Tibetan Buddhism Books

Book SynopsisThis book sheds light on the structure of a unity with diversity developed in the Qing imperial formation (16361912) by a case study of the Qing-Tibetan encounters in the eighteenth century.By analyzing historical and ethnographical materials, the book investigates the translation of Chinese histories and stone inscriptions into Tibetan, the transformation of the landscapes at Mount Wutai and Lhasa, and the transplantation of Chinese deities and medical practices to Tibet. It demonstrates the processes in which the cosmopolitan interlocutors reified imperial integrity while expressing their diverse longings and belongings. It concludes that the Qing's rule over its cultural others was neither simply Sinicizing nor colonizing, but a translational process in which multivocalic actors shared narratives, landscapes, and practices, while the emperor and tantric masters performed cosmic power over humans and metahumans.This book cuts across the fields of anthropology, historTable of Contents1. Introduction: Narratives, Landscapes, and Practices at Qing-Tibetan Interface PART I Narratives 2. Discovering the Western Treasure: Tibet in Qing Cosmopolitan Historiography 3. Taming the Eastern Land: China in Tibetan Buddhist Historiography PART II Landscapes 4. Hierarchizing Spaces: Cosmopolitanism and “Our Holy Dynasty” 5. Maṇḍalizing Landscape: The Cosmopolitics of Tantric Masters PART III Practices 6. Local and Translocal Beings: The Guandi Cult in Tibet 7. The Edicts and the Edible: Digesting Imperial Sovereignty in Lhasa 8. Conclusion

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Book SynopsisAn anthology of the most inspiring and instructive texts on spiritual enlightenment from great Tibetan masters—handpicked by a best-selling author and Tibetan Buddhist monk Buddhist monk Matthieu Ricard has selected and translated some of the most profound and inspiring teachings from the eight traditions of Tibetan Buddhism. The selected teachings are from the Buddha himself, Nagarjuna, Guru Rinpoche, Atisha, Shantideva, and Asanga; the great masters of the past, Thogme Zangpo, the Fifth Dalai Lama, Milarepa, Longchenpa, and Sakya Pandita; and contemporary masters, including the Fourteenth Dalai Lama and Mingyur Rinpoche. The teachings address such topics as: • The nature of the mind• The foundations of taking refuge, generating altruistic compassion, acquiring merit, and following a teacher• View, meditation, and action• How to remove obstacles and make progress on the Buddhist path Inspired by Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, Ricard creates his anthology with Khyentse’s religious philosophy in mind: “When we come to appreciate the depth of the view of the eight great traditions [of Tibetan Buddhism] and also see that they all lead to the same goal without contradicting each other, we think, ‘Only ignorance can lead us to adopt a sectarian view.’”

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Book SynopsisA meditation master illuminates the path trekchö and provides his commentary on the atiyoga dzogchen instructions from the Nyingma school of Tibetan Buddhism The path of trekchö is the way of directly and thoroughly cutting through the misconceptions of samsara to lay bare the primordial purity of the nature of mind. This powerful practice is illuminated by Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche in his commentary on an essential text based on the atiyoga dzogchen instructions of the outstanding nineteenth-century master Patrul Rinpoche.Three Words That Strike the Vital Point is the famous seminal statement by Garap Dorje that is said to encapsulate all the myriad dzogchen tantras. The key instructions on it by Patrul Rinpoche—the verses known as "The Special Teaching of Khepa Shri Gyalpo"—form the basis for the discourse in Primordial Purity. It explains that in dzogchen, when one has fully recognized that all the confusion of samsara is the expressive power of great emptiness, confusion is spontaneously liberated into the primordial purity of mind’s essential nature. Compassion spontaneously arises, accomplishing the benefit of sentient beings. Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche illuminates this beautifully in this profound work, which will inspire students of Buddhism and deepen their experiential appreciation of the teachings.

