Reb Anderson first introduces us to the fundamental ideas of Zen Buddhist practice. Who was Shakyamuni Buddha and what was his central teaching? What does it mean to be a bodhisattva and take the bodhisattva vow? Why should we confess and acknowledge our ancient twisted karma? What is the significance of taking refuge in Buddha, dharma, and sangha? The author explores the ten basic precepts, including not killing, not stealing, not lying, not misusing sexuality, and not using intoxicants. A gifted storyteller, Anderson takes us to the heart of situations, where moral judgments are not easy and we do not have all the answers. With wisdom and compassion, he teaches us how to confront the emotional and ethical turmoil of our lives.

    In other chapters, Achaan Chaa, Achaan Buddhadasa, and Sunlun Sayadaw offer practices clarifying the essential attitude that will allow each person to discover the truth of the Buddha's teaching here and now—the living Dharma. The book also provides an introduction to the basic tenets of Buddhism and a look at the Buddhist tradition as taught in Burma, Thailand, and Laos.

    "In this remarkable book, Ajahn Buddhadasa teaches us beautifully, profoundly, and simply the meaning of sunnata, or voidness, which is a thread that links every great school of Buddhism....He teaches us the truth of this voidness with the same directness and simplicity with which he invites us into his forest."-- from the foreword by Jack Kornfield

    You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.

    In this excellent reprint of a rare volume of essays, he reveals the essence of the Indian experience, rooted in "a constant intuition" of the unity and harmony of all life. Everything has its place, every being its function and all play a part in the divine concert led by Natarājā (Śiva), Lord of Dancers.In a series of 14 stimulating and provocative essays, Coomaraswamy unfolds the vast metaphysic of India: the magnificent revelation of its art; its conception of the universe; social organization; attitudes toward feminism; problems of family; romantic love, and marriage. His sweeping commentary considers the "intellectual fraternity" of mankind; the venerable past as it survives side by side with emerging modern India; and the individual, autonomy, and repudiation of "the will to govern."Enhancing the text are 27 black-and-white photographs — mostly of masterpieces of painting and sculpture from the second century B.C. to the eighteenth century, and including the glorious "Cosmic Dance of Nàtaraja." This handsome volume offers rich insight into the art, philosophy, and culture of a fascinating forty-centuries-old civilization.

    Fully illustrated, this book includes an Indian song-and-dance version of Dracula; Turkish version of Star Trek and Superman; China's "hopping vampire" films, and much more.

    It is a journey to places where, according to the author, many of us have already been but about which we have forgotten. It is also a journey within, into that psychological space where our ideas and beliefs about God, spirituality, and religion reside. During both journeys, we are likely to encounter wonder and recognition, skepticism and acceptance, rejection and admiration, confusion and long-sought understanding. For some, this journey will be the start of a much larger one; for some it is but one more leg of a journey undertaken earlier; in any case, The Rose of the World is not a final destination." Completed in 1959, hidden from the Soviet secret police for twenty years, The Rose of the World was first made public through excerpts in the magazine Novy Mir in 1989. The Rose of the World is a unique and poetic cosmological treatise, passionately written out of personal spiritual experience. It offers a prophetic call for the spiritual reunification of all people and an open and harmonious relationship among the great world religions. For Daniel Andreev, The Rose of the world is a spiritual flower whose roots are in heaven; each petal is a unique image of the great world religions and cultures, and the whole flower is their joint co-creation with God.Lindisfarne Books is proud to publish the first English translation of this masterpiece of contemporary Russian spiritual literature, a work that belongs to Russian religious thought in the tradition of Vladimir Soloviev, and to the West in the tradition of Dante and Blake--truly a work for the twenty-first century.

    This is not that book! Hardcore Zen was a groundbreaking look at Zen Buddhism through the eyes of a Western punk rocker living in Japan who became an ordained monk while working for a company that made cheap monster movies. In this new sequel, Hardcore Zen Strikes Again, Brad returns to his roots and provides a glimpse into some of his early writings that formed the basis for that book. These essays, mostly from a long-defunct website Brad produced in the early 2000s, form a snapshot of the genesis of Brad’s first book. Brad has provided new introductions and afterwords to each essay as well as a complete chapter written for Hardcore Zen that did not make the final cut, plus an article about his experiences at the company he was working for when the book was written. Together they make an invaluable collection for anyone interested in Brad’s writing as well as those interested in his unique way of presenting the timeless truths of Zen in a contemporary idiom.

    The author touches on many of their major ideas: the collective unconscious and karma, archetypes and deities, the analyst and the spiritual friend, and mandalas. Within Tibetan Buddhism she focuses on tantra and relates its emphasis on spiritual transformation, also a major concern of Jung. This expanded edition includes new material on the integration of the two traditions, and the importance of these paths of the heart in today's unsteady world.

