Nature is a topic in many Indian and Tibetan philosophical texts, although its meaning varies considerably in both Hindu and Buddhist scriptures. The discussion of nature pursued in this book begins with Nagarjuna (first century), founder of the Middle Way School, who refuted a fabricated nature in his "Treatise on the Middle." In that seminal text, he puts forth the three basic criteria for nature: it must be something that is non-fabricated, independent, and immutable.
This book presents Dzong-ka-ba's discussion of the overly narrow object in his "Great Exposition" and relates that discussion to Nagarjuna's verses in "Treatise on the Middle." When combined with an understanding of an overly broad object to be negated, this topic brings the Middle Way practitioner to a precise identification of the nonexistent object-of-negation nature as being a thing's establishment by way of its own entity.
This book also presents Dzong-ka-ba's more mainstream commentary on the subject in the Ocean of Reasoning sections, which are translated in Part Two. It also describes Dzong-ka-ba's strong reaction to the positive and independent nature asserted by Tibet's greatest synthesist, Dol-bo Shay-rap-gyel-tsen (fourteenth century).

Discusses what credentials and qualities students should look for in a wisdom teacher, why a wisdom teacher is necessary, and how the relationship between this teacher and the disciple best develops once it is established. The text is a translation of a Tibetan work written in the latter half of the

In the Tibetan Buddhist tradition, devotion to one's guru or spiritual master is considered to be of the utmost importance in spiritual practice. The instructions of Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, based upon the teachings of the great eighteenth-century saint and visionary Rigdzin Jigme Lingpa, focus on the devotional practices of Guru Yoga, "Merging with the Mind of the Guru."

These are the memoirs of a Dob-dob', or fighting monk, trained to keep the peace in a monastic community of several thousand monks, during and after the Chinese invasion of Tibet, in 1959. The true story of a young man born in a traditional Tibetan village, ordained a monk in one of the country's great monasteries, and eventually assigned the post of dob-dob, a 'fighting monk' charged with maintaining monastic order. Fleeing Tibet with the Dalai Lama after the Chinese invasion of 1959, never to see his native land again, and suffering the loss of a leg during the'

According to Tibetan traditions, the Indian Buddhist Prasangika-Madhyamika school is the one that represents the final true thought of the Buddha. "Unique Tenets of the Middle Way Consequence School "presents and analyzes the issues that separate that school from the other principals schools of Buddhism--issues such as the existence (or non-existence) of an external world the way in which karma and reincarnation operate the nature of consciousness the nature of time and the status of Arhats (enlightened but not omniscient beings). Parts Two and Three of the book are annotated translations of Tibetan texts that are used as source books in monastic education.

A free ebook version of this title is available through Luminos, University of California Press's Open Access publishing program. Visit www.luminosoa.org to learn more. The Monastery Rules discusses the position of the monasteries in pre-1950s Tibetan Buddhist societies and how that position was informed by the far-reaching relationship of monastic Buddhism with Tibetan society, economy, law, and culture. Jansen focuses her study on monastic guidelines, or bca' yig. The first study of its kind to examine the genre in detail, the book contains an exploration of its parallels in other Buddhist cultures, its connection to the Vinaya, and its value as socio-historical source-material. The guidelines are witness to certain socio-economic changes, while also containing rules that aim to change the monastery in order to preserve it. Jansen argues that the monastic institutions' influence on society was maintained not merely due to prevailing power-relations, but also because of certain deep-rooted Buddhist beliefs.

Fear, anger, and negativity are states that each of us have to contend with. Machik's 'Complete Explanation', the most famous book of the teachings of Machik Lapdron, the great female saint and yogini of 11th- to 12th-century Tibet, addresses these issues in a practical, direct way. Machik developed a system, the Mahamudra Chod that takes the Buddha's teachings as a basis and applies them to the immediate experiences of negative mind states and malignant forces.

Even the most casual contact with the culture, politics, or religion of Tibet and the surrounding region brings outsiders face to face with the institution of reincarnate spiritual masters. Past masters are identified as small children installed in their predecessor's monastery in a ceremony called "enthronement" and educated to continue the work of their former incarnation. This custom has provided a principal source of spiritual renewal for Himalayan Buddhists for the past thousand years. The introduction places the subject of reincarnate meditation masters within two major contexts: the activity of bodhisattvas, and in modern Tibetan society, where the reappearance of past masters is both natural and profoundly moving.
Tai Situpa Rinpoche, a contemporary reincarnate master and a leader of the Kagyu lineage, describes the process of finding other reincarnate masters. Jamgon Kongtrul Lodro Taye, an outstanding writer and meditation master, offers a traditional view of the enthronement of reincarnate masters.

The vow to perfect oneself in order to perfect others is called the thought of enlightenment or bodhichitta. This implies that every single action word or thought even the most trivial is dedicated to the good of all beings. To accomplish the good of others, we must first perfect ourselves by purifying and transforming our minds. This is the aim of what we call the preliminary practices, which establish the foundations of all spiritual progress. In this book, Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche explains a key practice text composed by Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo (1820-1892) on the Vajrayana preliminaries: taking refuge, generating the thought of achieving enlightenment for the sake of all beings, performing the meditation, and recitation of Vajrasattva to remove hindrances on the path to enlightenment, offering the mandala to accumulate merit and wisdom, and developing proper reliance on a spiritual teacher. Clear, direct, and personal, these instructions illuminate the heart of Vajrayana practice. Included here are the Tibetan text as well as the mantras and prayers commonly recited in conjunction with this practice.

