Tibetan Buddhism Books

Book SynopsisThis unique book reveals the existence of an advanced civilization where none was known before, presenting an entirely new perspective on the culture and history of Tibet. In his groundbreaking study of an epic period in Tibet few people even knew existed, John Vincent Bellezza details the discovery of an ancient people on the most desolate reaches of the Tibetan plateau, revolutionizing our ideas about who Tibetans really are. While many associate Tibet with Buddhism, it was also once a land of warriors and chariots, whose burials included megalithic arrays and golden masks. This first Tibetan civilization, known as Zhang Zhung, was a cosmopolitan one with links extending across Eurasia, bringing it in line with many of the major cultural innovations of the Late Bronze Age and Iron Age. Based on decades of research, The Dawn of Tibet draws on a rich trove of archaeological, textual, and ethnographic materials collected and analyzed by the author. Bellezza describes the vast network ofTrade ReviewThis fascinating read is an effort to bridge the gap between prehistory and history and resurrect the long-lost cultural links between Central Tibet and Upper Tibet. In chronicling this long-lost civilization, Bellezza braves the challenges of inclement weather and rugged terrain and assiduously explores the mountains, lakes, rivers, tombs, citadels, shrines, and temples that define the geography and rituals of the remote highlands of the Tibetan frontier. Notwithstanding the paucity of historical details, Bellezza maps the region by drawing upon oral traditions, decoding religious texts, exploring remote archaeological sites, and narrating/memorializing fantastic folk literatures to reveal the central characteristics of the land and its people. In showing the linkages between the Lamaist traditions of Central Tibet and the Eternal Bon practices of the Tibetan highlands, the author encourages the renegotiation of the roots of Tibetan identity and self-understanding. The true value of this research can be assessed in light of the damages wrought by environmental changes, the policies and neglect by the People's Republic of China, and the unsavory activities of opportunists in the highlands of Tibet. This admirable addition to the field of Tibetology is a plea to preserve the ancient archaeological sites of Upper Tibet before they are lost to posterity. Summing Up: Recommended. Graduate students, faculty, researchers, and anyone interested in Tibetan studies. * CHOICE *John Vincent Bellezza’s lifelong project to explore and document the religion and culture of Tibet’s earliest, pre-Buddhist civilization, is uniquely ambitious. In a series of publications he has used the techniques of archaeology, anthropology and textual scholarship to shed light on this world, obscured as it is by the passage of time and the dominance of Buddhism in Tibetan culture for the last thousand years. Bellezza is particularly interested in the civilization known to Tibetan tradition as Zhang Zhung, which was based in western Tibet, also known as Upper Tibet. . . .The Dawn of Tibet is the best introduction to his work so far. * The Silk Road *The Dawn of Tibet presents the cumulative efforts and progression of a seasoned scholar going beyond what archaeology is able to provide, armed with the support of literature, history, religion, and ritual customs. This is a work for a general audience.... The Dawn of Tibet takes the reader on a journey that is not one of linearity, but one that spreads out in several directions until meeting at one point. It also has much to offer the scholar with its insights on Tibetan civilization and thus stretches beyond the confines of the familiar, creating a complex journey of discovery. * Asian Highlands Perspectives *John Bellezza is one of a vanishing breed of scholars, an independent archaeological explorer whose work is pioneering in the truest sense of the word. His expeditions over the course of decades to the remotest and least-known regions of Tibet have unearthed a precious body of evidence for the interpretation of Tibet before Buddhism, with profound consequences for our understanding of the Tibetan world. -- Stephen Jenkins, Humboldt State UniversityFor over two decades John Bellezza has supplied the scientific community with spectacular findings from the historically little-explored world of Upper Tibet. His unique contacts with locals through many years of extensive travels throughout the western and northern plateau have given him access to hundreds of cultural sites, many of them clearly of prehistoric origin. Comparative analysis of these sites has led him to the recognition of an advanced early Metal Age civilization in Upper Tibet going back to c.1000 BCE. Regardless the caution of some researchers concerning the author’s suggested shared genealogy of this complex with the entities of the historical Zhang Zhung and Bon, these meticulously recorded discoveries remain outstanding testimonies to Tibet’s prehistoric cultural history. This insightful book recapitulates the key points of Bellezza’s long survey of this ancient world. Combining extensive references to later, mainly non-Buddhist or Zhang Zhung-related textual sources and ethnographic details of the traditional life of Upper Tibet’s nomadic communities, The Dawn of Tibet is a must for anyone interested in the cultures of the Tibetan highlands beyond their Buddhist horizons. -- Guntram Hazod, Austrian Academy of Sciences, ViennaTable of ContentsIntroduction Chapter 1: Discovering the First Civilization of Tibet Chapter 2: The Great Sky Realm: The Land of Upper Tibet Chapter 3: Tillers and Herders, Warriors and Saints: The People of Upper Tibet Chapter 4: From Sky to Earth: The History of Zhang Zhung Chapter 5: Touching the Sky: The Citadel and Temples of Zhang Zhung Chapter 6: Penetrating the Earth: The Burial Grounds of Zhang Zhung Chapter 7: Flesh, Blood, and Bones in Stone: The Artistic Treasures of Zhang Zhung Chapter 8: Father Sky Eagle and Mother Earth Serpent: The Religion of Zhang Zhung Chapter 9: Horned Heroes and Turquoise Maidens: The Cultural Life of Zhang Zhung Chapter 10: My Ancestors, My Gods: Zhang Zhung Reigns in Contemporary Upper Tibet Conclusion Bibliography

