The Wisdom Of Confucius
This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it.This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.
Meeting Challenges
The Heart Wisdom series aims to make the teachings of Ringu Tulku Rinpoche available to a wider audience, by bringing his oral teachings to the written page. This volume presents his commentary on a teaching by the Third Do Drupchen Rinpoche, Jigme Tenpe Nyima, called Bringing Happiness and Unhappiness onto the Path.'If we can work within ourselves, practically and experientially, and come to know that sorrow and joy arise from our own way of reacting and do not depend upon what others say or do, then we become a little bit fearless. Only then can the depth of our comprehension and knowledge penetrate our being.''The point is to watch our mind and bring it into order. The practice is to integrate our understanding with our life. And the purpose is to bring meaning to life, bringing peace and contentment to ourselves as well as others.'
Buddhism in Translations
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Going Through the Mystery's One Hundred Questions
In Going Through the Mystery's One Hundred Questions we sit together with a passionate Zen pilgrim, Yuantong, and his cold-blooded teacher, the SotoZen master Wansong, also the teacher of Genghis Khan. They hail to us from sometime in the thirteenth century. We get to eavesdrop as a sincere student asks burning, heartfelt question after question. And as a genuine teacher responds with turning word after turning word.We are able to participate in their teacher-student relationship due to the presence of Wansong's attendant, Linquan, who later also became a famous Zen master and teacher of Kublai Khan. Linquan clarifies the meaning of each interaction in verse. Dosho Port has translated the original text and addedbrief commentaries to each Q&A to help the contemporary reader access the deep truths presented by these three exemplary practitioners.The book is intended to offer inspiration and guidance for any earnest spiritual seeker. The thirteenth century was an enormously rich time for Zen with many profoundly awakened and skillful teachers, including Wansong and Linquan. However, this book is primarily about urgent, spiritual questions. What is this one great life-and-death that we share? How can the intimate truth be realized and embodied with great compassion for the benefit of all living beings?
Buddhism in China
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The Saddharma-Pundar簾ka; or, The Lotus of the True Law
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The Spirit of Zoroastrianism
Henry S. Olcott, was a co-founder of the Theosophical Society, its first president and an early influential writer of the Theosophy movement of the late nineteenth century. Here he writes at length on the subject of Zoroastrianism.
The Dhammapada
A Beloved Classic of Buddhist Writing One of the best known and most beloved of the Buddhist scriptures, The Dhammapada is a collection of the sayings of the Buddha. According to tradition, each of the verses contained within the text were spoken by the Buddha, surviving through the centuries to find their way into the hands of modern readers. Translated by Max Muller, the verses cover a range of topics from Thought and Pleasure to Old Age, Happiness, and The Way. They are both simple and profound, guideposts to living an enlightened life and incisive shards of wisdom that cut through our passivity to the reality of spiritual enlightenment. This edition of The Dhammapada is part of the Essential Wisdom Library, a series that seeks to bring spiritual wisdom, both old and new, to modern readers.
Buddha
This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it.This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.
Buddhism in Translations
This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it.This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.
Guide to Buddahood
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Nirv璽na
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The Discourse on the Fruits of Recluseship
The Buddha traces the entire progress of a disciple from the first step on the path to the attainment of Nibbana in this second sutta of the Sutta Pitaka, one of the most elevating of the Buddha's discourses. On a full-moon night in Autumn, in reply to a question asked by King Ajatasattu of Magadha, the Buddha expounds the visible fruits of the Buddhist monk's life, sketching the progress of the disciple."...the Sāma簽簽aphala Sutta sounds a triumphant and lyrical proclamation of the fruitfulness of the course of spiritual training founded upon right view. It is the Buddha's announcement to the world that the life of renunciation he adopted for himself and opened up to humanity by founding the sangha brings immediately visible benefits in each of its stages. It is 'good in the beginning' through the bliss of blamelessness that comes with the purification of conduct; 'good in the middle' in yielding an exalted joy and bliss through the seclusion of the mind from the sensual hindrances; and 'good in the end' because it culminates in the highest wisdom and peace by transcending all mundane bonds." (From the translator's Preface)The work is not only a great spiritual classic, but also a literary gem distinguished by its beauty of poetic imagery.
