Download or read book The Bodhisattva Path to Unsurpassed Enlightenment written by Asanga and published by Shambhala Publications. This book was released on 2016-03-08 with total page 801 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A complete translation of Asanga's classic work on the distinguishing qualities of bodhisattvas that describes how to awaken, develop, and perfect the mind of enlightenment in the Great Vehicle, or Mahayana, Buddhist tradition. Arya Asanga, famous for having been the conduit through which the teachings contained in the Five Texts of Maitreya were received and recorded, is also considered to be the author in his own right of several other foundational works of Yogācāra philosophy. One of these, considered the definitive text of the Yogācāra school of Buddhism, is the encyclopedic synthesis of Mahayana Buddhist doctrines and practices known as the Yogācārabhūmi, or "Stages of Spiritual Practice." The Bodhisattvabhūmi, or "Stages of the Bodhisattva Path," is one portion of that massive work, though it is considered a stand-alone text in the Tibetan traditions--for example, it is counted among the six core texts of the Kadampas. However, despite the text's centrality to the Yogācāra school and its seminal importance in the Tibetan traditions, it has remained unavailable in English except in piecemeal translations; Engle's translation will therefore be especially welcomed by scholars and students alike.
Download or read book The Inner Science of Buddhist Practice written by Artemus B. Engle and published by Shambhala Publications. This book was released on 2009-09-16 with total page 901 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Inner Science of Buddhist Practice contains translations of texts by two historically important Indian Buddhist scholars: Vasubhandhu's "Summary of the Five Heaps" and Sthiramati's commentary on Vasubandhu's root text. These works present the traditional Buddhist analysis of ordinary experience and provide rich resources for studying Buddhist and Western interpretations of the psychology of spiritual development. According to Buddhist doctrine, the mind of an ordinary person even at birth holds deeply ingrained predispositions that lead us to perceive the elements of everyday experience mistakenly and to believe, for instance, that entities persist through time that the pleasures we pursue are genuinely satisfying, that our own personal being is governed by a real self, and that all physical and mental phenomena have a distinct, independent, and real essence. Our everyday language only serves to reinforce and deepen these erring notions. Buddhist teaching reveals how to reject these flawed beliefs and replace them with a model that both more accurately represents our experience and is indispensable to the realizations that will free us from cyclic existence. The ability to accomplish this rests largely with learning the unique vocabulary and explanations found in Buddhist literature, since that is how we will discover what is mistaken about our untutored beliefs and where we will gain the intellectual skills that are needed to construct a new and more refined conceptual infrastructure. Engle's introduction explores how the material contained in the two translations can specifically improve practice of the Tibetan teaching system known as Lamrim, or Stages of the Path. Each of the levels of motivation described by the Lamrim teachings is examined in light of the doctrine of the five heaps—form, feeling, conception, formations, and consciousness—to show how greater understanding of the classical Buddhist doctrines can enhance practice of that portion of the instruction.
Download or read book History of the Karmapas written by Lama Kunsang and published by Shambhala Publications. This book was released on 2012-04-16 with total page 336 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Masters of esoteric knowledge and miraculous practices, the lineage of the Karmapas is the earliest of all the recognized incarnate lineages and is said to descend from the great Indian tantric master Tilopa through a chain that includes Naropa, Marpa, and Milarepa. The Karmapas are distinguished by their black crowns, said to have been woven by dakinis and symbolizing the activity of the buddhas. Unlike other Tibetan Buddhist lineage heads, each Karmapa has specific knowledge of his next reincarnation and leaves behind a "Last Testament," a letter to his disciples describing the place and circumstances of their future rebirth, the name of their parents, and so on. At a very young age, each successive incarnation is often able to recognize himself as the Karmapa. In their recounting of the histories of the seventeen Karmapas, the authors reveal the universal and marvelous concealed in the everyday world. Their lively account peppered with anecdotes is the most comprehensive in the West on this subject, with information from Tibetan, Chinese, Mongolian, French, and English sources.
Download or read book The S tra of Perfect Enlightenment written by and published by State University of New York Press. This book was released on 1999-02-25 with total page 352 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Sūtra of Perfect Enlightenment, used in monastic education for more than a millennium, is a concise guide to the key paradigms of the practice systems of the East Asian meditational schools (Ch'an, Sǒn, and Zen). Contained in its twelve chapters are definitive explanations of the meaning of innate and actualized enlightenment, sudden and gradual enlightenment, the true nature of ignorance and suffering, along with numerous examples of methods of contemplation that accord with and reflect the basic Ch'an views on enlightenment and practice. Although the Sutra was popular throughout the East Asian region, it attained its highest canonical status within the Korean Chogye school, where it is still a key text in the core curriculum of modern-day monks and nuns. The Sutra is translated here in full, along with the eloquent and revelatory commentary of the Chǒson monk Kihwa (1376–1433).