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Book SynopsisIn conversation with His Holiness the Dalai Lama. In April of 2006, the prominent Japanese cultural anthropologist Noriyuki Ueda sat down with the Dalai Lama for a two day conversation. This book is based on that long and lively conversation in Dharamsala. In this little book, the two men explore whether there is a place in religious practice for anger against social injustice, the role of competition in spiritual life, conditional versus unconditional love, and the soullessness of materialism.One of the real pleasures of this book is the Dalai Lama''s uncharacteristic candor. For example:''I am not only a socialist but also a bit of a leftist, a Communist.''''I hold the position of a high monk, a big lama. Unless I exercise self restraint, there is every possibility for me to exploit others.''He also argues that rather than suppressing anger, Buddhism embraces using anger to precipitate social change. In other words anger can be an im

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Book SynopsisThe Tibetan Book of the Dead, a best-seller for three decades, is one of the most widely read texts of Tibetan Buddhism. Over the years, it has been studied and cherished by Buddhists and non-Buddhists alike. Luminous Emptiness is a detailed guide to this classic work, elucidating its mysterious concepts, terms, and imagery. Fremantle relates the symbolic world of the Tibetan Book of the Dead to the experiences of everyday life, presenting the text not as a scripture for the dying, but as a guide for the living. According to the Buddhist view, nothing is permanent or fixed. The entire world of our experience is constantly appearing and disappearing at every moment. Using vivid and dramatic imagery, the Tibetan Book of the Dead presents the notion that most of us are living in a dream that will continue from lifetime to lifetime until we truly awaken by becoming enlightened. Here, Fremantle, who worked closely with Chögyam Trungpa on the 1975 translation of the Tibetan Book of the Dead (Shambhala), brings the expertise of a lifetime of study to rendering this intriguing classic more accessible and meaningful to the living. Luminous Emptiness features in-depth explanations of:    •  The Tibetan Buddhist notions of death and rebirth    •  The meaning of the five energies and the five elements in Tibetan Buddhism    •  The mental and physical experience of dying, according to the Tibetan Buddhist tradition

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Book SynopsisCentral to Buddhism is knowing our own minds. Until we do, we are driven by unconscious, often destructive desire and aversion.The Fourteenth Dalai Lama?s Stages of the Path: An Annotated Commentary on the Fifth Dalai Lama''s Oral Transmission of Mañjusri is the second volume of the Dalai Lama?s outline of Buddhist theory and practice. Having introduced Buddhist ideas in the context of modern society in volume one, the Dalai Lama turns here to a traditional presentation of the complete path to enlightenment, from developing faith in the Dharma to attaining the highest wisdom. This book, compiled by the revered Tibetan lama Dagyab Rinpoché, comments on the Fifth Dalai Lama?s stages of the path titled Oral Transmission of Mañjusri. The volume will appeal to all readers interested in the Dalai Lama?s works, both those new to Buddhism and those looking to deepen their understanding of the Tibetan presentation of the Buddhist path.

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Book SynopsisThis book examines the lived experiences of oppression and opportunities encountered by contemporary Tibetan Buddhist nuns living in the People’s Republic of China and the Tibetan exile community in India. It investigates how the intersections of the nuns’ female gender, their Buddhist religion and their Tibetan nationality on the one hand produce subordination and an unequal distribution of power but, on the other, provide the nuns with opportunities and agency. Depending on the intersection of her status positions, the Tibetan nun can be either disadvantaged or privileged, and sometimes both at the same time. Power structures and relations that disadvantage nuns as women, as religious practitioners, and as Tibetans, are constructed and maintained in different domains of power. In the structural domain, traditional but still dominant institutions – such as the distribution of work, marriage, educational practices and religious institutions – disadvantage Tibetan nuns. In the disciplinary domain of power, the nuns are monitored by traditional culture and the Chinese authorities. The unequal distribution of power in these domains is justified by hegemonic ideas based on religious and cultural beliefs, ideas of religion and modernity, and religion and gender. These domains of power find their expression in the everyday life in the interpersonal sphere. Analysis also reveals that many nuns were highly active in choosing and determining their life course. Monastic life offers Tibetan women freedom from the suffering faced by laywomen. The juncture of their gender, religion and nationality also provides them with agency in their nationalism, which is both visible and more subtle. Monastic life also offers them religious agency as compassionate bodhisattvas, who aim to not only benefit other living beings but also themselves.Table of ContentsSection I: Introduction Tibetan Women - “Extraordinarily Liberated” or “Shockingly Oppressed?” Intersectionality: A Theory and a Method Doing Research in the Contested Tibetan Field Section II: From Laity to Monastic Life The Idea of Nunhood Matures Donning the Robes Finding a Place to Stay Life as a Nun Section III: Tibetan Nuns in Domains of Power Macro-level Connections of Gender, Religion and Nationality Oppressive Social Institutions of Tibet-China Internalized and Forced Discipline Hegemonic Ideologies and Doctrines Domination in Everyday Practices Section IV: Opportunities in Monastic Life Agencies and Opportunities Freedom in Monasticism Agency as Resistance Agency as Cultural Maintenance Compassionate Agency Increasing Opportunities Section V: Conclusion Between Oppression and Opportunities

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Book SynopsisThe Passion Book is the most famous work of erotica in the vast literature of Tibetan Buddhism, written by the legendary scholar and poet Gendun Chopel (19031951).

