This collection contains four of the most cher­ished Tibetan Buddhist commentaries on the practices of visualization, mantra recitation, and meditative absorption— elements that form the core of development stage meditation, one of the most important practices of Buddhist Tantra. The texts within this volume—Ladder to Akaniṣṭha, Clarifying the Difficult Points in the Development Stage, The Four Stakes That Bind the Life-Force, and Husks of Unity—are among the most widely studied com­mentaries on this topic and have formed the basis for spiritual study and practice for centuries. In these eloquent and inspiring translations, Jigme Lingpa, Patrul Rinpoche, and Getse Mahāpaṇḍita explain the fundamental philosophy of the de­velopment stage, illuminating its profound insights into the nature of reality and how to utilize these insights through the practice of meditation.