To remember that no matter where you are and what you face, within your heart peace is possible.In this beautiful and graceful little book, internationally renowned Buddhist teacher and meditation master Jack Kornfield has collected age-old teachings, modern stories, and time-honored practices for bringing healing, peace, and compassion into our daily lives. Just to read these pages offers calm and comfort. The practices contained here offer meditations for you to discover a new way to meet life’s greatest challenges with acceptance, joy, and hope.

    . . . [His] arguments are often lively and entertaining.--Los Angeles TimesIn Not in His Image John Lamb Lash explains how a little-known messianic sect propelled itself into a dominant world power, systematically wiping out the great Gnostic spiritual teachers, the Druid priests, and the shamanistic healers of Europe and North Africa. Early Christians burned libraries and destroyed temples in an attempt to silence the ancient truth-tellers and keep their own secrets. But as Lash reveals the truth cannot be hidden or destroyed.Not in His Image delves deeply into the shadows of ancient Gnostic writings to reconstruct the story early Christians tried to scrub from the pages of history, exploring the richness of the ancient European Pagan spirituality-the Pagan Mysteries, the Great Goddess, Gnosis, the myths of Sophia and Gaia.Long before the birth of Christianity, monotheism was an anomaly; Europe and the Near East flourished under the divine guidance of Sophia, the ancient goddess of wisdom. The Earth was the embodiment of Sophia and thus sacred to the people who sought fulfillment in her presence. This ancient philosophy was threatening to the emerging salvation-based creed of Christianity that was based on patriarchal dominion over the Earth and lauded personal suffering as a path to the afterlife. As Derrick Jensen points out in the afterword, in Lash's hands Jesus Christ emerges as the agent provocateur of the ruling classes.Sometimes a book changes the world. Not in His Image is such a book. It is clear, stimulating, well-researched, and sure to outrage the experts. . . . Get it. Improve not just your own life, but civilization's chances for survival.--Roger Payne, author of Among Whales

    Among the themes that fall within its compass are the greatness of the day in which we live, the spiritual requisites of peace and world order, the nature of God and His Prophets, the fulfillment of prophecy, the soul and its immortality, the renewal of civilization, the oneness of the Manifestations of God as agents of one civilizing process, the oneness of humanity, and the purpose of life, to name only a few.

    Hawkins’s work, the reader is reminded of the illusory nature of the personal self (identification of the ego/mind) and the direct pathways to transcend the ego/mind’s trappings.This pocket edition is designed especially for today’s spiritual student on the go, to inspire contemplation and reflection during a break at work, while hiking in the woods, during a quiet coffee-shop moment, on an airplane, with a partner—in whatever environment one finds oneself. Dissolving the Ego, Realizing the Self is a reliable companion on the aspirant’s quest toward higher truth.

    In the form of a dialogue between Pandava prince Arjuna and his guide Lord Krishna[note 1] it presents a synthesis of the Brahmanical concept of Dharma with bhakti, the yogic ideals of liberation through jnana, and Samkhya philosophy.The Bhagavad Gita also integrates theism and transcendentalism or spiritual monism, and identifies a God of personal characteristics with the Brahman of the Vedic tradition.Numerous commentaries have been written on the Bhagavad Gita with widely differing views on the essentials. Advaita Vedanta sees the non-dualism of Atman and Brahman as its essence, whereas Bhedabheda and Vishishtadvaita see Atman and Brahman as both different and non-different, and Dvaita sees them as different. Commentators see the setting of the Gita in a battlefield as an allegory for the ethical and moral struggles of the human life.

    A professor of religious studies meticulously documents his insights from 73 high-dose LSD sessions conducted over the course of 20 years The book chronicles, with the author’s systematic journey into a unified field of consciousness that underlies all physical existence and makes a powerful case for the value of psychedelically induced spiritual experience and discusses the challenge of integrating these experiences into everyday life.

    Filled with practical guidance and advice--as well as extensive personal recollections--A Gradual Awakening explains the value of meditation as a means of attaining awareness, and provides readers with extensive advice on how establish a practice. Drawing on his own personal experiences with and insights into vipassana meditation, Levine has crafted an inspiring book for anyone interested in deep personal growth.

    Graced with opening words by His Holiness The Dalai Lama, the Penguin Deluxe Edition of The Tibetan Book of the Dead is "immaculately rendered in an English both graceful and precise." Translated with the close support of leading contemporary masters and hailed as “a tremendous accomplishment,” this book faithfully presents the insights and intentions of the original work. It includes one of the most detailed and compelling descriptions of the after-death state in world literature, practices that can transform our experience of daily life, guidance on helping those who are dying, and an inspirational perspective on coping with bereavement.

    In 1997, the Indian journalist Mayank Chhaya was authorized by the Dalai Lama to write about his life and times. The only authorized biographer who is not a Buddhist, Chhaya conducted more than a dozen personal interviews with the Dalai Lama in McLeod Ganj in India's Himalayan north, home to Tibet's government-in-exile. In Dalai Lama: Man, Monk, Mystic he presents an in-depth, insightful portrait of a figure of perennial interest to people all over the world. Chhaya writes about Tibet and the Buddhist tradition from which the Dalai Lama emerged, helping readers understand the context that shaped his beliefs, politics, and ideals. Adding depth and nuance to his portrait, Chhaya depicts the Dalai Lama in the light of his life in exile and the various roles he has had to assume for his followers. He sheds light on the highly complex conflict between China and Tibet, and offers insights into the growing discontent among young Tibetans who are frustrated with the nonviolent approach to Chinese occupation that the Dalai Lama advocates. A balanced, informative view of the Dalai Lama and his work, this biography is both a compelling profile of a remarkable spiritual leader and his mission, and an engaging look at how the current unrest in his country will affect its future.

    Strib takes a good look at who the Buddha was, meditation, karma, and more. With good humor and without sentimentalism (plus a sprinkling of hilarious cartoons), he explains these down-to-earth insights in everyday language. Showing how Buddhism boldly approaches life’s problems head on, unflinching and alert—like a soldier in a forward listening post in the dark of night—Strib emphasizes the Buddhist call to moral action for the good of oneself and others.

    Says author Daniel Pinkwater of this novel of sociological import: "I honestly don't remember writing this. Are you sure there hasn't been some mistake?"

    . . a writer who spent his life decrying the onward march of the Machine.”  — The New YorkerBrave New World author Aldous Huxley on enlightenment and the "ultimate reality"In this anthology of twenty-six essays and other writings, Aldous Huxley discusses the nature of God, enlightenment, being, good and evil, religion, eternity, and the divine. Huxley consistently examined the spiritual basis of both the individual and human society, always seeking to reach an authentic and clearly defined experience of the divine. Featuring an introduction by renowned religious scholar Huston Smith, this celebration of "ultimate reality" proves relevant and prophetic in addressing the spiritual hunger so many feel today.

    Quake, now in development as a film by Repo Man director Alex Cox, is a deadpan, nihilistic look at how fear unravels people?s emotions, how terror can liberate, and how people manage to survive?even panhandler drifters, Hollywood Cretins, and hippies. A true underground classic.

    Harding provides a wealth of information about the worship of the Goddess Kali. This book gives an intimate and detailed description of Kolkata's famous Dakshineswar temple and Ma Bhavatarini, the form of Kali worshipped there. Learn about the temple's festivals & daily rituals, and discover inspiring accounts of some of this traditions ecstatic saints. A great introduction to Kali worship.

    Appearing in the spiritual lineage established by Tilopa, is an incarnation of the great Mahasiddha, Saraha.