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a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

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a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewA pleasure to read. Buddhadharma Stimulating. Nature An excellent presentation of what can happen when intelligent, open minds sit down together with the goal of mutual understanding and betterment. -- Sameet Kumar PsyCritiquesTable of ContentsAcknowledgments Introduction 1. How Real Are the Elementary Particles? 2. The Emergence of Complexity; and an Interview with Matthieu Ricard 3. Toward the Complexity of Life 4. How Life Unfolds; and an Interview with Richard Gere 5. The Magic of the Human Genome and Its Ethical Problems; and an Interview with His Holiness the Karmapa 6. From Consciousness to Ethics 7. Last Words About the Mind and Life Institute Notes Index

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewHis writing is fluid and at times witty, and the density of the book's detail calls for a close reading...a lively and significant study... -- Michael J. Sweet Buddhadharma Well-written Library Journal A 'must-read' book Practical Matters A detailed and engrossing story about this enigmatic figure's life. -- David M. DiValerio Journal of Buddhist Ethics Hackett's sympathetic account is a page-turner, meticulously documented over a number of years... Well-written... A readable intellectual account of the life of an ambitious Tibetological pioneer. Asian Ethnology Hackett's work is excellently detailed... [his] construction of Theos' story is so interesting it reads both as a novel and as an academic biography. Nova ReligioTable of ContentsList of Illustrations Preface Acknowledgments 1. Life in the Desert 2. New York and New Mexico 3. Two Parallel Paths (I) 4. Two Parallel Paths (II) 5. On Holy Ground 6. Pretense and Pretext: Studies in India 7. A Well-Trodden Path: Studies in Darjeeling and Sikkim 8. Tibet, Tantrikas, and the Hero of Chaksam Ferry 9." The Clipper Ship of the Imagination" 10. Yoga on Fifth Avenue 11. Tibetland and the Penthouse of the Gods 12. To Climb the Highest Mountains 13. The Aftermath 14. Postscript: The View from Ki, Sixty Years Later Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewHis writing is fluid and at times witty, and the density of the book's detail calls for a close reading...a lively and significant study... -- Michael J. Sweet Buddhadharma Well-written Library Journal A 'must-read' book Practical Matters A detailed and engrossing story about this enigmatic figure's life. -- David M. DiValerio Journal of Buddhist Ethics Hackett's sympathetic account is a page-turner, meticulously documented over a number of years... Well-written... A readable intellectual account of the life of an ambitious Tibetological pioneer. Asian Ethnology Hackett's work is excellently detailed... [his] construction of Theos' story is so interesting it reads both as a novel and as an academic biography. Nova ReligioTable of ContentsList of Illustrations Preface Acknowledgments 1. Life in the Desert 2. New York and New Mexico 3. Two Parallel Paths (I) 4. Two Parallel Paths (II) 5. On Holy Ground 6. Pretense and Pretext: Studies in India 7. A Well-Trodden Path: Studies in Darjeeling and Sikkim 8. Tibet, Tantrikas, and the Hero of Chaksam Ferry 9." The Clipper Ship of the Imagination" 10. Yoga on Fifth Avenue 11. Tibetland and the Penthouse of the Gods 12. To Climb the Highest Mountains 13. The Aftermath 14. Postscript: The View from Ki, Sixty Years Later Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisA definitive account of the efforts by Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush, and other conservatives to remake American politics, the American economy, and America’s approach to the world in a pivotal decade.Trade ReviewAn amazing book and a stellar contribution to Columbia University Press's growing catalog of Tibetan and Tibetan Buddhist studies, for it will be the key book on medicine and religion in Tibet for this generation. Like Janet Gyatso's book on autobiography, her new book on medicine will simply be field defining. Little of this literature has received attention to date, and in fact much of it has only been available to a contemporary international scholarly audience for a decade or so. -- Kurtis R. Schaeffer, University of Virginia Janet Gyatso's long-awaited Being Human in a Buddhist World is the most important study of Tibetan medicine in the English language, surpassing previous scholarship in the scope of its history, the extent of its research, and the depth of its insights. Yet it is also more than that. It is the rare work that causes us to rethink the foundations of our field, leaving readers with both answers and questions about what is encompassed by terms like 'Tibetan Buddhism' and 'medical science.' -- Donald Lopez, University of Michigan This book is a fascinating, lucid, and profound exploration of the history in Tibet of the mentality and practices, both empirical and discursive, of probative medicine within the context of Buddhist civilization, a concept introduced and used as a more broad category than that of a 'Buddhism' concerned primarily with ideals of human perfection and supernatural realms. Moving deftly between fine-grained analysis of textual and visual materials from the seventh to seventeenth centuries and an open-ended discussion of large-scale historical and cultural issues, the book makes a significant contribution not only to Tibetan and Buddhist studies but also to current debates on the historiography and philosophy of the interactions and conflicts between religion and science. -- Steven Collins, University of Chicago Janet Gyatso's book is an extraordinarily sophisticated presentation of the history of Tibetan Buddhist medical practice from the inside out-an account that is deeply grounded in Tibetan language sources while never losing sight of key analytical, historical, and methodological questions pertinent to recent debates in the history of medicine and Buddhist studies, not to mention wider studies in the history of culture and literature in South Asia and beyond. This book will be a landmark in the study of South Asian medical traditions. What distinguishes it from other studies is its complexity of vision. It deftly traces the surprising entanglements of Buddhist doctrine, state patronage, and social power with both scholastic medical traditions and medical practitioners on the ground to give us a historical picture that is compellingly nuanced and refreshingly open-clearing the path for future research. -- Daud Ali, University of Pennsylvania A fascinating intellectual history by a mature scholar at the top of her game. Choice Written in a brilliant style, with engaging language... This exceptional work is an inspiring and valuable contribution to a broad range of medical discourses reaching well beyond the world of Tibetan medicine. Isis [Gyatso's] breadth of erudition is matched by the clarity and sophistication with which she frames and explicates her subject matter. Bulletin of the History of Medicine This is a major contribution to the field, and deserves to be widely read. Social History of Medicine Lucid and eloquent... [Being Human in a Buddhist World] is a major contribution to the broader issues of science-religion themes in Asian medicine, and will clearly be outstanding among the works on the history of Tibetan medicine for a long time to come. -- Barbara Gerke Himalaya: The Journal of the Association for Nepal and Himalayan Studies [Being Human in a Buddhist World] greatly increases our understanding of Tibetan medical history, and could complement well readings in a graduate course on the history of science or medicine in Asia. -- Ryan John Jones Religious Studies Review Bridging studies of religion, science, and medicine, Being Human in a Buddhist World will be a valuable resource for scholars interested in thinking through these topics comparatively within and beyond Asian studies. The book will be valued by specialists and in graduate courses for its contributions to Buddhist studies and Tibetan studies, including an overview of the complex Tibetan system of tantric anatomy. At the same time, this intellectual history draws attention to the dearth of social histories of Tibet, and in particular Tibetan medical culture, which might shed further light on the rhetorical contradictions Gyatso identifies among Tibetan medical scholars. -- Stacey Van Vleet Journal of Asian Studies This major publication, the fruit of many years' work and engagement with key sources in the historical development of Tibetan medicine, is likely to remain a landmark in the study of Tibetan medical thought. -- Cathy Cantwell Revue d'Etudes TibetainesTable of ContentsList of Illustrations Acknowledgments A Technical Note Abbreviations Introduction Part I: In the Capital 1. Reading Paintings, Painting the Medical, Medicalizing the State 2. Anatomy of an Attitude: Medicine Comes of Age Part II: Bones of Contention 3. The Word of the Buddha 4. The Evidence of the Body: Medical Channels. Tantric Knowing 5. Tangled Up in System: The Heart, in the Text and in the Hand Coda: Influence, Rhetoric, and Riding Two Horses at Once Part III: Roots of the Profession 6. Women and Gender 7. The Ethics of Being Human: The Doctor's Formation in a Material Realm Conclusion: Ways and Means for Medicine Notes Bibliographies Index