An absorbing exposition of the methods of realization of the Middle Way Consequence School (Prasangika Madhyamika) by Jeffrey Hopkins--considered by many the foremost Western authority on Tibetan Buddhism. His presentation is based on Jang-gya's famous work--the original and translation are included. The reasonings used to analyze persons and phenomena to establish their true mode of existence are discussed in the context of meditative practice. This exposition includes a masterful treatment of the compatibility of emptiness and dependent-arising.

In what he calls a "200 percent potent" teaching, Chogyam Trungpa reveals how the spiritual path is a raw and rugged "unlearning" process that draws us away from the comfort of conventional expectations and conceptual attitudes toward a naked encounter with reality. The tantric paradigm for this process is the story of the Indian master Naropa (1016-1100), who is among the enlightened teachers of the Kagyu lineage of the Tibetan Buddhism. Naropa was the leading scholar at Nalanda, the Buddhist monastic university, when he embarked upon the lonely and arduous path to enlightenment. After a series of daunting trials, he was prepared to receive the direct transmission of the awakened state of mind from his guru, Tilopa. Teachings that he received, including those known as the six doctrines of Naropa, have been passed down in the lineages of Tibetan Buddhism for a millennium.
Trungpa's commentary shows the relevance of Naropa's extraordinary journey for today's practitioners who seek to follow the spiritual path. Naropa's story makes it possible to delineate in very concrete terms the various levels of spiritual development that lead to the student's readiness to meet the teacher's mind. Trungpa thus opens to Western students of Buddhism the path of devotion and surrender to the guru as the embodiment and representative of reality.

This work covers the regions of Buddhism in China, Tibet, as well as South Asia, and describes comprehensively their customs, folklore, lifestyle, and religious practices.

The Snow Lion's Turquoise Mane brings together more than 150 authentic Buddhist teaching tales from the Hidden Kingdom of Tibet -- most never before translated into English. These captivating stories, legends and yarns -- passed orally from teacher to student -- capture the vibrant wisdom of an ancient and still-living oral tradition. Magical, whimsical, witty and ribald, this remarkable book unfolds a luminous vision of a universe where basic goodness, harmany, and hope prevails.

"No one is better qualified than Tucci to write a general yet comprehensive work on such a complex subject. His explorations in Tibet, extensive personal experiences, direct observations of ritual, and unmatched textual knowledge are graciously combined in this valuable and highly readable volume." (Barbara Nimri Aziz, Journal of Asian Studies). "Tucci's most significant contribution is his application of a systematic analysis of parallels and interconnections among the religious practices of Tibetans...We have both a thorough analysis of significant texts as well as a description and appreciation of rituals, architecture, and artifacts." (Francis V. Tiso, Cross Currents). "[Readers] are not soon to find a more informative, comprehensive rendering of the religions of Tibet-minus all the myths and by a scholar as extraordinary as Giuseppe Tucci." (A. Torn Grunfeld, Focus on Asian Studies). "We have here a synthesis of Tucci's knowledge and insight into one of the most extraordinary of the world's great cultures." (Ninian Smart, Times Literary Supplement).

A Tibetan patriot and unswerving follower of the Dalai Lama, Lobsang Gyatso emerges from these memoirs as a master storyteller, a fearless social critic, and a devoted Buddhist monk.

The Kagyu and Nyingma traditions of Himalayan tantric Buddhism require a long period of intensive training in meditation--a three-year, three-month retreat--before a practitioner is considered to be a qualified teacher. "Jamgon Kongtrul's Retreat Manual" was written in the mid-nineteenth century for those who wish to embark on this rigorous training. It guides them in preparing for retreat, provides full details of the program of meditation, and offers advice for their re-entry into the world.
"Jamgon Kongtrul's Retreat Manual" also introduces us to one of the towering figures of nineteenth-century Tibet: Jamgon Kongtrul the Great (1813-99). The three-year retreat center he describes in this book was his creation, and its program consisted of those practices Kongtrul treasured enough to pass on to future generations through the spiritual leaders he trained.

Buddhist philosophy is concerned with defining and overcoming the limitations and errors of perception. To do this is essential to Buddhism's purpose of establishing a method for attaining liberation. Conceptual thought in this view can lead to a liberating understanding, a transformative religious experience. The author discusses the workings of both direct and conceptual cognition, drawing on a variety of Tibetan and Indian texts. The Gelukba interpretation of Dignaga and Dharmakirti is greatly at variance with virtually all other scholarship concerning these seminal Buddhist logicians.

Tibetan medicine holistically restores and maintains balance of the body's various systems through a variety of treatments, including diet, behavior modification, and the use of medicine and accessory therapy. Tibetan medicine is delicately responsive to patients' complete symptom patterns--no complaint being disregarded. Its wide variety of curative techniques are clearly explained. Dr. Donden's book was seen on NBC's "Dateline "during a feature on Tibetan medicine and breast cancer.

Chogyam Trungpa's unique ability to express the essence of Buddhist teachings in the language and imagery of modern American culture makes his books among the most accessible works of Buddhist philosophy. Here Trungpa explores the true meaning of freedom, showing us how our preconceptions, attitudes, and even our spiritual practices can become chains that bind us to repetitive patterns of frustration and despair. This edition features a new foreword by Pema Chodron, a close student of Trungpa and the best-selling author of "When Things Fall Apart. "