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Book SynopsisA wise and warm guide to the preliminary practices that lay the fundamental groundwork for traversing the path to buddhahood.When we start on the transformational journey to enlightenment, we need a strong foundation in core Buddhist principles and practices to set us on the right track. The ngondro, or preliminary practices, are that very foundation; they not only prepare us for advanced practice but serve us in all we do. In this guide to the common and uncommon preliminary practices, His Holiness the Forty-Second Sakya Trizin, Ratna Vajra Rinpoche, expertly gives us the grounded, practical, and illuminating teachings we need to set out on the path to buddhahood. Newcomers and seasoned practitioners alike will find practical guidance and profound wisdom to support them through their exploration of the preliminary practices. The common preliminary practices are the four thoughts that turn the mind away from the suffering of samsara and toward the Dharma: remembering the shortcomings of samsara, remembering the preciousness of a human rebirth, remembering impermanence, and remembering the law of karma. These teachings are shared among traditions and will accompany us all the way to buddhahood. The five uncommon preliminary practices are core to further Mahayana and Vajrayana practice: going for refuge in the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha; developing bodhichitta, the enlightened mind; Vajrasattva practice, which clears negative karma; mandala offering, which will help us accumulate merit; and guru yoga, which facilitates our realization of the nature of mind. By using this guide, we can develop a deeper understanding of what Dharma practice truly encompasses and how we can authentically engage in it. His Holiness the Forty-Second Sakya Trizin invites us to appreciate the profound significance of these preliminary practices and experience the transformative benefits they offer?for both ourselves and all sentient beings.

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Book SynopsisThe shadow is made up of all that we hide from others: our shame, our fears and our wounds, but also our divine light, our blinding beauty and our hidden talents. The shadow is a huge source of benevolent power and creativity, but until we bring it into the light this power will remain untapped and our full potential unreached. In this transformative book, lucid dreaming teacher Charlie Morley guides you into the dazzling darkness of the shadow and shows you how to unlock the inner gold within. Using ancient methods from Tibetan Buddhism alongside contemporary techniques and Western psychology, he reveals how to use lucid dreaming, meditation, shamanic mask work, creative writing and spiritual practice to help you to befriend your shadow with loving kindness, heal your mind and open your heart to your highest potential. This book reveals: What the shadow is, and how we create and project it The different types of shadow, including the golden shadow, the ancestral shadow and the sexual shadow Exercises, visualizations and meditations to connect deeply with and transform your shadows The life-changing benefits of shadow integration,including increased energy, authenticity and spiritual growth How to lucid dream and lucidly call forth your golden shadow and embrace it with love.Through over 30 practical exercises, this book will take you on a life-changing journey into the heart of spiritual transformation. The light you''ll find there is brighter than you could ever imagine.

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Book SynopsisWhile yoga has become a common practice for health and well-being, Tibetan yoga still remains a mystery. Translated as 'magical movements', Tibetan yoga can improve physical strength and support positive emotional and mental health, healing the body-energy-mind system with a full sense of awareness. In Tibetan Yoga for Health & Well-Being, Alejandro Chaoul PhD focuses on the five principal breaths of Tibetan medicine and yoga, and how special body movements for each of these breaths engage the five chakras of the body. Alongside photos of each movement, Chaoul will guide you through the physical practice with a focus on simplicity and accessibility. He shares his experiences of daily practice in different cultures, and provides a contextual understanding of the history of Tibetan yoga so that you can fully incorporate its ancient teachings in your present day lifestyle.

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Book SynopsisOld blood feuds on the Tibetan plateau flare up when seven children and their Tibetan mastiff, Gangri Senge, follow a Han journalist to a rival tribe’s territory during the early days of the People’s Republic of China. As the tribe plots to punish the children for their forefathers’ crimes, it is up to Gangri Senge and the journalist who befriends him to rescue the children from a grisly fate.Based on first-hand accounts from author Yang Zhijun’s father, this tale follows the lives of Tibet’s legendary mastiffs as Gangri Senge and the dog-loving journalist struggle to save the captured children. Together they embark on an extraordinary journey across the vast Tibetan wilderness that will change the plateau and its tribes forever.Mastiffs of the Plateau is a fascinating glimpse into a bygone era and a moving tale of love and loyalty that explores what it means to be human in a world filled with beasts.

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Book SynopsisWeaving a sweeping travel narrative with intimate on-the-ground reportage, Far from the Rooftop of the World tells Tibetans'stories against the backdrop of milestones and events in the country's recent history - many memorable, too many tragic.Trade Review[A comprehensive] look at look at the Tibetan refugee experience . . . . with atmospheric details, historical facts, and scenes from daily life in India, all of which Yee recounts in a [vulnerable and charming] narratorial voice."—Kirkus Reviews

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Book SynopsisA contemporary exploration of, and personal meditation on, the Buddhist tradition of Dzogchen and its many teachings for modern life—by an esteemed Tibetan master In The Crystal and the Way of Light, Chogyal Namkhai Norbu examines the spiritual path from the viewpoint of Dzogchen. He discusses the base path and fruit of Dzogchen practice, and describes his education and how he met his principal master who showed him the real meaning of direct introduction to Dzogchen. By interweaving his life story with the teachings, he both sets Dzogchen in its traditional context and reveals its powerful contemporary relevance. The book is richly illustrated with photos of Buddhist masters, meditational deities, and Dzogchen symbols.