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Book SynopsisFollows the evolution of Tibetan Buddhism’s trülku (reincarnation) tradition from the seventeenth to the nineteenth centuries, along with the Emperor of China’s efforts to control its developmentTrade ReviewThe most accessible, archives-based survey of modern Tibetan history ever to be written. -- Gray Tuttle, Columbia University A timely book that fills a vacuum in the study of Tibet's history. Schwieger provides an excellent analysis of the evolution of the institution of the Dalai Lama, particularly the Dalai Lama's relationship with the Chinese emperors, that goes beyond the generalized and accepted view of the relationship as symbolic. -- Tsering Shakya, president of the International Association of Tibetan Studies The Dalai Lama and the Emperor of China marks a coming-of-age for Tibetan historical studies, complementing the New Qing History of the past several decades. Peter Schwieger brings precision to our understanding of Tibet's central political institution, that of the Dalai Lama, reaching beyond earlier scholarship thanks to his innovative and thorough use of archival sources. His work is essential reading for students of early modern relations among Tibet, Mongolia, and the Manchu empire. -- Matthew Kapstein, EPHE, Paris, and the University of Chicago There is much to discover in this rich, informative volume. Skillfully handling the new sources and documents at his disposal, Schwieger has written a book that is essential reading for anyone, specialist and nonspecialist, interested in the rise of the Dalai Lamas and their relations with Mongols, Manchus, and the Qing state. -- Elliot Sperling, Indiana University The originality of this remarkable book lies in the central position it accords to Tibetan documents-letters, edicts, petitions-written at the time of the events to which they relate, giving the reader an unprecedented front-row view of history as it unfolds: things do indeed look very different from this close. Schwieger's mastery of the intractable style of these official sources is matched by a well-trained caution in interpretation, a complete absence of political bias, and the ability to transform eight centuries of complex machinations into a gripping account that will appeal to a readership well beyond the field of Tibetan studies. -- Charles Ramble, EcolePratique des Hautes Etudes, Paris Schwieger's groundbreaking treatment of Tibetan political and religious history offers a new approach to understanding the development of the trulku (reincarnate lama) tradition... Indispensable reading for some upper-level undergraduates and for graduate students and faculty interested in Tibetan religious and political history. Choice The most well-researched, comprehensive book on the modern history of Tibet to be published to date. Reading Religion Accessible... engaging and easy to read. The book is a great addition to any undergraduate or graduate course on the history of Inner Asia, Tibet, and Late Imperial China. -- Ryan John Jones Religious Studies Review [The Dalai Lama and the Emperor of China] does Tibetan studies a great service... An essential resource. -- Max Oidtmann The Journal of Asian StudiesTable of ContentsPreface Introduction 1. The Historical Development of the Trulku Position 2. A Trulku as the Head of Society 3. Struggle for Buddhist Government 4. The Emperor Takes Control 5. Buddhist Government Under the Imperial Umbrella 6. Imperial Authority Over the Trulku Institution 7. The Aftermath Conclusion Appendix 1: Tibetan Reincarnation Lines of Major Political Significance Appendix 2: Qing Emperors and Qoshot Kings of Tibet Abbreviations Notes Tibetan Orthographic Equivalents Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewThe Gathering of Intentions makes a valuable contribution to the field of Tibetan and Buddhist studies and will attract nonacademic readers who are interested in learning about the practice of Tibetan Buddhism. The organization of the book is thoughtfully crafted, the content coverage thorough and wide-ranging, the scholarship superb, and the arguments clear and persuasive. -- Bryan J. Cuevas, author of Travels in the Netherworld: Buddhist Popular Narratives of Death and the Afterlife in Tibet The Gathering of Intentions is an essential contribution to the study of Tibetan Buddhism. This learned and lucid book is an important, insightful, and groundbreaking study of a worthy subject that takes a valuable historical approach to interpreting the development of a Tibetan Buddhist tradition over an extended period of time. In so doing, it provides critical perspectives on both the distinctive moments it explores and the long-term impact of a quietly influential scriptural tradition. -- Christian K. Wedemeyer, author of Making Sense of Tantric Buddhism: History, Semiology, and Transgression in the Indian Traditions The Gathering of Intentions takes a single tantra and shows how it has been at the center of the religious life of practitioners of the Nyingma tradition of Tibet, from the wandering yogins of the tenth century to the Fifth Dalai Lama in the seventeenth and the Tibetan exile communities of the present day. One of the best things about this fascinating book is how Dalton brings together the earliest sources for understanding Tibetan Buddhism with the living, breathing tradition as it exists today in Tibet and across the world. -- Sam van Schaik, author of Tibet: A History Dalton illuminates an important and understudied Buddhist tradition... A useful case study for those interestd in the history of religions in general as well as a valuable resource for students and scholars of Tibetan religion and history. Highly recommended. CHOICE Dalton deserves great praise for his scholarship, historical research and crisp writing. Sumeru This volume prioritizes Tibetan Buddhism's ritual systems for a richer