The History Of Buddhist Thought
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Phallicism, Celestial and Terrestrial, Heathen and Christian, its Connexion With the Rosicrucians and the Gnostics and its Foundation in Buddhism, With an Essay on Mystic Anatomy
This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it.This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.
Phallicism, Celestial and Terrestrial, Heathen and Christian, its Connexion With the Rosicrucians and the Gnostics and its Foundation in Buddhism, With an Essay on Mystic Anatomy
This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it.This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.
The Sayings of Confucius
This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it.This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.
Hand-Book of Chinese Buddhism
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The Gods of Northern Buddhism
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The Buddha’s Path to Deliverance
A classic entry in the Pali canon, this anthology charts the entire course of spiritual development as prescribed in the most ancient Buddhist texts. Drawing upon the Buddha's own words from Sutta Pitaka, they are arranged in accordance with two overlapping schemes of practice: the threefold training in virtue, concentration, and wisdom, and the seven stages of purification. A lengthy chapter on concentration provides sutta sources for all 40 classical subjects of meditation, while a chapter on wisdom cites texts relating to the development of insight. (Note: This title was previously published under ISBN 9781928706182. Due to technical issues a new ISBN had to be assigned. Rest assured that both versions of this title are exactly the same.)
The Sayings of Confucius
This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it.This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.
Siddhartha
First published in 1922, 'Siddhartha' is an allegorical novel by Hermann Hesse, a German-Swiss novelist, poet, painter, and one of Germany's most influential writers and thinkers, who was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1946. The central theme of his work is the individual's actions to break out of the established modes of civilization so as to find an essential spirit and identity. The book was written in German, in a simple, yet powerful and lyrical style. The story deals with the spiritual journey of an Indian boy called Siddhartha during the time of the Buddha. The word Siddhartha is made up of two words in the Sanskrit language, Siddha (achieved) + artha (what was searched for), which together means "He who has found meaning (of existence)". It is one of the great philosophical novels. A profoundly insightful and beautifully written story that begins as Siddhartha, son of an Indian Brahmin, leaves his family and begins a lifelong journey towards Enlightenment. On his way, Siddhartha soon becomes agitated and discards it for pleasures of the flesh. He is quickly bored and sickened by the unending lust and greed, moves on again. Near despair, he comes to a river where he hears a unique sound. This sound signals the true beginning of his life-the beginning of suffering, rejection, peace, and finally, wisdom. A beautiful account of the journey of a young man during the times of the great Gautama Buddha is not just an evocative piece of art but also a work of mystery offered to the reader to solve for himself. Other International Bestsellers from this Publish: Animal Farm by George Orwell, ISBN: 9789354993381 The Little Prince by Antoine De Saint-Exup矇ry, ISBN: 9789354990519 The Richest Man in Babylon by George S Clason, ISBN: 9789354990717 The Power of Your Subconscious Mind by Joseph Murphy, ISBN: 9789354990557 The Art of War by Sun Tzu, ISBN: 9789354990342 Relativity by Albert Einstein, ISBN: 9789354990144 Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse, ISBN: 9789354990267
Reiki First Degree Manual
Welcome to the world of Reiki. Reiki is a spiritual practice for channeling, receiving and transmitting the Universal Life Force - based on its first degree on the lay on of the hands - to balancing and recharging the individual energy flows. The act of resting our hands on the body to convey emotion, comfort, participation, or alleviate pain, is part of our instinct; genetically encoded in our DNA. In the case of ache, the first thing that almost everyone does is to lay their hands on the spot. Our touch conveys warmth, serenity, friendship, and affection; it conveys concern and love. Our touch listens and perceives; it determines and heals. The First Degree deals with the material dimension of being, and the transmission is by physical contact, always starting from the assumption that matter, and consequently the physical body too, is a composite of energy, vibrations, waves, magnetic fields, and consciousness that intersect simultaneously, giving the sense of solidity. It teaches the technique's basic practice structure and the standard positions, designed to treat all physical and energy systems of the body. It transmits the four needed activations to open the Reiki channel of awareness, to consciously draw in the Universal Life Force and receive it in greater abundance and pass it on. It prepares to maintain focus, attention, and freedom throughout the process and understand what the underlying causes of any unbalance are. The following is the handbook that I give to my Reiki students after their first level seminar, which lasts sixteen hours (4x4) and is inclusive of four activations. That's the teaching.