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Book SynopsisIn order to penetrate Tibet and reach Lhasa, Madame Alexandra David-Neel used her fluency of Tibetan dialects and culture, and inked skin and tackled some of the roughest terrain and climate in the World. This title presntes her intensive study and daring adventure in mysterious territories of the East.Trade Review"David-Neel was indisputably a fearless traveler, a rogue's rogue. Her account has the power to awe even today." -- Outside magazine

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Book SynopsisA portable collection of short inspirational readings by “one of the world's wisest women”—the American Buddhist teacher and author of When Things Fall Apart (O, the Oprah Magazine) Pema Chödrön, beloved Buddhist nun and best-selling author, offers this treasury of 108 short selections from her more than four decades of study and writings. Here she presents teachings on breaking free of destructive patterns; developing patience, kindness, and joy amid our everyday struggles; becoming fearless; and unlocking our natural warmth, intelligence, and goodness. Designed for on-the-go inspiration, this is a perfect guide to Buddhist principles and the foundations of meditation and mindfulness. The Shambhala Pocket Library is a collection of short, portable teachings from notable figures across religious traditions and classic texts. The covers in this series are rendered by Colorado artist Robert Spellman. The books in this collection distill the wisdom and heart of the work Shambhala Publications has published over 50 years into a compact format that is collectible, reader-friendly, and applicable to everyday life.

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Book SynopsisAn entrée into the world of Tantric Buddhism—a unique collection of texts, concepts, and meditation practices presented by Tibetan masters teaching in the WestThe “Vajra World” (vajradhatu in Sanskrit) is a realm of indestructibility, the level of reality beyond all thought and imagination, all impermanence and change, which a fully realized person knows and inhabits. Used metaphorically, “Vajra World” refers to the traditional culture of Tibet and the unique spirituality that is its secret strength.Secret of the Vajra World is the companion volume to the author’s earlier book, Indestructible Truth: The Living Spirituality of Tibetan Buddhism. While that book focuses on the history, cosmology, philosophy, and practice of the more public, exoteric side of Tibetan Buddhism, this work treats its more hidden and esoteric aspects as they take shape in Vajrayana. Together, the two volumes provide a broad introduction to the major traditions of Tibetan Buddhism.Topics include:• The tantric view of human nature and the external world• The special role of the guru, or tantric mentor• The preliminary practices that prepare the student for full initiation• The major dimensions of Vajrayana practice, including visualizations, liturgies, and inner yogas• The tradition of the tulku, or incarnate lama• The lore surrounding the death of ordinary people and of saints• The practice of solitary retreat, the epitome of traditional Tibetan Buddhism

