Be an Island is at once an introduction to the teachings of Buddhism and a rich continuation of Ayya Khema's personal vision of Buddhist practice.

    Taking a radical departure from traditional views of God, Western or Eastern, author Kevin Griffin neither accepts Christian beliefs in a Supreme Being nor Buddhist non-theism, but rather forges a refreshing, sensible, and accessible Middle Way. Griffin shows how the Dharma, the teachings of the Buddha, can be understood as a Higher Power. Karma, mindfulness, impermanence, and the Eightfold Path itself are revealed as powerful forces that can be accessed through meditation and inquiry.Drawing from his own experiences with substance abuse, rehabilitation, and recovery, Griffin looks at the various ways that meditation and spiritual practices helped deepen his experience of sobriety. His personal story of addiction is not only raw, honest and engrossing, but guides readers to an inquiry of their own spirituality. In doing so, he poses profound questions, including:·         How can I understand God from a Buddhist perspective?·         How can I “turn my will and my life over” as a Buddhist?·         How can this idea of God “remove my shortcomings”?·         How do I learn this God’s “will”?

    "If we lose ourselves every night, what chance do we have to be aware when death comes? Look to your experience in dreams to know how you will fare in death. Look to your experience of sleep to discover whether or not you are truly awake."This book gives detailed instructions for dream yoga, including foundational practices done during the day. In the Tibetan tradition, the ability to dream lucidly is not an end in itself, rather it provides and additional context in which one can engage in advanced and effective practices to achieve liberation.Dream yoga is followed by sleep yoga, also known as the yoga of clear light. It is a more advanced practice, similar to the most secret Tibetan practices. The goal is to remain aware during deep sleep when the gross conceptual mind and the operation of the senses cease. Most Westerners do not even consider this depth of awareness a possibility, yet it is well known in Tibetan Buddhist and Bon spiritual traditions.The result of these practices is greater happiness and freedom in both our waking and dreaming states. The Tibetan Yogas of Dream and Sleep imparts powerful methods for progressing along the path to liberation.

    Alternately comic and reverential, Ambivalent Zen chronicles the rewards and dangers of spiritual ambition and presents a poignant reflection of the experiences faced by many Americans involved in the Zen movement.

    By offering guidance on how to approach the process and giving instruction for specific meditation and contemplation techniques, Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche provides gentle yet thorough commentary, companionship, and inspiration for committing to the Buddhist path.

    One day that possibility became a reality, and it was simple and ordinary, magnificent and revolutionary. It is the open secret that reveals itself in every part of our lives. But realisation does not emerge through our attempts to change our lives, it comes as a direct rediscovery of who it is that lives. "The Open Secret" is a singular and radical work which speaks of the fundamental liberation that is absolutely beyond effort, path, process or belief.

    Using humorous analogies and his profound understanding of the Western mind, Dzogchen Ponlop makes the mysterious Tibetan teachings on the bardos--the intervals between waking and sleep, between life and death, and beyond--completely available to the modern reader. Drawing on a breathtaking range of material, this young, popular teacher shows us how the bardos can be used to conquer death. Working with the bardos means taking hold of life and learning how to live with fearless abandon, and Mind Beyond Death demonstrates that the secret to a good journey through death and beyond lies in how we live. Walking skillfully through the bardos of dream, meditation, and daily life, we then travel deep into the mysterious death intervals and become familiar with their dazzling mindscape. This tour de force gives us the knowledge to transform the greatest obstacle of death into the most powerful opportunity for enlightenment.

    He taught that Zen is not about achieving a goal, but about acting spontaneously from "don't-know mind." It is from this "before-thinking" nature, he taught, that true compassion and the desire to serve others naturally arises. This collection of teaching stories, talks, and spontaneous dialogues with students offers readers a fresh and immediate encounter with one of the great Zen masters of the twentieth century.