portrait of the tradition. Buddhism Now This book [is] a very valuable contribution to the study of Tibetan Buddhism. BizIndiaTable of ContentsPreface Introduction 1. Origins: Myth and History 2. The Gathering of Intentions in Early Tibetan Tantra 3. The Spoken Teachings 4. The Rise of the Sutra Initiation 5. Dorje Drak and the Formation of a New Lineage 6. The Mindroling Tradition 7. Returns to the Origin Appendix: The Four Root Tantras of Anuyoga Notes Glossary Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisA Qing law mandated that the reincarnations of prominent Tibetan Buddhist monks be identified by drawing lots from a golden urn. In Forging the Golden Urn, Max Oidtmann traces how a Chinese bureaucratic technology was exported to the Tibetan and Mongolian regions of the Qing empire and transformed into a ritual for authenticating reincarnations.Trade Review[Oidtmann’s] work is marked by an exemplary scholarly discipline. . . . What he brings to the table is an extensive insight into the thinking and debates over the Golden Urn’s introduction among the Manchu authorities, and most particularly those of the aging Qianlong emperor (1711–99) himself. -- Martin A. Mills * Journal of Asian Studies *An absorbing read for non-specialists. * Asian Review of Books *Sheds a thoroughly new light on Sino-Tibetan relations against the backdrop of Qing colonialism. * Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies *Max Oidtmann’s tour de force is in introducing the reader to the mysteries of both Manchu and Tibetan powers. [He] offers a remarkable and finely crafted study. * Inner Asia *Meticulously researched and skillfully argued. * Journal of Chinese History *Oidtmann’s eloquent and learned book is thus essential reading for anyone who wants to understand the Qing political order. -- Joseph Lawson * Modern Chinese Literature and Culture *[Forging the Golden Urn] serves as an outstanding model for how to avoid the anachronisms that tend to haunt the historical study of matters mired in contemporary polemics. -- James Gentry, University of Virginia * Journal of Chinese Religions *It is not insignificant that Oidtmann’s story brings together the disparate literary and cultural studies of Tibet and Qing China in an accessible and tidy monograph. -- J. Arya Moallem, Harvard University * Religious Studies Review *The most comprehensive examination of the Golden Urn question to-date. -- Massimo Introvigne * Bitter Winter *Not only does Max Oidtmann do an excellent job providing a captivating account of a famed religious implement in an imperial context, he also opens a valuable window on how Tibet existed as part of an empire during that time. * Reading Religion *The relationship between Qing China and Tibetan elites is explored in this fascinating work based on Manchu, Tibetan, and Chinese sources. * Choice *The book is a must-read for anyone interested in Qing-Tibet relations -- Lei Lin, Harvard University * Saksaha *An excellent and much-needed contribution to our knowledge of the politics of the Qing empire in Tibet. . . . A must-read not only for the historian of Tibet, but for anyone who wants to better understand the current Tibet-China conflict. * Chinese Historical Review *Max Oidtmann explores the impact of the golden urn ritual that the Qianlong emperor introduced in the early 1790s in order to—as he claimed—make the recognition of reincarnated lamas legitimate. The impact of this ritual innovation and its introduction into Tibet had profound consequences, not least regarding how it was subsequently interpreted by the Chinese on one side and the Tibetans and their Western supporters on the other. Oidtmann’s work steps deftly into this binary historiographical struggle and brilliantly shows that everything was not only far more complicated than either side claims, but also far more interesting. In doing so, Forging the Golden Urn queries the actual nature of Qing rule in Tibet. -- Johan Elverskog, Southern Methodist UniversityUsing new source material, Max Oidtmann’s Forging the Golden Urn opens a window to a better understanding of the dynamics that resulted in Tibet’s increasing incorporation into the Qing empire. Framing these imperial efforts as a legal enterprise first and foremost, Oidtmann provides a fresh approach to examine the Qing’s strategy for expanding and justifying its sovereignty. This excellent book—obviously a result of sound and careful research—is a major achievement. -- Peter Schwieger, University of BonnOidtmann’s book opens up new perspectives on the intricate relationship that existed toward the end of the eighteenth century between Lhasa and the Qing court. The presence of reincarnate lamas is a defining feature of Tibetan Buddhism; Oidtmann brilliantly details its political dimension and the way the Qianlong emperor and his court decided to introduce the golden urn as a means to control the process by which reincarnate lamas were selected. Forging the Golden Urn is a tour de force and should be required reading for anyone interested in the history of Tibet, Qing history, and the history of Inner Asia. -- Leonard van der Kuijp, Harvard UniversityAn immensely valuable work in the studies of Qing imperialism in Tibet. * China Review International *A deeply researched account of the politics of reincarnation...all nicely framed by an introduction and conclusion that draw out the larger significance of the politics of the urn in Inner Asia and beyond. * Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies *Table of ContentsPreface and AcknowledgmentsAbbreviationsIntroductionAct I: The Royal RegulationsAct II: Shamanic ColonialismAct III: Amdowas Speaking in CodeConclusion: Paradoxes of the Urn and the Limits of EmpireChronology of Key EventsList of Usages of the Golden Urn RitualTibetan Orthographic EquivalentsTranslation of the Qianlong Emperor’s Discourse on LamasNotesBibliographyIndex

