, or expecting a kindness in return. This point-staying where you are while you transform your aspirations-is worthy of serious consideration.

Excerpted from: A Passage from Solitude, by B. Alan Wallace. 1992 by Snow Lion Publications, Ithaca, New York 14851.