Conjuring the Buddha
Finalist, 2024 Award for Excellence in the Study of Religion: Textual Studies, American Academy of Religion Ritual manuals are among the most common and most personal forms of Buddhist literature. Since at least the late fifth century, individual practitioners--including monks, nuns, teachers, disciples, and laypeople--have kept texts describing how to perform the daily rites. These manuals represent an intimate counterpart to the canonical sutras and the tantras, speaking to the lived experience of Buddhist practice. Conjuring the Buddha offers a history of early tantric Buddhist ritual through the lens of the Tibetan manuscripts discovered near Dunhuang on the ancient Silk Road. Jacob P. Dalton argues that the spread of ritual manuals offered Buddhists an extracanonical literary form through which to engage with their tradition in new and locally specific ways. He suggests that ritual manuals were the literary precursors to the tantras, crucial to the emergence of esoteric Buddhism. Examining a series of ninth- and tenth-century tantric manuals from Dunhuang, Dalton uncovers lost moments in the development of rituals such as consecration, possession, sexual yoga, the Great Perfection, and the subtle body practices of the winds and channels. He also traces the use of poetic language in ritual manuals, showing how at pivotal moments, metaphor, simile, rhythm, and rhyme were deployed to evoke carefully sculpted affective experiences. Offering an unprecedented glimpse into the personal practice of early tantric Buddhists, Conjuring the Buddha provides new insight into the origins and development of the tantric tradition.
Toward a New Image of Paramartha
WINNER OF THE ACADEMIA SINICA SCHOLARLY MONOGRAPH AWARD 2024Yogacara and Tathagatagarbha are often regarded as antagonistic Indian Buddhist traditions. Paramartha (499-569) is traditionally credited with amalgamating these philosophies by translating one of the most influential Tathagatagarbha texts in East Asia, the Awakening of Faith in Mahayana, and introducing Tathagatagarbha notions into his translations of Yogacara texts. Engaging with the digitalized Chinese Buddhist canon, Ching Keng draws on clues from a long-lost Dunhuang fragment and considers its striking similarities with Paramartha's corpus with respect to terminology, style of phrasing, and doctrines. In this cutting-edge interpretation of the concept of jiexing, Keng demystifies the image of Paramartha and makes the case that the fragment holds the key to recover his original teachings.
A Lasting Vision
A Lasting Vision is dedicated to the Mirror of Literature (Kavyadarsa), a Sanskrit treatise on poetics composed by Dandin in south India (c. 700 CE), and to the treatise's remarkable career throughout large parts of Asia. The Mirror was adapted and translated into several languages spoken on the southern Indian peninsula (Kannada, Tamil) and on the Island of Sri Lanka (Sinhala, Pali), as well as in the Tibetan plateau far to the north (Tibetan, Mongolian). In all these receiving cultures it became a classical text and a source of constant engagement and innovation, often well into the modern era. It also travelled to Burma and Thailand, where it held a place of honor in Buddhist monastic education and intellectual life, and likely to the islands of Java and Bali, where it contributed to the production of literature in Old Javanese. There is even reason to believe that it reached China and impacted Chinese literary culture, although far more peripherally than in other parts of Asia. It also maintained a prominent position in Sanskrit learned discourses throughout the Indian subcontinent for at least a millennium. This multi-authored volume, organized by region and language, is the first attempt to chart and explain the Mirror's amazing transregional and multilingual success: what was so unique about this work that might explain its near-continental conquest, how was it transmitted to and received in these different environments, and what happened to it whenever it was being adopted and adapted.