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Book SynopsisA Qing law mandated that the reincarnations of prominent Tibetan Buddhist monks be identified by drawing lots from a golden urn. In Forging the Golden Urn, Max Oidtmann traces how a Chinese bureaucratic technology was exported to the Tibetan and Mongolian regions of the Qing empire and transformed into a ritual for authenticating reincarnations.Trade Review[Oidtmann’s] work is marked by an exemplary scholarly discipline. . . . What he brings to the table is an extensive insight into the thinking and debates over the Golden Urn’s introduction among the Manchu authorities, and most particularly those of the aging Qianlong emperor (1711–99) himself. -- Martin A. Mills * Journal of Asian Studies *An absorbing read for non-specialists. * Asian Review of Books *Sheds a thoroughly new light on Sino-Tibetan relations against the backdrop of Qing colonialism. * Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies *Max Oidtmann’s tour de force is in introducing the reader to the mysteries of both Manchu and Tibetan powers. [He] offers a remarkable and finely crafted study. * Inner Asia *Meticulously researched and skillfully argued. * Journal of Chinese History *Oidtmann’s eloquent and learned book is thus essential reading for anyone who wants to understand the Qing political order. -- Joseph Lawson * Modern Chinese Literature and Culture *[Forging the Golden Urn] serves as an outstanding model for how to avoid the anachronisms that tend to haunt the historical study of matters mired in contemporary polemics. -- James Gentry, University of Virginia * Journal of Chinese Religions *It is not insignificant that Oidtmann’s story brings together the disparate literary and cultural studies of Tibet and Qing China in an accessible and tidy monograph. -- J. Arya Moallem, Harvard University * Religious Studies Review *The most comprehensive examination of the Golden Urn question to-date. -- Massimo Introvigne * Bitter Winter *Not only does Max Oidtmann do an excellent job providing a captivating account of a famed religious implement in an imperial context, he also opens a valuable window on how Tibet existed as part of an empire during that time. * Reading Religion *The relationship between Qing China and Tibetan elites is explored in this fascinating work based on Manchu, Tibetan, and Chinese sources. * Choice *The book is a must-read for anyone interested in Qing-Tibet relations -- Lei Lin, Harvard University * Saksaha *An excellent and much-needed contribution to our knowledge of the politics of the Qing empire in Tibet. . . . A must-read not only for the historian of Tibet, but for anyone who wants to better understand the current Tibet-China conflict. * Chinese Historical Review *Max Oidtmann explores the impact of the golden urn ritual that the Qianlong emperor introduced in the early 1790s in order to—as he claimed—make the recognition of reincarnated lamas legitimate. The impact of this ritual innovation and its introduction into Tibet had profound consequences, not least regarding how it was subsequently interpreted by the Chinese on one side and the Tibetans and their Western supporters on the other. Oidtmann’s work steps deftly into this binary historiographical struggle and brilliantly shows that everything was not only far more complicated than either side claims, but also far more interesting. In doing so, Forging the Golden Urn queries the actual nature of Qing rule in Tibet. -- Johan Elverskog, Southern Methodist UniversityUsing new source material, Max Oidtmann’s Forging the Golden Urn opens a window to a better understanding of the dynamics that resulted in Tibet’s increasing incorporation into the Qing empire. Framing these imperial efforts as a legal enterprise first and foremost, Oidtmann provides a fresh approach to examine the Qing’s strategy for expanding and justifying its sovereignty. This excellent book—obviously a result of sound and careful research—is a major achievement. -- Peter Schwieger, University of BonnOidtmann’s book opens up new perspectives on the intricate relationship that existed toward the end of the eighteenth century between Lhasa and the Qing court. The presence of reincarnate lamas is a defining feature of Tibetan Buddhism; Oidtmann brilliantly details its political dimension and the way the Qianlong emperor and his court decided to introduce the golden urn as a means to control the process by which reincarnate lamas were selected. Forging the Golden Urn is a tour de force and should be required reading for anyone interested in the history of Tibet, Qing history, and the history of Inner Asia. -- Leonard van der Kuijp, Harvard UniversityAn immensely valuable work in the studies of Qing imperialism in Tibet. * China Review International *A deeply researched account of the politics of reincarnation...all nicely framed by an introduction and conclusion that draw out the larger significance of the politics of the urn in Inner Asia and beyond. * Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies *