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Book SynopsisReads the autobiographical and biographical writings of one of the few Tibetan Buddhist women to record the story of her lifeTrade ReviewFascinating and compelling, this is a rare autobiography of a Tibetan female religious master. Jacoby combines pioneering research with high scholarly standards and delivers in a readable style a sensitive narrative rich in social, cultural, and psychological detail. -- Hildegard Diemberger, University of Cambridge You will laugh, but more often you will cry when reading this first-ever study of a nonmonastic woman who wrote a Tibetan-language autobiography and a biography of a man. Sarah H. Jacoby's study of gender and sexuality is pathbreaking in the field of Tibetan studies. Because the main research materials were authored by a noncelibate woman, this book gives rich insight into one woman's conception of the complex social, political, and even medical aspects of tantric consort practices. Jacoby grounds Buddhist theory in the lived experience of an actual practitioner and illuminates this topic based on her fieldwork in Tibet. Her work reveals modern Tibetan history like never before-not by tracking political or institutional history, but through attention to the life of a runaway girl who transforms herself from lowly servant to famous teacher through her extraordinary vision of her life. -- Gray Tuttle, Columbia University A detailed picture of the world of Tibetan Buddhism, particularly the tantric variety, in the early twentieth century. It explores questions long in the mind of students of Tibetan Buddhism about how the arcane practices of tantric Buddhism actually figure in the lives-and loves-of real historical people, particularly women. A great contribution worthy of close attention. -- Janet Gyatso, Harvard Divinity School A complex work, rewarding in many ways... this is a rare window into a world so different, and yet so historically recent... Jacoby brings lots of food for thought and fresh new ways of seeing the familiar. Sumeru: Buddhist Books, Art, & News Jacoby's book gives us a big infusion of data regarding what many of us have been wondering about with respect to sexuality and gender relations in Tibetan Buddhism, particularly in tantric communalities. Journal of the American Academy of Religion [An] outstanding study of the extraordinary autobiography of Sera Khandro (1892-1940). -- Janet Gyatso The Journal of Asian Studies With this original study of one remarkable woman's life writing, Jacoby illuminates questions about renunciation, desire, and love in tantric Buddhist practice and opens the way for further study. Tulsa Studies in Women's LiteratureTable of ContentsList of Illustrations Preface and Acknowledgments Technical Note on Tibetan and Sanskrit Words Abbreviations Chronology Maps Introduction 1. The Life and Times of Sera Khandro 2. A Guest in the Sacred Land of Golok 3. Dakini Dialogues 4. Sacred Sexuality 5. Love Between Method and Insight Epilogue: Love After Death Spelling of Key Tibetan Names and Terms Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisReflecting sixteen years of intensive fieldwork, this book is a rich chronicle of the daily lives, belief systems, and healing rituals of four highly revered Tibetan shamans forced into exile by the Chinese invasion during the 1950s. Larry Peters lived and studied closely with the shamans in Nepal, learning their belief system, observing and participating in their rituals, and introducing many dozens of students to their worldview. Including photographs of the shamans in ecstatic ritual and trance, this book—one of the most extensive ethnographic works ever done on Tibetan shamanism—captures the end of Tibetan shamanism while opening a window onto the culture and traditions that survived centuries of attack in Tibet, only to die out in Nepal. The violent treatment of shamans by the Buddhist lama has a long history in Tibet and neighboring Mongolia. At one point, shamans were burned at the stake. However, in the mountainous Himalayan terrain, especially in the difficult to reach areas geographically distant from the Buddhist monastic urban centers, shamans were respected and their work revered. Peters’s authoritative and meticulous research into the belief systems of these last surviving representatives of the shamanic traditions of the remote Himalayas preserves, in vivid detail, the techniques of ecstasy, described as pathways to the shamanic spiritual world.

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Book SynopsisHeal the body, quiet the mind, and find emotional balance with simple practices from Yantra Yoga Modern science and classic spiritual traditions agree: regulating the breath leads to radiance and wellness of body, mind, and spirit. With the simple teachings and cutting-edge research offered in The Tibetan Yoga of Breath, you can start thriving just by integrating breathwork into your daily practice.Basic Yantra Yoga techniques—also called wind energy training—are the key to achieving this kind of vitality, down to the cellular level. Anyen Rinpoche and Allison Choying Zangmo skillfully examine the teachings of Yantra Yoga and Buddhism through the lens of Western medical science. Their wise and accessible instruction reveals practices that are nourishing and transformative, delivering dramatic results—no experience with yoga or Buddhist meditation necessary.

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Book SynopsisA History of Zhang Zhung and Tibet, Volume One explores ancient Tibet''s Zhang Zhung kingdom and Bon religion that preceded the advent of Buddhism in the seventh century. Countering the long-held idea that Tibet''s pre-Buddhist indigenous culture was primitive and undeveloped, this book shares the rich cultural origins of the kingdom of Zhang Zhung--the "cradle of Tibetan culture," which encompassed a vast area of Western and Northern Tibet in an area that includes sacred Mount Kailash. Presenting the meticulous research of internationally known Dzogchen Buddhist teacher and scholar Chögyal Namkhai Norbu, the book investigates the mysteries of Zhang Zhung''s Bon religion, a set of shamanistic and animistic beliefs and practices only recently studied by a handful of academic scholars. Offering a critical analysis of a vast array of literary and primary sources, Norbu discusses the role of the Bon traditions within Zhang Zhung''s lineages, dynasties, and culture. Examining Zhang Zhung''s written language, sacred ornaments, rock carvings, healing practices, music, and magical divination techniques, Norbu contributes to an understanding of the roots of Tibetan Buddhist culture and modern-day Bon religion--a practice followed by an estimated ten percent of Tibetans.Table of Contents:Translator''s Foreword; A Technical Note about the Translation; I. The Human Generations of Ancient Zhang Zhung; II. The Bon Lineages of Ancient Zhang Zhung; III. The Royal Lineages of Ancient Zhang Zhung; IV. The Written Language of Ancient Zhang Zhung; V. The Civilization of Ancient Zhang Zhung; Indexes--Tibetan and Zhang Zhung Names and Terms, Textual Sources, Sanskrit Names and Terms, Chinese Names and Terms

