A favorite of Tibetans and recommended by the Dalai Lama and other senior Buddhist teachers, this practical guide to inner transformation introduces the fundamental spiritual practices common to all Tibetan Buddhist traditions.The Words of My Perfect Teacher is the classic commentary on the preliminary practices of the Longchen Nyingtig-one of the best-known cycles of teachings and a spiritual treasure of the Nyingmapa school-the oldest Tibetan Buddhist tradition. Patrul Rinpoche makes the technicalities of his subject accessible through a wealth of stories, quotations, and references to everyday life. His style of mixing broad colloquialisms, stringent irony, and poetry has all the life and atmosphere of an oral teaching. Great care has been taken by the translators to render the precise meaning of the text in English while still reflecting the vigor and insight of the original Tibetan. A preface by His Holiness the Dalai Lama, insightful introductory essays, explanatory notes, and classic illustrations enhance this quintessential introduction to Tibetan Buddhist practice. This new edition includes translations of a postface to the text written a century ago (for the first printed edition in Tibetan) by the first Jamgon Kongtrul Rinpoche, and a new preface by the late Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche. The notes, glossary and bibliography have been expanded and updated, Sanskrit names and terminology have been given their proper transliterated form, and the illustrations have been improved in quality and supplemented with new material.

Isaiah 24-27 has been an enduring mystery and a hotly contested text for biblical scholars. Early scholarship linked its references to the dead rising to the New Testament. These theories have remained influential even as common opinion moderated over the course of the twentieth century. In this volume, Christopher B. Hays situates Isaiah 24-27 within its historical and cultural contexts. He methodically demonstrates that it is not apocalyptic; that its imagery of divine feasting and conquering death have ancient cognates; and that its Hebrew language does not reflect a late composition date. He also shows how the passage celebrates the receding of Assyrian power from Judah, and especially from the citadel at Ramat Rahel near Jerusalem, in the late seventh century. This was the time of King Josiah and his scribes, who saw a political opportunity and issued a peace overture to the former northern kingdom. Using comparative, archaeological, linguistic, and literary tools, Hays' volume changes the study of Isaiah, arguing for a different historical setting than that of traditional scholarship.

This book examines the emergence of self-knowledge as a determining legal consideration among the rabbis of Late Antiquity, from the third to the seventh centuries CE. Based on close readings of rabbinic texts from Palestine and Babylonia, Ayelet Hoffmann Libson highlights a unique and surprising development in Talmudic jurisprudence, whereby legal decision-making incorporated personal and subjective information. She examines the central legal role accorded to individuals' knowledge of their bodies and mental states in areas of law as diverse as purity laws, family law and the laws of Sabbath. By focusing on subjectivity and self-reflection, the Babylonian rabbis transformed earlier legal practices in a way that cohered with the cultural concerns of other religious groups in Late Antiquity. They developed sophisticated ideas about the inner self and incorporated these notions into their distinctive discourse of law.

Spanning a thousand years of history--and bringing the story to the present through ethnographic fieldwork in Senegal, Gambia, and Mauritania--Rudolph Ware documents the profound significance of Qur'an schools for West African Muslim communities. Such schools peacefully brought Islam to much of the region, becoming striking symbols of Muslim identity. Ware shows how in Senegambia the schools became powerful channels for African resistance during the eras of the slave trade and colonisation. While illuminating the past, Ware also makes signal contributions to understanding contemporary Islam by demonstrating how the schools' epistemology of embodiment gives expression to classical Islamic frameworks of learning and knowledge. Today, many Muslims and non-Muslims find West African methods of Qur'an schooling puzzling and controversial. In fascinating detail, Ware introduces these practices from the viewpoint of the practitioners, explicating their emphasis on educating the whole human being as if to remake it as a living replica of the Qur'an. From this perspective, the transference of knowledge in core texts and rituals is literally embodied in people, helping shape them--like the Prophet of Islam--into vital bearers of the word of God.

"The Quran in Plain English: A Simple Translation for Children and Young People".

A Daoist classic that has had a profound influence on Chinese thought, the Laozi or Daodejing, evolved into its present form sometime around the third century BCE and continues to enjoy great popularity throughout East Asia and beyond. Philip J Ivanhoe's lucid and philosophically-minded interpretation and commentary offer fresh insights into this classic work. In the substantial introduction and numerous notes, Ivanhoe draws attention to the issues at play in the text, often relating them to contemporary philosophical discussions and directing the reader to related passages within the Daodejing and to other works of the period. The Language Appendix, unique to this edition, offers eight translations of the opening passage by well-known and influential scholars and explains, line-by-line, how each might have reached his particular interpretation.

The present book Sarada-Tilaka of Laksmana Desikendra is one of the important texts on Tantric subjects. It is divided into 25 Chapters. Chapter 1 is Prakrti and deals with the origin of creation: the 23 chapters which follow demonstrate Prakrti-Vikrti; the last chapter 25 is beyond Prakrti and Vikrti. But Sarada-Tilaka is a tantric treatise which deals primarily with the Tantric worship of gods and goddesses.