Download or read book Maitreya s The Ornament of Clear Realization written by Rinpoche Thrangu and published by . This book was released on 2003-02-01 with total page 416 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: These works, transmitted from Arya Maitreya - the fifth and future Buddha of this fortunate age - to Arya Asanga some time in the third century, comprise one of the major foundations of Mahayana Buddhism, the unbroken transmission and practice of which continues today. The focus of this text is the Prajnaparamita teachings. There are two main ways of approaching the meaning of the Prajnaparamita, the direct and indirect approach, with both approaches revealing the meaning of emptiness. Many students these days are familiar with the direct approach to understanding emptiness as shown in texts such as those by Nagarjuna. However, the indirect approach is perhaps less familiar and is what Maitreya is focussing on in this text. The indirect approach to emptiness reveals the hidden meaning of the Prajnaparamita sutras by examining the five paths and spiritual levels. Through this approach one understands how emptiness is realized, how this wisdom is developed and what is removed by this wisdom. Maitreya received the full transmission and meaning of these teachings directly from the Buddha and is therefore able to convey the meaning clearly and directly for us. This was his main motivation for composing this particular work and also that by understanding the Prajnaparamita teachings beings would be able to accomplish Buddhahood.
Download or read book Gone Beyond Volume 1 written by Karl Brunnholzl and published by Shambhala Publications. This book was released on 2011-07-16 with total page 901 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Abhisamayalamkara summarizes all the topics in the vast body of the Prajnaparamita Sutras. Resembling a zip-file, it comes to life only through its Indian and Tibetan commentaries. Together, these texts not only discuss the "hidden meaning" of the Prajnaparamita Sutras—the paths and bhumis of sravakas, pratyekabuddhas, and bodhisattvas—but also serve as contemplative manuals for the explicit topic of these sutras—emptiness—and how it is to be understood on the progressive levels of realization of bodhisattvas. Thus these texts describe what happens in the mind of a bodhisattva who meditates on emptiness, making it a living experience from the beginner's stage up through buddhahood. Gone Beyond contains the first in-depth study of the Abhisamayalamkara (the text studied most extensively in higher Tibetan Buddhist education) and its commentaries in the Kagyu School. This study (in two volumes) includes translations of Maitreya's famous text and its commentary by the Fifth Shamarpa Goncho Yenla (the first translation ever of a complete commentary on the Abhisamayalamkara into English), which are supplemented by extensive excerpts from the commentaries by the Third, Seventh, and Eighth Karmapas and others. Thus it closes a long-standing gap in the modern scholarship on the Prajnaparamita Sutras and the literature on paths and bhumis in mahayana Buddhism. The first volume presents an English translation of the first three chapters of the Abhisamayalamkara and its commentary by the Fifth Shamarpa. The second volume presents an English translation of the final five chapters and its commentary by the Fifth Shamarpa.
Download or read book Bhavanakrama of Kamalasila written by Kamalasila and published by . This book was released on 1997 with total page 125 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Shantideva s Guide to the Bodhisattva s Way of Life written by Śāntideva and published by Tharpa Publications US. This book was released on 2002 with total page 223 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Reading the verses slowly, while contemplating their meaning, has a profoundly liberating effect on the mind. The poem invokes special positive states of mind, moving us from suffering and conflict to happiness and peace, and gradually introduces us to the entire path to attaining the supreme inner peace of enlightenment, the real meaning of our human life.
Download or read book Summary of the Great Vehicle The written by Asaṅga and published by BDK America. This book was released on 2003 with total page 192 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Summary of the Great Vehicle is perhaps the most representative text of the Yogacara school of Mahayana Buddhism. It presents the classic argument for the basic Yogacara themes on conscious interiority, attempting to reinterpret within this context the general Mahayana teachings of emptiness and dependent co-arising. It then proceeds to explain the etiology if imaginative illusion, sketch its reversal by offering an explanation of the nature of conversion, champion the recovered insight into depended co-arising in terms of the converted other-dependent pattern of consciousness, and thus allow for a valid, if limited, role for language-formed, conventional discourse, both commonsense and theoretical.
Download or read book Universal Love written by Lama Yeshe and published by Lama Yeshe Wisdom Archive. This book was released on 2008 with total page 163 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: By pulling together some of Lama Yeshe's introductory teachings on Buddhism, meditation, compassion and emptiness, and combining them with the definitive explanation of tantra, this one valuable volume will inspire students to go more deeply into the Yoga Method of Buddha Maitreyaa tantric practice.