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Book SynopsisFrom the legendary cofounder of Tibet''s nineteenth-century nonsectarian movement, an encyclopedic survey of the practice of Chod, or severance, a tantric ritual based on the crucial Mahayana sutras to sever clinging to an ego and thereby achieve realization. The Treasury of Precious Instructions by Jamgön Kongtrul Lodrö Taye, one of Tibet’s greatest Buddhist masters, is a shining jewel of Tibetan literature, presenting essential teachings from the entire spectrum of practice lineages that existed in Tibet. In its eighteen volumes, Kongtrul brings together some of the most important texts on key topics of Buddhist thought and practice as well as authoring significant new sections of his own.In this, the fourteenth volume, Kongtrul compiles the teachings on Severance, or Chöd. It includes some of the tradition’s earliest source scriptures, such as the “grand poem” of Āryadeva, and numerous texts by the tradition’s renowned founder, Machik Labdrön. Kongtrul also brings together the most significant texts on the rites of initiation, empowerments for practice, and wide-ranging instructions and guides for the support of practitioners. Altogether, this quintessential guide to Severance offers vast resources for scholars and practitioners alike to better understand this unique and remarkable tradition—the way of severing the ego through the profound realization of emptiness and compassion.

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Book SynopsisA guide to the famous Heart Sūtra that reveals the tenderness and compassion underlying the striking rhetoric of this popular Buddhist textThe radical message of the Heart Sūtra, one of Buddhism’s most famous texts, is a sweeping attack on everything we hold most dear: our troubles, the world as we know it, even the teachings of the Buddha himself. Several of the Buddha’s followers are said to have suffered heart attacks and died when they first heard its assertion of the basic groundlessness of our existence—hence the title of this book.Overcoming fear, the Buddha teaches, is not to be accomplished by shutting down or building walls around oneself, but instead by opening up to understand the illusory nature of everything we fear—including ourselves. In this book of teachings, Karl Brunnhölzl guides practitioners through this ‘crazy’ sutra to the wisdom and compassion that lie at its core.

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Book SynopsisA comprehensive and in-depth survey of the philosophical underpinnings of the Dalai Lama?s Geluk tradition written by one of the founding figures of Tibetan Buddhist studies in the West.In this classic work of Buddhist studies scholarship, Jeffrey Hopkins?one of the world?s foremost scholar-practitioners of Tibetan Buddhism?offers a clear exposition of the Prasangika-Madhyamaka view of emptiness as presented in the Geluk tradition of Tibetan Buddhism. In bringing this remarkable and complex philosophy to life, he describes the meditational practices by which emptiness can be realized and shows throughout that, far from being merely abstract scholasticism, these classic teachings can be vivid and utterly practical. Treating subjects ranging from the progressive path of meditation to the nature of emptiness and how it can be directly realized, this wide-ranging book guides the reader on an itinerary of intellectual and spiritual discovery, unpacking the distinctive Geluk synthesis of scholastic and meditative practices. The first study in any Western language to provide a comprehensive treatment of the doctrines and practices of a Tibetan Buddhist school, this book is indispensable for those wishing to delve deeply into Buddhist thought and its practical relevance.

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Book SynopsisKhenpo Namdrol presents a lucid and detailed explanation of the history and practice of Vajrakilaya.