The Bloomsbury Handbook of Japanese Religions
Providing an overview of current cutting-edge research in the field of Japanese religions, this Handbook is the most up-to-date guide to contemporary scholarship in the field. As well as charting innovative research taking place, this book also points to new directions for future research, covering both the modern and pre-modern periods. Edited by Erica Baffelli, Andrea Castiglioni, and Fabio Rambelli, The Bloomsbury Handbook of Japanese Religions includes essays by international scholars from the USA, Europe, Japan, and New Zealand. Topics and themes include gender, politics, the arts, economy, media, globalization, and colonialism. The Bloomsbury Handbook of Japanese Religions is an essential reference point for upper-level students and scholars of Japanese religions as well as Japanese Studies more broadly.
White Tara
This volume gives Ringu Tulku's teachings on the practice of White Tara. He describes how the formal sadhana practice incorporates all aspects of practice; including shamatha, vipassana and Mahamudra. The teachings are based on the short sadhana of White Tara written by Tenga Rinpoche, with a new English translation of the text. Many questions and answers are included to clarify the practice; and Ringu Tulku's characteristic descriptions, which relate the practice firmly back to ourselves and our lives, as we are right now, are invaluable.All profits from the sale of this book go to Rigul Trust to help fund health care, education and poverty relief projects, particularly in Ringu Tulku's homeland of Rigul.See: www.rigultrust.org
Buddhism under Capitalism
This book argues that Buddhism has spread due to globalized capitalism, and explores how capitalism is also impacting Buddhists and Buddhism today. Edited by two leading scholars in Buddhist studies, the book examines how capitalism and neo-liberalism have shaped global perceptions of Buddhism, as well as specific local practices and attitudes. It examines the institutional practices that sustained the spread of Buddhism for two and a half millennia, and the adaptation of Buddhist institutions in contemporary, global economic systems-particularly in Europe and the United States over the last century and half. These innovative essays on the interfaces between Buddhism and capitalism will prompt readers to rethink the connection between Buddhism and secular society. Case studies include digital capitalism, tourism, and monasticism, and are drawn from the USA, Tibet, China, Japan, and Thailand.
Early Buddhist Society
What might daily life have been like in India in the time of the Buddha? Who were some of the rulers, monks, philosophers, devotees, and doctors with whom the Buddha would have interacted and had discussions? What was involved in spreading the message of Buddhism and setting up the Buddhist sangha (order)? What were the schisms and factions, and what was the nature of opposition to Buddhism from Brahmin hegemony?A great deal is known about Buddhist tenets and doctrine, but very little exists on the lived context of the Buddha himself. Early Buddhist texts in Pali reveal a society in ways that other texts relating to Buddhism, as well as the Brahmanical literature, do not. Xinru Liu reads this literature, along with the earliest Buddhist artworks on stupas, to argue that the historical Buddha does not really exist in the imagination of most people, including Buddhists. In this book, she sets out to plug this gap in our understanding of Buddhism, illuminating and eliminating many misconceptions along the way. Gender, religion, and caste in early India come alive in this richly scholarly yet accessible and imaginative account of society in the time of the Buddha. This is a book for students, teachers, and everyone interested in the living universe of India 2500 years ago.