Download or read book How Things Exist written by Lama Zopa Rinpoche and published by Lama Yeshe Wisdom Archive. This book was released on 2008-01-01 with total page 137 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this small book Lama Zopa Rinpoche covers an incredible amount of ground. He starts by emphasizing the importance of compassion and universal responsibility and how to make life meaningful, then gives a brief explanation of the nature of the enlightened mind and how we can attain it, and finally offers an amazing and extensive explanation of emptiness, the ultimate nature of reality, analyzing the way various phenomena exist and teaching how to meditate on emptiness. Within these teachings, Rinpoche also touches on several of the other main points of the path to enlightenment, such as bodhicitta, the three scopes and impermanence. But, in the end, this wonderfully practical book is a manifestation of Rinpoche's peerless wisdom realizing emptiness and a testament to the personal experience of this rare and precious teacher. This book is made possible by kind supporters of the Archive who, like you, appreciate how we make these teachings freely available in so many ways, including in our website for instant reading, listening or downloading, and as printed and electronic books. Our website offers immediate access to thousands of pages of teachings and hundreds of audio recordings by some of the greatest lamas of our time. Our photo gallery and our ever-popular books are also freely accessible there. Please help us increase our efforts to spread the Dharma for the happiness and benefit of all beings. You can find out more about becoming a supporter of the Archive and see all we have to offer by visiting our website at www.LamaYeshe.com. Thank you so much, and please enjoy this e-book.
Download or read book The Six Perfections written by Dale Stuart Wright and published by Oxford University Press on Demand. This book was released on 2009 with total page 299 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book provides a guide to the six perfections, a set of Buddhist teachings designed to transform human character.
Download or read book The Bodhisattva Ideal written by Karel Werner and published by Buddhist Publication Society. This book was released on 2013-12-01 with total page 252 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book brings together six essays on the origin and history of the bodhisattva ideal and the emergence of the Mahāyana. The essays approach the subject from different perspectives—from scholarly examinations of the terms in the Nikayas and Agamas to the relationship of the bodhisattva ideal and the arahant ideal within the broader context of the social environment in which Mahayana formed and further developments that lead to the formulation of the fully fledged bodhisattva path. As such, the collection provides a good overview for a wider Buddhist readership of the history of changes that eventually led to the emergence of the Mahayana. “Arahants, Buddhas and Bodhisattvas”, by Bhikkhu Bodhi“The Bodhisattva Ideal in Theravāda Theory and Practice”, by Jeffrey Samuels“Bodhi and Arahattaphala From Early Buddhism to Early Mahāyāna”, by Karel Werner“Vaidalya, Mahāyāna, and Bodhisatva in India: An Essay Towards Historical Understanding”, by Peter Skilling“The Evolution of the Bodhisattva concept in Early Buddhist Canonical Literature”, by Bhikkhu Anālayo“Orality, writing and authority in South Asian Buddhism: Visionary Literature and the Struggle for Legitimacy in the Mahāyāna”, by David McMahan
Download or read book Buddha Nature written by Maitreya and published by Shambhala Publications. This book was released on 2018-08-14 with total page 409 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Buddha's definitive teachings on how we should understand the ground of enlightenment and the nature and qualities of buddhahood. All sentient beings, without exception, have buddha nature—the inherent purity and perfection of the mind, untouched by changing mental states. Thus there is neither any reason for conceit nor self-contempt. This is obscured by veils that are removable and do not touch the inherent purity and perfection of the nature of the mind. The Mahayana Uttaratantra Shastra, one of the “Five Treatises” said to have been dictated to Asanga by the Bodhisattva Maitreya, presents the Buddha’s definitive teachings on how we should understand this ground of enlightenment and clarifies the nature and qualities of buddhahood. This seminal text details with great clarity the view that forms the basis for Vajrayana, and especially Mahamudra, practice.
Download or read book The Noble Eightfold Path written by Bhikkhu Bodhi and published by Buddhist Publication Society. This book was released on 2010-12-01 with total page 151 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Buddha's teachings center around two basic principles. One is the Four Noble Truths, in which the Buddha diagnoses the problem of suffering and indicates the treatment necessary to remedy this problem. The other is the Noble Eightfold Path, the practical discipline he prescribes to uproot and eliminate the deep underlying causes of suffering. The present book offers, in simple and clear language, a concise yet thorough explanation of the Eightfold Path. Basing himself solidly upon the Buddha's own words, the author examines each factor of the path to determine exactly what it implies in the way of practical training. Finally, in the concluding chapter, he shows how all eight factors of the path function in unison to bring about the realization of the Buddhist goal: enlightenment and liberation.
Download or read book Abhisamayalamkara with Vrtti and Aloka Vol 1 written by Arya Vimuktisena (Vrtti) and published by Jain Publishing Company. This book was released on 2015-11-15 with total page 362 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Maitreya's Abhisamayalamkara is the most widely studied book in Tibet, where it was brought from India many centuries ago. It is used in all the monasteries to teach the path to Buddhahood, in accordance with the Perfection of Wisdom Sutras. It teaches this in outline form, so it requires a commentary to be understood. The oldest extant commentary is Arya Vimuktisena's Vrtti. Haribhadra, the most influential Indian commentator, drew upon this to write his Aloka. Virtually all of the many famous Tibetan teachers who wrote their own commentaries on the Abhisamayalamkara relied on Haribhadra as their primary source. This is the first of four volumes.
Download or read book Working Toward Enlightenment written by Huaijin Nan and published by Red Wheel. This book was released on 1993 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This non-sectarian approach to self-realization incorporates wisdom from the major schools of Chinese thought--Buddhist, Confucian, Taoist, Zen and Tibetan.