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Book SynopsisLan Wu analyzes how Tibetan Buddhists and the Qing imperial rulers interacted and negotiated as both sought strategies to extend their influence in eighteenth-century Inner Asia. Revealing the interdependency of two expanding powers, Common Ground recasts the entangled histories of political, social, and cultural ties between Tibet and China.Trade ReviewCommon Ground brilliantly explores the entangled history of the Qing imperial enterprise and the Gelukpa expansion in East Asia, which produced a shared communal Buddhist identity. Lan Wu examines the transregional knowledge network woven by Buddhist intellectuals through monasteries, texts, and images, shedding light on the peripheral regions of Amdo and Inner Mongolia as well as cosmopolitan Beijing. -- Isabelle Charleux, author of Nomads on Pilgrimage: Mongols on Wutaishan (China), 1800–1940Common Ground is a significant addition to the study of late imperial China and Inner Asia. Reconfiguring the terms of the imperial encounter between Qing rulers and Tibetan lamas, it provides a critical contribution to discussions and interpretations of Buddhism as a rhetorical, intellectual, and political space. -- Nicola Di Cosmo, Institute for Advanced StudyCommon Ground delivers fresh perspectives on the formation of the Qing Empire from the vantage of its swelling Inner Asian frontier. Admirably, Lan Wu decenters court narratives in favor of “negotiated platforms” through which Tibetans, Mongols, Manchus, and Chinese actors made (and unmade) visions of sovereignty, territoriality, and belonging. -- Matthew King, author of Ocean of Milk, Ocean of Blood: A Mongolian Monk in the Ruins of the Qing EmpireLan Wu’s engaging and erudite study tours the key nodes of Buddhist Inner Asia, from Lhasa to Beijing. Each stop offers vivid insight into the social, intellectual, and institutional networks built by the Qing state and Buddhist clergy as they competed and cooperated – shaping in the process the trajectories of China, Mongolia, and Tibet. -- Matthew Mosca, author of From Frontier Policy to Foreign Policy: The Question of India and the Transformation of Geopolitics in Qing ChinaThis study by Lan Wu breaks important new ground, conceptually as well as historically. It focuses on the various ways in which the Gelukpa school of Tibetan Buddhism's Ganden Podrang government in Lhasa negotiated a political and a religious status quo with the Qing court in Beijing and vice versa. The book makes good on the promise that it seeks to capture "the changing dynamics in the space between the two epicenters of Beijing and Lhasa," the space being occupied by Tibetan Buddhist Inner Asia. The two principals were hardly equals, and Lan Wu deftly analyses the mise en scène of this "common ground" in which there was an obvious give and take by both parties, even if this was not always readily acknowledged by either one. This is a riveting book and a welcome addition to the growing number of studiesthat deal with the relationships that were forged between different Tibetan Buddhist and Manchu actors during the late seventeenth and eighteenth centuries in which of necessity the Mongols played an important if not a central role. -- Leonard W.J. van der Kuijp, Harvard UniversityProvides a unique perspective for understanding the flexible geopolitics strategy of the Qing dynasty. * Religious Studies Review *Table of ContentsAcknowledgmentsNote on Transliteration and TranslationIntroduction: Buddhist Inner Asia1. Campaigns2. Manufacturing3. Assemblies4. GovernanceEpilogue: A Balancing ActNotesBibliographyIndex