The Bhagavad Gita, or 'Song of the Spirit', is the best known book of India's national epic The Mahabharata. Based on a dialogue between Bhagavan Krishna and Prince Arjuna on the eve of a great battle, it is held to be the essence of Hindu spirituality, sacred literature and yoga, as well as exploring the great universal themes of courage, honour, death, love, virtue and fulfilment. Of interest to the large number of contemporary spiritual seekers - of any faith and none - who want to read the world's most important sacred texts, and to learn from their wisdom. Also useful for scholars of Vedic literature and students.

For many centuries Jewish prayer was so dominated by its male creators and male readers that the Jewish woman's role in prayer seems to have been all but obliterated. Yet Jewish women have always prayed and, before prayer became standardized into a formal liturgy, Israelite women offered up spontaneous petitions and hymns to God as freely as did men. While they may not have been able to help constitute a minyan, and while many did not know Hebrew or Aramaic, women produced and used material for prayer at home.
The Yiddish tkhines had its origin in a form of supplicatory prayer in the Talmud, whose original intent was to allow for individual private devotion during the standard prayer service. The private Yiddish prayers and devotions for Jewish women continued to use this term. They emerged in the world of premodern Ashkenazic Jewry and represent one of the richest and least-known forms of Jewish religious literature. Because modern sensibility seemed to reject them, and because Yiddish was quickly forgotten by second and third generation Jews in the West, they have been sadly neglected. Although a few have been individually translated into English, this is the first bilingual anthology ever to appear.
The prayers in this volume are characterized by a highly personal and intimate style and mark occasions in the religious calendar, such as the Tkhine for the Blessing of the New Moon, as well as occasions in the life of a woman, such as the Tkhine for a Mother who Leads Her Child to Kheyder for the First Time. The tkhines are of great appeal and value to those who wish to hear the voices of Jewish women in history, study Yiddish literature and culture, or create new expressions of spirituality.

From Simon & Schuster, Nine and a Half Mystics is Herbert Weiner's exploration of the Kabbalah today. This revised edition of a modern classic includes a new foreword by Nobel Laureate Elie Wiesel and an afterword by Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz, editor of The Talmud: The Steinsaltz Edition, as well as a coda by the author in which he explores the many paths being traveled today in the search for the treasures of the Kabbalah.

In December, 2009, at the well-known Buddhist pilgrimage location of Bodh Gaya, India, Shamar Rinpoche gave a teaching on the Noble King of Prayers of Excellent Conduct, also known as the Samantabhadra Wishing Prayer. This book is based on this teaching. In the past, Buddha Shakyamuni gave the teaching of the Samantabhadra Wishing Prayer to urge practitioners to treat the great Bodhisattva Samantabhadra as a role model to emulate so that all their wishes may be accomplished. The Tibetan text, as well as an English-language version of the prayer itself, translated by Pamela Gayle White under the guidance of Shamar Rinpoche, is included in the book. As the author states, "Once we accept that 'our world' is merely a mental experience, notions of big and small do not apply anymore, and our mind can hold any number of these manifestations. It is this capacity of our mind to extend itself beyond any limit that we have to use for our practice."

This book invites readers to reconsider what they think they know about the opening chapters of the Book of Genesis, from the creation of the world, through the Garden of Eden, Cain and Abel, the Flood, and the Tower of Babel, to the introduction of Abraham. Edwin M. Good offers a new translation of and literary commentary on these chapters, approaching the material as an ancient Hebrew book. Rather than analyzing the chapters in light of any specific religious position, he is interested in what the stories say and how they work as stories, indications in them of their origins as orally performed and transmitted, and how they do and do not connect with one another. Everyone, from those intimately familiar with Genesis to those who have never read it before, will find something new in "Genesis 1-11: Tales of the Earliest World."

While Buddhism has no central text comparable to the Bible or Koran, there is a powerful body of scripture from across Asia that encompasses the "dharma," or the teachings of the Buddha. In this rich anthology, eminent scholar Donald S. Lopez, Jr., brings together works from a broad historical and geographical range, and from such languages as Pali, Sanskrit, Tibetan, Chinese, and Japanese. There are tales of the Buddha's past lives, a discussion of qualities and qualifications for a monk, and an exploration of the many meanings of enlightenment. Together they provide a vivid picture of the Buddha and of the vast and profound nature of the Buddhist tradition.