New Perspectives in Modern Korean Buddhism
New Perspectives in Modern Korean Buddhism moves beyond nationalistic, modernist, and ethnocentric historiographies of modern Korean Buddhism by carefully examining individuals' lived experiences, the institutional dimensions of Korean Buddhism, and its place in transnational conversations. Drawing upon rich archives as well as historical, anthropological, and literary approaches, the book examines four themes that have gained attention in recent years: perennial existential concerns and the persistent relevance of religious practice; the role of female Buddhists; clerical marriage and scandals; and engagement with secular society. The book reveals the limits of metanarratives, such as those of colonialism, nationalism, and modernity, in understanding the complex and contested identities of both monastics and laity, thus demanding that we diversify the methods by which we articulate the history of modern Korean Buddhism.
Demystifying Awakening
"A rich and beautiful resource for those called to deepen their exploration of Awakening and freedom."-Tara Brach, best-selling author of Trusting the Gold and Radical CompassionSee the potential that is within each of us-the realization and embodiment of our true natureWith Demystifying Awakening, senior meditation teacher Stephen Snyder skillfully marks the subtle path of the Awakening process. With loving care, personal examples, and gentle suggestions, Stephen plants the seeds of practice and meditation by: explaining Awakening in an accessible way that draws on Zen and Theravada Buddhist traditions;guiding readers through more than thirty foundational and advanced meditations and practices that support each step on the path of realization;offering advice for identifying and working with resistances to Awakening; andencouraging the embodiment and lived expression of realization through an exploration of the pāramīs, the Buddhist perfections of behavior.Demystifying Awakening transmits a practice path for Awakening in this lifetime."A unique and profound manual . . . that clearly and succinctly unveils the path, and process, of Awakening as practiced, lived, and taught by Stephen Snyder."-Judson Brewer, MD, PhD, NYT best-selling author of Unwinding Anxiety and The Craving Mind"Stephen is a friendly, helpful, and sweetly encouraging guide. In his pages, you feel like you're coming home to who you've always been: wakeful, loving, contented, and wise."-Rick Hanson, PhD, NYT best-selling author of Neurodharma and Buddha's Brain"A wise map and a powerful reminder that while the path is in a sense a pathless path, and leads right back to here and now, that doesn't mean Awakening isn't real."-Henry Shukman, author of One Blade of Grass and guiding teacher of Mountain Cloud Zen Center
Chenrezig - The Practice of Compassion
Ringu Tulku Rinpoche's commentary on the shortest and most popular Chenrezig sadhana that was composed by Thangtong Gyalpo. "Chenrezig - or Avalokiteshvara in Sanskrit - is the name of the bodhisattva who is regarded as the Lord of Compassion or the embodiment of compassion. Chenrezig practice is done in order to develop our own compassion. From the Buddhist point of view, we can try to generate compassion through changing or re-thinking our attitude and working on our way of perceiving things. Then there's another way, which is the one I will mainly explain here, and that is through feeling; it's an experiential, emotional approach."All profits received by Rigul Trust from the sale of this book will go to fund Rigul Trust health, education and poverty relief projects. This will help to bring benefit to all the children, the teachers, the cooks, the health clinic, the doctor, his assistant, the nurse, and all the people in Rigul, Tibet.See rigultrust.org
Conjuring the Buddha
Finalist, 2024 Award for Excellence in the Study of Religion: Textual Studies, American Academy of Religion Ritual manuals are among the most common and most personal forms of Buddhist literature. Since at least the late fifth century, individual practitioners--including monks, nuns, teachers, disciples, and laypeople--have kept texts describing how to perform the daily rites. These manuals represent an intimate counterpart to the canonical sutras and the tantras, speaking to the lived experience of Buddhist practice. Conjuring the Buddha offers a history of early tantric Buddhist ritual through the lens of the Tibetan manuscripts discovered near Dunhuang on the ancient Silk Road. Jacob P. Dalton argues that the spread of ritual manuals offered Buddhists an extracanonical literary form through which to engage with their tradition in new and locally specific ways. He suggests that ritual manuals were the literary precursors to the tantras, crucial to the emergence of esoteric Buddhism. Examining a series of ninth- and tenth-century tantric manuals from Dunhuang, Dalton uncovers lost moments in the development of rituals such as consecration, possession, sexual yoga, the Great Perfection, and the subtle body practices of the winds and channels. He also traces the use of poetic language in ritual manuals, showing how at pivotal moments, metaphor, simile, rhythm, and rhyme were deployed to evoke carefully sculpted affective experiences. Offering an unprecedented glimpse into the personal practice of early tantric Buddhists, Conjuring the Buddha provides new insight into the origins and development of the tantric tradition.
