Neither the boy nor his family has been seen since. His devotees believe him to be the eleventh incarnation of the Panchen Lama, the second most important incarnation in the Tibetan Buddhist hierarchy.In The Search for the Pachen Lama, Isabel Hilton tells the enthralling inside story of how this boy became the innocent prize in a battle between the Chinese regime and the Dalai Lama. Starting with the death of the last Panchen Lama, she describes the intrigue surrounding the race to choose Tibet's future religious leader, a decision of enormous importance in the politically charged climate of Tibet. Traveling from the Dalai Lama's headquarters in India to all-but-inaccessible monasteries and villages in the Himalayas, Hilton probes beneath the surface of a society living grudgingly under Chinese rule. Throughout, she balances her taut narrative against the fascinating history of Tibet's high lamas, illuminating the unique role religion has played in shaping Tibetan culture and Tibet's uneasy relationship with China.Combining history, travel, and politics, The Search for the Panchen Lama offers an extraordinarily gripping and original window on to a fascinating land.

    John Blofeld’s classic study traces the history of this most famous of all the bodhisattvas from her origins in India (as the male figure Avalokiteshvara) to Tibet, China, and beyond, along the way highlighting her close connection to other figures such as Tara and Amitabha. The account is full of charming stories of Blofeld’s encounters with Kuan Yin’s devotees during his journeys in China. The book also contains meditation and visualization techniques associated with the Bodhisattva of Compassion, and translations of poems and yogic texts devoted to her.

    It is an honest account of one man’s journey to complete abandonment of ‘the self’ and the Western principles that we use to define ourselves. Professor Herrigel imparts knowledge from his experiences and guides the reader through physical and spiritual lessons in a clear and insightful way.Mastering archery is not the key to achieving Zen, and this is not a practical guide to archery. It is more a guide to Zen principles and learning and perfect for practitioners and non-practitioners alike.

    Essays, poems, photographs, and letters explore the link between Buddhism and the Beats--with previously unpublished material from several beat writers, including Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Gary Snyder, and Diane diPrima.

    This is a radiant and deeply moving account of a "true pilgrimage, a journey of the heart."

    Macy's autobiography reads like a novel as she relates her multi-faceted life experiences and reflects on how her marriage and family life enriched her service to the world.Macy's formative years with an abusive father and oppressed mother set her on an irrevocable path of self-definition and independence. A short-lived stint with the CIA exposed Macy first hand to the Cold War's darkest threats: the construction of the hydrogen bomb and the building of the Berlin Wall. With three children in tow, Macy and her husband traveled with the Peace Corps to Africa, India, and Tibet, where her encounter with the Dalai Lama and Buddhism led to Macy's life-long embrace of the religion and a deep commitment to the peace and environmental movements.In Widening Circles, the unique synthesis of spiritualism and activism that define Macy's contribution to the world are illuminated by the life-events and experiences that have paved her uncommon path.

    And they have a natural affinity for Buddhism. This is a book for them-by one of them. Lodro Rinzler speaks the language of Generation O, as his compatriots are known, and he's a respected Buddhist teacher in his own right. His book is a complete introduction to Buddhism, without the cultural trappings, in language that anyone can understand but that will be especially appreciated by young people today under thirty. It's entertaining, chatty, and often funny, but also very serious. It's for anyone who wants to use the Buddha's teachings to awaken like he did.

    Magid invites us to consider that our "pursuit of happiness" may actually be a source of our suffering. He takes an unusual look at our "secret practices" - what we're really doing when we say we're meditating-like trying to feel calmer, or more compassionate, or even "enlightened" (whatever we imagine that means!). He also uncovers our "curative fantasies" about spiritual practice - those ideas that we can somehow fix all the messy human things about ourselves that we imagine are bad or wrong or unacceptable. In doing so, he helps us look squarely at-and avoid-such pitfalls. Along the way, Magid lays out a rich roadmap of the new "psychological-minded Zen" - a Zen that includes our entire life, our entire personality - as pioneered by his teacher, bestselling author Charlotte Joko Beck.

