Awakening the Buddha Within: Tibetan Wisdom for the Western World
by Surya Das
Lama Surya Das, the most highly trained American lama in the Tibetan tradition, presents the first
comprehensive book of Western Buddhism for the modern-day spiritual seeker.
In this loving and generous book, Lama Surya Das offers at once a
definitive and nonsectarian guide to the wisdom found in ancient Tibetan
teachings and a tried and true path of spiritual transformation.
The radical and compelling message of Buddhism tells us that each of us has the wisdom, awareness, love, and power of the Buddha within; yet most of us are too often like sleeping Buddhas. Surya Das shows how we can awaken to who we really are and thus walk the liberating, peaceful path of mindful and compassionate living. With lively language, meditations, and spiritual practices, this unique book provides a bridge between East and West, past, present, and future.
In this wonderful marriage of the timeless and the timely, Surya Das has written an invaluable, authoritative text for the novice and the experienced student of Buddhism alike. Awakening the Buddha Within reveals how sacred wisdom, contemplative practice, and altruism can be integrated into our outer and inner lives--in our relationships, in the workplace, and at home.
A Path With Heart: A Guide Through the Perils and Promises of Spiritual Life
by Jack Kornfield
In undertaking a spiritual life, we must make certain that our path is connected with our heart, according to author and Buddhist monk Jack Kornfield. Since 1974 (long before it gained popularity in the 1990s), Kornfield has been teaching westerners how to integrate Eastern teaching into their daily lives. Through generous storytelling and unmitigated warmth, Kornfield offers this excellent guidebook on living with attentiveness, meditation, and full-tilt compassion.
Part of what makes this book so accessible is Kornfield's use of everyday metaphors to describe the elusive lessons of spiritual transformation. For example, he opens with "the one seat" lesson taught to him by his esteemed teacher. Literally it means sitting in the center of a room and not being swayed or moved by all the people and dramas happening around you. On a spiritual level it means sticking "with one practice and teacher among all of the possibilities," writes Kornfield; "inwardly it means having the determination to stick with that practice through whatever difficulties and doubts arise until you have come to true clarity and understanding." The same could be said for this "one book." Among all the spiritual self-help books, this is a classic worth sticking with and returning to--a highly approachable teacher that can only lead to greater clarity and understanding.
Western Buddhism
by Kulananda
This book will be an ideal introduction to anyone who has been puzzled by the veils of the mystification that surrounds the Buddhism self.
In this groundbreaking book, Kulananda explains many of the important Buddhist traditional teachings in simple terms. He clarifies how these teachings can be integrated into Western culture and provides an introduction for anyone who has been puzzled by the veils of mystification that surround Buddhism.
Buddhism Without Beliefs: A Contemporary Guide to Awakening
by Stephen Batchelor
Those with an interest in Buddhism will welcome this new book by Stephen Batchelor, former monk and author of Alone With Others and The Awakening of the West. But those who are just discovering this increasingly popular practice will have much to gain as well-for Buddhism Without Beliefs serves as a solid, straightforward introduction that demystifies Buddhism and explains simply and plainly how its practice can enrich our lives. Avoiding jargon and theory, Batchelor concentrates on the concrete, making Buddhism accessible and compelling and showing how anyone can embark on this path - regardless of their religious background.
As in all the major religions, there is a wisdom behind the theology of Buddhism that informs the believer in daily life. Stephen Batchelor would argue that the difference with Buddhism is that the wisdom is in fact independent of the theology and is not informative to believers only, but to everyone. In Buddhism Without Beliefs Batchelor lays out the major tenets of Buddhist wisdom, commenting on their relevance to modern life. The Buddha said that seekers must find the Truth for themselves, and Batchelor offers this book as a roadmap.
Old Path, White Clouds: Walking in the Footsteps of the Buddha
by Thich Nhat Hanh
This beautiful book is perhaps the best biography of the
Buddha available in English. Thich Nhat Hanh's book is a biography
covering all eighty years of the Buddha's life based on Pali, Sanskrit,
and Chinese sources, which are assiduously notated in the book's appendix.
The story throughout is told very simply and in a tone that may be
described as devotional. Chapters are short and usually illustrate a
particular concept or event, and the text throughout is illustrated with
many beautiful drawings. It is not a short book but its structure and
style maintain the reader's interest over the course of story, and one may
be tempted to say that it reads like a novel.
The length of the book is due to the fact that beyond being a history of the life of the Buddha, it is an exposition of his teachings, which are presented clearly and with increasing depth as the story of the foundation of the Sangha unfolds. Buddhists and non-Buddhists alike will benefit from this summation of the many concepts inherent in the Buddhist tradition, presented as they were to Buddha's first disciples.
The Four Noble Truths: Fundamentals of the Buddhist Teachings of His Holiness the XIV Dalai Lama
Life involves suffering. Desire is the source of our suffering. There is a way to put an end to our desire. The way out of desire is to live one's life according to eight basic principles. These four noble truths were the subject of the Buddha's first sermon and form the core of Buddhist teaching. The Dalai Lama describes these unique teachings here as he presented them to the West for the first time in 1997.