Download or read book The Zen Priestess and the Snake written by Roshi Ilia Shinko Perez and published by . This book was released on 2020-06-21 with total page 172 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Zen Priestess and the Snake is the powerful true story of a woman inspired by her visions of the Sacred Feminine. Shinko makes a case for bringing the wisdom of the Sacred Feminine back into Buddhism and leads us through practices from the Mother Goddess tradition, teaching us how to incorporate these practices into contemporary spiritual life.
Download or read book Snakes in Myth Magic and History written by Diane Morgan and published by Bloomsbury Publishing USA. This book was released on 2008-09-30 with total page 204 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The snake is one of humankind's most powerful and ambiguous symbols: it has at various times represented immortality and death, male and female, deity and demon, circle and line, killer and healer, the highest wisdom and the deepest subconscious. By virtue of its mysterious movement, potent poison, fearful grip, unblinking gaze and lightning quick strike, the power and image of the snake has wound its way into every culture. Whether snakes are worshipped as gods, feared as devils, or handled in religious ceremonies to test faith, snakes have played a critical role in the human heritage. This book explores the cult of the snake in world history, religion, and folklore. Fascination with snakes has been around since the dawn of time. Even today, images of snakes attract attention, fear, disgust, or admiration. Morgan examines that obsession with this mysterious creature, covering in vivid details such topics as mythical snakes like the Plumed Serpent, serpent iconography, tall tales, as well as the psychological symbolism that has attached itself to snakes. Cultures as diverse as pre-Columbian America, India, Egypt, China, sub-Saharan Africa, Celtic Europe, and the United States have all accorded the serpent a special place in their culture—apparently regardless of whether or not real snakes play an important part in the life of the people. Here, the mysterious nature of the snake unfolds, enchanting readers with a colorful and lively discussion of its place in our history, stories, religions, and cultures.
Download or read book The Sun and the Serpent written by Charles Frederick Oldham and published by . This book was released on 1905 with total page 282 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Sun and the Serpent: A Contribution to the History of Serpent-Worship by Charles Frederick Oldham, first published in 1905, is a rare manuscript, the original residing in one of the great libraries of the world. This book is a reproduction of that original, which has been scanned and cleaned by state-of-the-art publishing tools for better readability and enhanced appreciation. Restoration Editors' mission is to bring long out of print manuscripts back to life. Some smudges, annotations or unclear text may still exist, due to permanent damage to the original work. We believe the literary significance of the text justifies offering this reproduction, allowing a new generation to appreciate it.
Download or read book Zen Women written by Grace Schireson and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2009-10-27 with total page 321 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This landmark presentation at last makes heard the centuries of Zen's female voices. Through exploring the teachings and history of Zen's female ancestors, from the time of the Buddha to ancient and modern female masters in China, Korea, and Japan, Grace Schireson offers us a view of a more balanced Dharma practice, one that is especially applicable to our complex lives, embedded as they are in webs of family relations and responsibilities, and the challenges of love and work. Part I of this book describes female practitioners as they are portrayed in the classic literature of "Patriarchs' Zen"--often as "tea-ladies," bit players in the drama of male students' enlightenments; as "iron maidens," tough-as-nails women always jousting with their male counterparts; or women who themselves become "macho masters," teaching the same Patriarchs' Zen as the men do. Part II of this book presents a different view--a view of how women Zen masters entered Zen practice and how they embodied and taught Zen uniquely as women. This section examines many urgent and illuminating questions about our Zen grandmothers: How did it affect them to be taught by men? What did they feel as they trying to fit into this male practice environment, and how did their Zen training help them with their feelings? How did their lives and relationships differ from that of their male teachers? How did they express the Dharma in their own way for other female students? How was their teaching consistently different from that of male ancestors? And then part III explores how women's practice provides flexible and pragmatic solutions to issues arising in contemporary Western Zen centers.
Download or read book Dancing the Inner Serpent Memoirs of a Suburban Snake Priestess written by Le'ema Kathleen Graham and published by . This book was released on 2009-11 with total page 308 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Graham, a visionary sacred dancer, ordained priestess, and urban shaman, shows how instinct can be renewed through shedding of one's old skins. Through sacred dances, shamanic journeys, goddess archetypes, dreams, and visions, she shows how reconnect to the thriving intuitive intelligence.
Download or read book Secret Teachings of All Ages written by Manly Palmer Hall and published by Lulu.com. This book was released on 2005-02-09 with total page 649 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Manly Palmer Hall wrote this book at age twenty-one and self-published it later in his mid twenties. The book is pure conceptual truth without bogging ourselves down with the details. Great read for anyone who likes Joseph Campbell and wishes to follow up on the Power of Myth and get into the right-hand occult.