A delightfully straightforward and lyrical retelling of the ancient Indian epic of loyalty, betrayal, redemption, and insight into the true nature of life -- one of history's most sacred ethical works, rendered with completeness and sterling accuracy for the modern reader. Here is one of the world's most hallowed works of sacred literature, the grand, sweeping epic of the divine bowman and warrior Rama and his struggles with evil, power, duplicity, and avarice. "The Ramayana" is one of the foundations of world literature and one of humanity's most ancient and treasured ethical and spiritual works. "This new version is so simply and beautifully written -- it will stir the soul!" --David Lynch

Ratnaguna presents a commentary on the three Pure Land Sutras - the Shorter and Longer Sukhavati-vyuha Sutras and the Amitayur-Dhyana Sutra. Looking at them as a practising Buddhist inspired by the Sutras, he shows how they describe Sukhavati and Amitabha/Amitayus, Sukhavati's relationship with faith and practice, explain how they came about (a 'mythical history'), and tell us how we can be reborn there. The Sutras all discuss the aspiration to be reborn in Sukhavati but can also be understood metaphorically - rebirth taking place in this very life, and Sukhavati being a description of the Enlightened Mind. The Sutras put forward a path of faith and grace, as well as effort and practice. Using a practical and imaginative approach, Ratnaguna explores the main themes from the texts, including the '3-fold Goodness' or '3 acts of merit' necessary to be reborn into Sukhavati, and the 13 meditations given by the Buddha. This book will appeal to both practising Buddhists and anyone interested in Buddhism from a practical point of view.Includes translations of the three Pure Land sutras by Sraddhapa.

In this volume, Robert D. Holmstedt, John A. Cook, and Phillip S. Marshall provide a foundational analysis of the Hebrew text of Qoheleth. Distinguished by the detailed yet comprehensive attention paid to the Hebrew text, Qoheleth is a convenient pedagogical and reference tool that explains the form and syntax of the biblical text, offers guidance for deciding between competing semantic analyses, engages important text-critical debates, and addresses questions relating to the Hebrew text that are frequently overlooked or ignored by standard commentaries. Beyond serving as a succinct and accessible analytic key, Qoheleth also reflects the most recent advances in scholarship on Hebrew grammar and linguistics. By filling the gap between popular and technical commentaries, the handbook becomes an indispensable tool for anyone committed to a deep reading of the biblical text.

The Bhagavad Gita, the Song of the Lord, is an ancient Hindu scripture about virtue presented as a dialogue between Krishna, an incarnation of God, and the warrior Arjuna on the eve of a great battle over succession to the throne. This new verse translation of the classic Sanskrit text combines the skills of leading Hinduist Gavin Flood with the stylistic verve of award-winning poet and translator Charles Martin. The result is a living text that remains true to the extraordinarily influential original. A devotional, literary, and philosophical work of unsurpassed beauty and relevance, The Bhagavad Gita has inspired, among others, Mahatma Gandhi, J. Robert Oppenheimer, T. S. Eliot, Christopher Isherwood, and Aldous Huxley. Its universal themes life and death, war and peace, and sacrifice resonate in a West increasingly interested in Eastern religious experiences and the Hindu diaspora. The text is accompanied by a full introduction and by explanatory annotations. The volume presents seminal analogues and commentaries on The Bhagavad Gita, including central passages from The Shvetashvatara Upanishad as well as commentary spanning eleven centuries by Shankara and Ramanuja (in new translations by Gavin Flood) in addition to the writings of Bal Gangadhar Tilak and Sri Aurobindo. Five essays by leading Hinduists discuss a wide range of issues related to The Bhagavad Gita from its roots as a religious text to its influence on the practices of yoga and transcendentalism through it ongoing global impact. Contributors include John L. Brockington, Arvind Sharma, Rudolf Otto, Eric J. Sharpe, and C. A. Bayly. A selected bibliography is included."

This is the first English translation of Miftah al-falah, a thirteenth century Sufi text, written by Ibn Ata Allah, one of the great masters of the Shadhili Sufi order. It is considered to be one of his most important works because it sets out the principles of actual Sufi mystical practices, shedding light on the sacred invocations, and associated practices, such as the spiritual retreat. Written in a clear, lucid style, it offers a glimpse into the Sufi world of the 7th Islamic century and allows us to see almost at first hand how the novice was guided by the Sufi Shaykh and, above all, the purpose and preparation involved in engaging in the invocation, dhikhru'llah. Ibn Ata' Allah sets out to define it, to explain its nature and power, to show its results and to prove that it is part of the Prophet's Sunna, or practice. The author goes to great lengths to point out many Qur'anic verses where dhikru'llah is mentioned and cites many noted authorities.

The Babylonian Talmud is full of stories of demonic encounters, and it also includes many laws that attempt to regulate such encounters. In this book, Sara Ronis takes the reader on a journey across the rabbinic canon, exploring how late antique rabbis imagined, feared, and controlled demons. Ronis contextualizes the Talmud's thought within the rich cultural matrix of Sasanian Babylonia, placing rabbinic thinking in conversation with Sumerian, Akkadian, Ugaritic, Syriac Christian, Zoroastrian, and Second Temple Jewish texts about demons to delve into the interactive communal context in which the rabbis created boundaries between the human and the supernatural, and between themselves and other religious communities. Demons in the Details explores the wide range of ways that the rabbis participated in broader discussions about beliefs and practices with their neighbors, out of which they created a profoundly Jewish demonology.