    In an instant they can bring us down or lift us up. If we don't attend to the mind, the source of all our thoughts and emotions, it can seem like a runaway train. Yet when guided by wisdom, our mind can lead us to awakening. How do we utilize this resource? The Buddha asked big questions concerning the causes and conditions of happiness and suffering and how we can shape our mind and attitude to support our well-being. According to the Buddhist teachings, when our natural intelligence is sparked by contemplation and meditation, we discover insights into what true happiness means—and how to achieve it. The distilled wisdom of the Buddhist tradition leads us to clarity of mind, and step by step, the light of our natural intelligence comes through. With the humor and insight he is known for, Dzigar Kongtrül engages us in a playful, and challenging, investigation of disturbing emotions, our relationships with others, the trap of self-centeredness, and the practicalities of working with a Buddhist teacher. Most important, he shows us the subtlest use of our own natural intelligence—its ability to recognize the nature of reality itself.

    She says, "Think of all the time you've wasted hesitating or feeling distracted, or expending useless energy feeling jealous or angry, or being selfish. At the time of death, you'll look back and it will all seem like a dream." The book includes contemplative exercises that encourage us to appreciate the tremendous potential of the human body and mind. They focus on how we can learn to see this life as a gift—and how, by achieving peace in our own lives, we can bring a seed of happiness to other people. Although raised in Asia, Khandro Rinpoche is well-versed in Western culture, which allows her to translate Tibetan Buddhist wisdom to Westerners with remarkable authenticity and immediacy. She is also one the most highly trained living Tibetan masters and has been teaching in the United States and Europe for over fifteen years, during which time she has attracted thousands of students. She brings a unique feminine perspective to the wisdom tradition of Tibetan Buddhism.

    In Stilling the Mind, he uses the wisdom of Dzogchen--the highest of all the meditation traditions--to open up the shamatha practice into a space of vast freedom. Here, Wallace introduces us to Dudjom Lingpa's Vajra Essence, one of the most cherished works of the Nyingma school from which Dzogchen stems. With his trademark enthusiasm and keen intelligence, Wallace makes obscure concepts intelligible to contemporary readers and allows us to glimpse the profound realizations of a great nineteenth-century spiritual adept.

    That's the premise of this book: how to cook what Zen Buddhists call "the supreme meal"—life. It has to be nourishing, and it has to be shared. And we can use only the ingredients at hand. Inspired by the thirteenth-century manual of the same name by Dogen, the founder of the Japanese Soto Zen tradition, this book teaches us how we can "enlarge the family we're feeding" if we just use some imagination. Bernie Glassman founded Greyston Bakery in Yonkers, New York, in 1982 to employ those whom other companies deem unemployable—the homeless, ex-cons, recovering addicts, low-skill individuals—with the belief that investing in people, and not just products, does pay. He was right. Greyston has evolved into an $8 million-a-year business with clients all over New York City. It is the sole supplier of brownies to Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream, and has even sold cakes to the White House. But financial profit is only one of two bottom lines that Greyston is committed to. The other one is social impact, and this goal is certainly being met. The bakery enterprise has led to the creation of the Greyston Foundation, an integrated network of organizations that provide affordable housing, child care, counseling services, and health care to families in the community. Using entrepreneurship to solve the problems of the inner city, Greyston has become a national model for comprehensive community development. Its giving back is more than just sloughing off a percentage of its profits and donating it to charity; it's about working with the community's needs right from the beginning—bringing them from the margins to the core. As its company motto goes, "We don't hire people to bake brownies. We bake brownies to hire people." This book is as much a self-manual as a business manual, addressing such concepts as    • Beginner's mind    • The Middle Way of Sustainability    • The "hungry ghosts" of Buddhism as a picture of all humanity    • Working with our faults    • Indra's Net and the interconnectedness of life    • Leaving no trace

    These captivating stories, legends and yarns — passed orally from teacher to student — capture the vibrant wisdom of an ancient and still-living oral tradition. Magical, whimsical, witty and ribald, The Snow Lion's Turquoise Mane unfolds a luminous vision of a universe where basic goodness, harmony, and hope prevails.

    Presents Buddhist teachings on a wide range of social and moral issues in the modern world.

    It asks that spiritual seekers wake up to their true nature, which is already enlightened. Based on the Buddhist wisdom tradition, this easy-to-read book discusses in simple but profound and inspiring language how we can live a life full of love, satisfaction, and happiness. Anam Thubten, an accomplished Tibetan Buddhist meditation teacher, speaks with clarity, humor, and refreshing honesty as he shares his own spiritual journey. With profound knowledge and insight into the human condition, he illuminates the path to enlightenment for those willing to go to the heart of the matter.