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Book SynopsisBooks, audiotapes, and classes about yoga are today as familiar as they are widespread, but we in the West have only recently become engaged in the meditative doctrines of the East--only in the last 70 or 80 years, in fact. In the early part of the 20th century, it was the pioneering efforts of keen scholars like W. Y. Evans-Wentz, the late editor of this volume, that triggered our ongoing occidental fascination with such phenomena as yoga, Zen, and meditation. Tibetan Yoga and Secret Doctrines--a companion to the popular Tibetan Book of the Dead, which is also published by Oxford in an authoritative Evans-Wentz edition--is a collection of seven authentic Tibetan yoga texts that first appeared in English in 1935. In these pages, amid useful photographs and reproductions of yoga paintings and manuscripts, readers will encounter some of the principal meditations used by Hindu and Tibetan gurus and philosophers throughout the ages in the attainment of Right Knowledge and Enlightenment. STable of ContentsPreface to the First Edition ; Descripton of Illustrations ; Foreword ; Preface to the Second Edition ; Yogic Commentary ; General Introduction ; Book I: The Supreme Path of Discipleship ; Book II: The Nirvanic Path: the Yoga of the Great Symbol ; Book III: The Path of Knowledge: the Yoga of the 6 Doctrines ; Book IV: The Path of Transference: The Yoga of the Consciousness-Transference ; Book V: The Path of the Mystic Sacrifice: The Yoga of Subduing the Lower Self ; Book VI: The Path of the Five Wisdoms ; Book VII: The Path of the Transcendental Wisdom: The Yoga of Voidness

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Book SynopsisThe first major compendium of the Dalai Lama's wisdom on all aspects of life from work to happiness and enlightenment.

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Book SynopsisLongchenpa''s Three Cycles of Natural Freedom: Oral translation and commentary is a seminal Dzogchen text that is divided into three cycles: Mind, Ultimate Reality and Equality. The ninth Traleg Kyabgon Rinpoche (1959-2012) of the Kagyu Nyingma tradition, one of the great meditation master and scholars to come out of the Tibetan diaspora, has provided a detailed oral commentary and spontaneous translation of Longchenpa''s text to help reveal the essential meaning of these profound teachings. A glimpse at each cycle - in the Mind Cycle, Longchenpa is in part concerned with our ability to comprehend and experience the freedom within the authentic state; in the Ultimate Reality Cycle, all dualistic notions are challenged as the nature of self and phenomena are revealed as the same; in the Equality Cycle, our aboriginal state is described as that which transcends conditioned existence. Within each cycle, Lonchenpa also gives concise guidelines on approaching one''s practice within a retreat situation. Traleg Kyabgon Rinpoche''s renowned fluency with the English language, coupled with his own profound levels of realization, makes this translation an exciting opportunity for these transformative teachings to not only be known, but also experienced in these modern times.

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Book SynopsisThe Ocean of Definitive Meaning by the Ninth Karmapa (1556–1603) is the most profound and famous text on Mahamudra ever written and is of vital importance in the living Kagyu tradition. It offers a detailed, uniquely comprehensive presentation of instruction on both the view and the practice. In the teachings contained in this book, Thrangu Rinpoche has distilled the essence of the Ninth Karmapa''s massive text into manageable proportions and has given pointed guidance on the implementation of its instruction. According to Thrangu Rinpoche, Mahamudra practice is especially appropriate for Westerners and contemporary practitioners because it can be realized in the context of virtually any lifestyle. Mahamudra dissolves the artificial separation between phenomena and emptiness, revealing the radiant display of mind. The Ninth Karmapa''s text has traditionally been available only to advanced students. However, Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche has kindly consented to the publication of these core teachings on the text, which he gave in the context of a retreat he led in 2001 in the mountains of British Columbia for 140 Western students. His compelling presentation provides teachers and students with a systematic approach to some of the highest practices in the Kagyu tradition. Thrangu Rinpoche''s extraordinary wisdom and insight make this new commentary a peerless jewel in the canons of spiritual literature.

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Book SynopsisIn this cut-to-the-chase explanation of the actual nature of enlightenment, Thubten goes the extra mile to reach out to Western audiences, using gentle humor and perceptive stories to engage the intuitive understanding of his readers. The emphasis is on how close ordinary life is to enlightenment rather than how impossible it might be to reach it; it?s a message that readers are inevitably drawn to

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Book SynopsisThe first-ever English translation of mind-training contemplations from the Dzogchen tradition of Tibetan Buddhism. A compilation of teachings on the seven contemplations, an ancient system of mind-training/lojong teachings that has been preserved as part of a rare set of instructions on Dzogchen, or the Great Perfection. This book is unique because although the lojong teachings of the Kadam tradition are well known, this is the first time the mind-training teachings from the Dzogchen tradition have been presented in an English translation, and most Western scholars and practitioners are unaware that such mind-training techniques even exist in Dzogchen. The contemplations themselves are vividly described, and some unfold as dramatic stories in which the meditator imagines himself or herself as the main character. Thus, they are quite accessible for beginning practitioners.

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