The Flower Adornment Sutra - Volume Two
The Flower Adornment Sutra is Bhikshu Dharmamitra's extensively annotated 3-volume original translation of the Maḥāvaipulya Buddha Avataṃsaka Sūtra or "The Great Expansive Buddha's Flower Adornment Sutra" rendered from Tripitaka Master Śikṣānanda's circa 699 ce Sanskrit-to-Chinese 80-fascicle translation as the "Da Fangguang Fo Huayan Jing" (大方廣佛華嚴經 / Taisho Vol. 10, no. 279). It consists of 39 chapters that introduce an interpenetrating, infinitely expansive, and majestically grand multiverse of countless buddha worlds while explaining in great detail the cultivation of the bodhisattva path to buddhahood, most notably the ten highest levels of bodhisattva practice known as "the ten bodhisattva grounds." To date, this is the first and only complete English translation of the Avataṃsaka Sutra.
The Flower Adornment Sutra - Volume Three
The Flower Adornment Sutra is Bhikshu Dharmamitra's extensively annotated 3-volume original translation of the Maḥāvaipulya Buddha Avataṃsaka Sūtra or "The Great Expansive Buddha's Flower Adornment Sutra" rendered from Tripitaka Master Śikṣānanda's circa 699 ce Sanskrit-to-Chinese 80-fascicle translation as the "Da Fangguang Fo Huayan Jing" (大方廣佛華嚴經 / Taisho Vol. 10, no. 279). It consists of 39 chapters that introduce an interpenetrating, infinitely expansive, and majestically grand multiverse of countless buddha worlds while explaining in great detail the cultivation of the bodhisattva path to buddhahood, most notably the ten highest levels of bodhisattva practice known as "the ten bodhisattva grounds." To date, this is the first and only complete English translation of the Avataṃsaka Sutra.
The Flower Adornment Sutra - Volume One
The Flower Adornment Sutra is Bhikshu Dharmamitra's extensively annotated 3-volume original translation of the Maḥāvaipulya Buddha Avataṃsaka Sūtra or "The Great Expansive Buddha's Flower Adornment Sutra" rendered from Tripitaka Master Śikṣānanda's circa 699 ce Sanskrit-to-Chinese 80-fascicle translation as the "Da Fangguang Fo Huayan Jing" (大方廣佛華嚴經 / Taisho Vol. 10, no. 279). It consists of 39 chapters that introduce an interpenetrating, infinitely expansive, and majestically grand multiverse of countless buddha worlds while explaining in great detail the cultivation of the bodhisattva path to buddhahood, most notably the ten highest levels of bodhisattva practice known as "the ten bodhisattva grounds." To date, this is the first and only complete English translation of the Avataṃsaka Sutra.