    But that's easier said than done. Here Pema Chodron introduces a powerful, transformative method to nurture these qualities using a practice called lojong, which has been a primary focus of her teachings and personal practice for many years. And for centuries, Tibetan Buddhists have relied on these teachings to awaken the deep goodness that lies within us. The lojong teachings include fifty-nine pithy slogans for daily contemplation, such as -Always maintain only a joyful mind, - -Don't be swayed by external circumstances, - -Don't try to be the fastest, - and -Be grateful to everyone.- This book presents each of these slogans and includes Pema's clear, succinct guidance on how to understand them--and how they can enrich our lives. It also features a forty-five minute downloadable audio program entitled -Opening the Heart, - in which Pema offers in-depth instruction on tonglen meditation, a powerful practice that anyone can undertake to awaken compassion for oneself and others.

    Whether we have just begun our journey or are a practitioner with more experience, What is the Dharma? is an indispensable exploration of the Buddha's teachings as found in the main Buddhist traditions. Constantly returning to the question 'How can this help me?' Sangharakshita examines a variety of fundamental principles, including: karma and re-birth, nirvana and shunyata,conditioned co-production, impermanence, unsatisfactoriness and insubstantiality, ethics, meditation, and wisdom. The result is a refreshing, unsettling, and inspiring book that lays before us the essential Dharma, timeless and universal.

    Gary immortalized what he learned in the books of his best-selling series: The Disappearance of the Universe, Your Immortal Reality, and Love Has Forgotten No One. This fourth book is a companion to the original trilogy, yet written to stand alone, an invitation for new readers into this fascinating work.This book explores six of the lifetimes in which the incarnations of Jesus and Buddha lived together, beginning in 700 B.C. when they were known as Saka and Hiroji. Arten and Pursah, through the spiritual lessons that Jesus and Buddha learn on their path, clarify the difference between duality and nonduality. When you are able to internalize these lessons, you will be saved countless years in your spiritual development.

    But there is another question Good Life, Good Death asks us to contemplate: how does the idea of life after death affect how we live our lives? Gelek Rimpoche tells stories of the mystical Tibet he lived in, as well as the contemporary America he is now a citizen of, and shares the wisdom of the great masters. He asks us to open our minds and see if we can entertain a bigger picture of life after life, even for a moment. He makes the connection between powerful emotions such as anger, obsession, jealousy and pride, and our past as well as our future.

    Govinda's luminous and candid account is a spectacular and gloriously poetic story of exploration and discovery, and a sensitive and lucid interpretation of Tibetan traditions. Comprised of elements from several genres - spiritual journals, adventure narratives, anthropological field reports, and philosophical commentaries, The Way of the White Clouds is one of the twentieth century's classic spiritual autobiographies and an invaluable document about a place and a way of thinking that are virtually defined by their mysteries." Robert Thurman's perceptive new introduction to the volume places Govinda's writings in historical context and expands understanding of Tibet, Buddhism, and the life of a remarkable man.

    Yet most Westerners know little about this powerful, Eastern-spawned faith. How did it begin? What do its adherents believe? Why are so many Westerners drawn to it? Essential Buddhism responds to these questions and many more, offering an accessible, global perspective on the religion's past, present, and future. It identifies how the principal concepts and practices originated and evolved through diverse cultural adaptations into three basic formats: * Theraveda (including Vipassana, brought from Vietnam in the 1960s and including such practitioners as Jack Kornfield and Jon Kapat-Zinn) * Mahayana (including Zen Buddhism, originally brought to America by Japanese teachers after World War II and popularized by Jack Kerouac and Thomas Merton) * Vajrayana (including Tibetan Buddhism, from the teachers who fled the Chinese takeover of Tibet in the 1950s as well as the Dalai Lama, and embraced by Allen Ginsberg, Richard Gere, and countless others) Essential Buddhism is the single best resource for the novice and the expert alike, exploring the depths of Buddhism's popularity and illuminating its tenets and sensible approach to living. Written in the lucid prose of a longtime professional storyteller, and full of Buddhist tales, scriptural quotes, ancient stories, and contemporary insights, Essential Buddhism is the first complete guide to the faith and the phenomenon.

    In drawing parallels between preparing meals for the Zen monastery and spiritual training, he reveals far more than simply the rules and manners of the Zen kitchen; he teaches us how to "cook," or refine our lives. In this volume Kosho Uchiyama Roshi undertakes the task of elucidating Dogen's text for the benefit of modern-day readers of Zen. Taken together, his translation and commentary truly constitute a "cookbook for life," one that shows us how to live with an unbiased mind in the midst of our workaday world.