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Book SynopsisLan Wu analyzes how Tibetan Buddhists and the Qing imperial rulers interacted and negotiated as both sought strategies to extend their influence in eighteenth-century Inner Asia. Revealing the interdependency of two expanding powers, Common Ground recasts the entangled histories of political, social, and cultural ties between Tibet and China.Trade ReviewCommon Ground brilliantly explores the entangled history of the Qing imperial enterprise and the Gelukpa expansion in East Asia, which produced a shared communal Buddhist identity. Lan Wu examines the transregional knowledge network woven by Buddhist intellectuals through monasteries, texts, and images, shedding light on the peripheral regions of Amdo and Inner Mongolia as well as cosmopolitan Beijing. -- Isabelle Charleux, author of Nomads on Pilgrimage: Mongols on Wutaishan (China), 1800–1940Common Ground is a significant addition to the study of late imperial China and Inner Asia. Reconfiguring the terms of the imperial encounter between Qing rulers and Tibetan lamas, it provides a critical contribution to discussions and interpretations of Buddhism as a rhetorical, intellectual, and political space. -- Nicola Di Cosmo, Institute for Advanced StudyCommon Ground delivers fresh perspectives on the formation of the Qing Empire from the vantage of its swelling Inner Asian frontier. Admirably, Lan Wu decenters court narratives in favor of “negotiated platforms” through which Tibetans, Mongols, Manchus, and Chinese actors made (and unmade) visions of sovereignty, territoriality, and belonging. -- Matthew King, author of Ocean of Milk, Ocean of Blood: A Mongolian Monk in the Ruins of the Qing EmpireLan Wu’s engaging and erudite study tours the key nodes of Buddhist Inner Asia, from Lhasa to Beijing. Each stop offers vivid insight into the social, intellectual, and institutional networks built by the Qing state and Buddhist clergy as they competed and cooperated – shaping in the process the trajectories of China, Mongolia, and Tibet. -- Matthew Mosca, author of From Frontier Policy to Foreign Policy: The Question of India and the Transformation of Geopolitics in Qing ChinaThis study by Lan Wu breaks important new ground, conceptually as well as historically. It focuses on the various ways in which the Gelukpa school of Tibetan Buddhism's Ganden Podrang government in Lhasa negotiated a political and a religious status quo with the Qing court in Beijing and vice versa. The book makes good on the promise that it seeks to capture "the changing dynamics in the space between the two epicenters of Beijing and Lhasa," the space being occupied by Tibetan Buddhist Inner Asia. The two principals were hardly equals, and Lan Wu deftly analyses the mise en scène of this "common ground" in which there was an obvious give and take by both parties, even if this was not always readily acknowledged by either one. This is a riveting book and a welcome addition to the growing number of studiesthat deal with the relationships that were forged between different Tibetan Buddhist and Manchu actors during the late seventeenth and eighteenth centuries in which of necessity the Mongols played an important if not a central role. -- Leonard W.J. van der Kuijp, Harvard UniversityProvides a unique perspective for understanding the flexible geopolitics strategy of the Qing dynasty. * Religious Studies Review *Table of ContentsAcknowledgmentsNote on Transliteration and TranslationIntroduction: Buddhist Inner Asia1. Campaigns2. Manufacturing3. Assemblies4. GovernanceEpilogue: A Balancing ActNotesBibliographyIndex

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Book Synopsis

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Book Synopsis

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Book Synopsis

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"Through rich narratives, detailed descriptions, and critical analysis, Hofer brings to light the struggles and hardships of medical practitioners on the socio-political margins of Tibet. . . . This study is a unique and well-crafted ethnography written in beautiful prose that will be of great interest to scholars and students of Tibetan medicine and minorities in China, social anthropologists, and historians alike." -- Benedikte V. Lindskog * Reading Religion *"Medicine and Memory in Tibet is a captivating ethnographic and historical exploration." * New Books Asia *

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