Within the Gelug tradition, lojong is approached as a systematic and carefully structured discipline that is inseparable from the broader lamrim, or stages of the path. Rather than standing alone as an isolated set of slogans, mind training is treated as the method side of the path, grounded in reflections on precious human life, impermanence, suffering, refuge, and karma. On this basis, lojong becomes the principal means for cultivating bodhicitta, the altruistic intention to attain enlightenment for the benefit of all beings. The practice is thus not a short-term psychological technique, but a lifelong training that matures step by step.

A distinctive feature of this approach is the way lojong is framed through specific, well-defined methods for generating bodhicitta. Two classic techniques are emphasized: the sevenfold cause-and-effect instruction, and the practice of equalizing and exchanging self and others, which includes tonglen, the meditation of giving and taking. Both are presented as structured contemplations to be revisited repeatedly, using analytical meditation to clarify their meaning and stabilizing meditation to deepen the resulting attitudes. In this way, compassion and altruism are not left at the level of sentiment, but are cultivated through deliberate reasoning and habituation.

Gelug exegesis also places lojong firmly within a philosophical context, especially the Prāsaṅgika-Madhyamaka understanding of emptiness associated with Tsongkhapa. Mind training slogans and practices are interpreted in light of this view, so that the development of great compassion and the realization of emptiness support and refine one another. The cultivation of aspiring and engaging bodhicitta, together with the practice of the six perfections, is thus held to rest upon a foundation of ethical discipline and a clear grasp of karma and dependent arising. Study of root texts such as the Seven-Point Mind Training, the Eight Verses of Mind Training, and related commentaries serves to anchor this process.

In daily life, lojong is applied to transform adversity into the path, using illness, loss, criticism, and other difficulties as opportunities to weaken self-cherishing and strengthen patience and compassion. Self-centered attitudes are identified as the principal obstacle, and practices such as “taking the blame” and viewing obstacles as teachers are encouraged as concrete ways of reversing habitual patterns. Throughout, mindfulness is cultivated so that the practitioner can recognize reactive thoughts and emotions and bring the appropriate lojong perspective to bear. In this integrated vision, lojong becomes a disciplined training of the whole mind, uniting ethical conduct, contemplative practice, and philosophical insight into a coherent path.