    Zen prayer includes intimacy with the ground of Being, making yourself whole through honest self-reflection, clarifying your deepest spiritual intentions, wishing for the welfare of the world, and affirming the essential goodness of people and life.Prayer can release you from your habitual self-centered tendencies and can open the gates to your miraculous and wondrous existence. Prayer invites you to the timeless and infinite border of the material and invisible world, the place where phenomena and emptiness dynamically interact in the dance of existence. Through sound and silence, prayer invokes goodness, healing, mystery, blessings, and can ignite the flame of your heart.

    He showed that, far from being an exotic novelty, Hinduism was an important, legitimate spiritual tradition with valuable lessons for the West. Pathways to Joy is a selection of 108 of his sacred teachings on Vedanta philosophy. In accessible and powerful prose, Vivekananda illuminates the four classical yoga paths — karma, bhakti, raja, and jnana — for the different natures of humankind. The messages focus on the oneness of existence; the divinity of the soul; the truth in all religions; and unifying with the Divine within. Invaluable and inspiring, the selections also explore karma, maya, rebirth, and other great revelations of Hinduism.

    It’s about opening up to the vulnerable space inside every one of us and letting our barriers down. And it’s about daring to be present to ourselves and others with genuine love and kindness. Empowering personal awakening and social change, it might be the most radical and transformative thing we can do. The cultivation of compassion has long been at the core of Naropa University’s mission, since its origins in 1974—and its students and faculty have been leaders in contemplative education with heart. In celebration of Naropa’s fortieth anniversary, Shambhala Publications is pleased to offer these teachings on the path of compassion from a collection of authors who have helped shape the school’s unique and innovative identity, including: Chogyam Trungpa on opening ourselves more and more to love the whole of humanity Dzogchen Ponlop on how to cultivate altruism with the help of a spiritual mentor Judith L. Lief on the common obstacles to compassion and how to overcome them Gaylon Ferguson on awakening human-heartedness in oneself and society amidst everyday life Diane Musho Hamilton on connecting to natural empathy and taking a compassionate approach to conflict resolution Reginald A. Ray on spiritual practices for developing the enlightened mind and heart in the Mahayana Buddhist tradition Ringu Tulku on the practices of bodhisattvas, those who devote themselves to the path of enlightenment for the sake of all beings Pema Chodron on building up loving-kindness for oneself and others with help from traditional Buddhist slogans Ken Wilber on what it really means to be a support person, with reflections from his own life Karen Kissel Wegela on avoiding caregiver’s burnout and staying centered amidst our efforts to help those in need and reflections on Naropa University and the meaning of radical compassion from longstanding faculty member Judith Simmer-Brown

    Developments in practical ethics, social attitudes, philosophical speculation, & religious & esthetic contemplation are represented by selected excerpts from basic writings with succinct introductions & commentary. From these one may observe not only the remarkable vitality of Buddhism in its spread through Asia, but also the essential links between widely diverse forms, showing how the spiritual message of the Buddha found expression in different historical & cultural circumstances. Thus both its continuity in time & its wide range of influence mark Buddhism as a major spiritual force in the world. Buddha, as the Awakened One, has exemplified to millions throughout the ages a living Truth, a dynamic wisdom & an active compassion. It's these qualities that have inspired hope & courage in those who were asked to face to the stark reality of their condition: the inevitable involvement in suffering which arises from his persistent egoism & refusal to recognize finitude.

    The translation adheres closely to the original Japanese, with a clear style and extensive annotations. Book 1 presents translations of twenty-one chapters of Shobogenzo including Genjo-koan (The Realized Universe), Soku-shin-ze-butsu (Mind Here & Now is Buddha), Uji (Existence-Time), and Sansuigyo (The Sutra of Mountains & Water). Its several reference sections include a Chinese/English appendix of references to the Lotus Sutra, and an extensive Sanskrit glossary. 'At last I visited Zen Master Nyojo of Dai-byaku-ho mountain, and there I was able to complete the great task of a lifetime of practice. After that, at the beginning of the great Sung era of Shojo, I came home determined to spread the Dharma and to save living beings, it was as if a heavy burden had been placed on my shoulders....I will leave this record to people who learn in practice and are easy in the truth, so that they can know the right Dharma of the Buddha's lineage. This may be a true mission.'

    T. Lobsang Rampa studied from his youth the art of traveling out of the body. He realized early that what we see is not all that exists. With the opening of the Third Eye we extend our vision of the vast universe which NOW shows no bounds. Journey with Rampa as he grows up in Tibet to become one of the first Walk Ins, recognized world wide, having taken over the body and mind of a less than noble Englishman. Here are his meetings with the Council of Masters, who taught him to understand and contemplate all matters mystical, his exploration and use of magical crystals as well as how to read the human aura. Learn how you can also wear the Saffron Robe and walk in the footsteps of this great avatar.