What Is Buddhist Enlightenment
What kind of person should I strive to be? What ideals should I pursue in my life? These basic human questions and others like them are components of the overall question that guides this book: What is enlightenment? As Dale Wright argues, any serious practitioner of human life, religious or not, confronts the challenge of living an authentic life, of overcoming common human disabilities like greed, hatred, and delusion that give rise to excessive suffering. Why then, Wright asks, is this essential question often avoided, even discouraged among Buddhists? One reason frequently cited by Buddhists is that pondering a distant goal might be a waste of energy that would be better applied to practice: Quiet the flow of obsessive thinking, put yourself in a mindful state of presence, and let enlightenment take care of itself. In this book, however, Wright contends that pondering this question is meditative practice--that attentive inquiry of this kind is essential as the starting point and guide for any mindful practice of life. Meditative reflection on the meaning of enlightenment focuses us on our aim and direction in life. It guides us in shaping our practices, our ideals, and the kinds of lives we will live. Asking what enlightenment is as a basic form of meditation helps to activate our lives and get transformative practice underway. From Wright's perspective, there is no more important question to ask than this one. What is Buddhist Enlightenment? offers a wide-ranging exploration of issues that have a bearing on the contemporary meaning of enlightenment, including a concluding section with 10 theses that answer the title's question. Written by a leading scholar of Buddhism, the book balances deep learning and an accessible style, offering valuable insights for students, scholars, and practitioners alike. While he takes an examination of what enlightenment has been in past Buddhist traditions as his point of departure, Wright's historical considerations yield to the question that our lives press upon us--what kinds of lives should we aspire to live here, now, and into the future?
Searching for the Body
In the early fifteenth century, two Tibetan monks debated how to transform the body ritually into a celestial palace inhabited by buddhas. The discussion between Ngorchen Künga Zangpo and Kh矇drupj矇 G矇lek Pelzangpo concerned the mechanics of this tantric ritual practice, known as body mandala, as well as the most reliable sources to follow in performing it. As representatives of the Sakya and emerging Geluk traditions respectively, these authors spoke for communities of Buddhist practitioners vying for patronage and prestige in an evolving Tibetan scholastic culture. Their debate witnessed clashes between imagination and deception, continuity and rupture, and tradition and innovation. Searching for the Body demonstrates the significance of the body mandala debate for understandings of Tibetan Buddhism as well as conversations on representation and embodiment occurring across the disciplines today. Rae Erin Dachille explores how Ngorchen and Kh矇drup used citational practice as a tool for making meaning, arguing that their texts reveal a deep connection between ritual mechanics and interpretive practice. She contends that this debate addresses strikingly contemporary issues surrounding interpretation, intertextuality, creativity, essentialism, and naturalness. Buddhist ideas about the construction of meaning and the body offer new ways of understanding representation, which Dachille illuminates in an epilogue that considers Glenn Ligon's engagement with Robert Mapplethorpe's photography. By placing Buddhist thought in dialogue with contemporary artistic practice and cultural critique, Searching for the Body offers vital new perspectives on the transformative potential of representations in defining and transcending the human.
A Conceptual Lexicon for Classical Confucian Philosophy
Over the years, Roger T. Ames and his collaborators have consistently argued for a processual understanding of Chinese natural cosmology made explicit in the Book of Changes. It is this way of thinking, captured in its own interpretive context with the expression "continuities in change" (biantong) that has shaped the grammar of the Chinese language and informs the key philosophical vocabulary of Confucian philosophy. Over the past several centuries of cultural encounter, the formula established by the early missionaries for the translation of classical Chinese texts into Western languages has resulted in a Christian conversion of Confucian texts that is still very much with us today. And more recently, the invention of a new Chinese language to synchronize East Asian cultures with Western modernity has become another obstacle in our reading of the Confucian canons. This volume, a companion volume to A Sourcebook in Classical Confucian Philosophy, employs a comparative hermeneutical method in an attempt to explain the Confucian terms of art and to take the Confucian tradition on its own terms.
Abhidhamma in Daily Life
Abhidhamma in Daily Life is an exposition of absolute realities in detail. Abhidhamma means higher doctrine and the book's purpose is to encourage the right application of Buddhism in order to eradicate wrong view and eventually all defilements. Many terms in Pāli, the language of early Buddhism, are used and are defined as they are introduced. The book is therefore suitable for beginners as well as more experienced Buddhists. It is detailed and precise and an invaluable aid to unlocking the deep meaning of the entire Buddhist Canon.