Download or read book Amazing Grace written by Serge Beddington-Behrens and published by John Hunt Publishing. This book was released on 2023-08-15 with total page 345 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Amazing Grace: Memoirs of a Transformational Journey is about one man’s struggle to discover his soul in a soulless world, in which he argues that a new kind of human being needs to emerge if our society is to be healed. This new person will need to be someone who will have ‘worked on themselves’ to have become less materialistic and less ego-centred, more planet-friendly and, in particular, more concerned about the well-being of their fellow human beings. In this honest and no-holds-barred book, we learn that if we choose to undertake such a journey, there is no avoiding a confrontation with all those areas of ourselves which prevent this. In author Serge Beddington-Behren’s case, this included his need to come face to face with his chauvinism, his ‘little boy’ who refused to grow up, his narcissism - the myth that the ‘right woman’ would save him - and the delusion of being ‘special’! Chronicling his encounters with the many wise people he’s met along his way, Amazing Grace shows how to let go of attachments to false narratives and assists one in becoming more honest and open-hearted. Serge’s adventures are amusing in places; his hope is that upon discovering the many gifts and blessings that came his way as he aspired to evolve, the reader might feel moved to embark upon similar journeys of self-discovery, vital to our planet’s survival.
Download or read book The Power of Denial written by Bernard Faure and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2009-01-10 with total page 488 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Innumerable studies have appeared in recent decades about practically every aspect of women's lives in Western societies. The few such works on Buddhism have been quite limited in scope. In The Power of Denial, Bernard Faure takes an important step toward redressing this situation by boldly asking: does Buddhism offer women liberation or limitation? Continuing the innovative exploration of sexuality in Buddhism he began in The Red Thread, here he moves from his earlier focus on male monastic sexuality to Buddhist conceptions of women and constructions of gender. Faure argues that Buddhism is neither as sexist nor as egalitarian as is usually thought. Above all, he asserts, the study of Buddhism through the gender lens leads us to question what we uncritically call Buddhism, in the singular. Faure challenges the conventional view that the history of women in Buddhism is a linear narrative of progress from oppression to liberation. Examining Buddhist discourse on gender in traditions such as that of Japan, he shows that patriarchy--indeed, misogyny--has long been central to Buddhism. But women were not always silent, passive victims. Faure points to the central role not only of nuns and mothers (and wives) of monks but of female mediums and courtesans, whose colorful relations with Buddhist monks he considers in particular. Ultimately, Faure concludes that while Buddhism is, in practice, relentlessly misogynist, as far as misogynist discourses go it is one of the most flexible and open to contradiction. And, he suggests, unyielding in-depth examination can help revitalize Buddhism's deeper, more ancient egalitarianism and thus subvert its existing gender hierarchy. This groundbreaking book offers a fresh, comprehensive understanding of what Buddhism has to say about gender, and of what this really says about Buddhism, singular or plural.
Download or read book The Wisdom of the Serpent written by Joseph Lewis Henderson and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 1990-09-04 with total page 324 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The tribal initiation of the shaman, the archetype of the serpent, exemplifies the death of the self and a rebirth into transcendent life. This book traces the images of spiritual initiation in religious rituals and myths of resurrection, poems and epics, cycles of nature, and art and dreaming. It dramatizes the metamorphosis from a common experience of death's inevitability into a transcendent freedom beyond individual limitations. "This is a classic work in analytical psychology that offers crucial insights on the meaning of death symbolism (and its inevitably accompanying rebirth and resurrection symbolism) as part of the great theme of initiation, of which [Henderson] is the world's foremost psychological interpreter. This material is really the next step after the hero myth that Joseph Campbell has made so popular, and provides an understanding of how not to use the hero myth in an inflated way as a psychology of mastery, but as an attainment progressively to be died beyond. [Henderson] is helped by the presence of Maud Oakes, who is a trained anthropologist with exquisite taste in her choice of mythic materials and respect for their original contexts."--John Beebe
Download or read book Uncoiling the Snake written by Vicki Noble and published by Harper San Francisco. This book was released on 1993 with total page 189 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The Wild White Goose written by Jiyu Kennett and published by Shasta Abbey Press. This book was released on 2002 with total page 556 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book is based on the diaries of the years in Japan of Roshi Jiyu-Kennett, one of the first Western women to become a Zen Master. In addition to telling the story of her search for Truth, it gives the reader a rare insight into life in a large Zen training monastery. It is a work of faith that demonstrates perseverance, compassion and trust.
Download or read book Zen and the Ten Oxherding Pictures written by Demi and published by Wisdom Tales. This book was released on 2022-09 with total page 32 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this beloved Zen Buddhist allegory, a boy is searching for his missing ox--his true self. And once he finds it, he struggles to tame and train it. For the journey of the young ox herder is also the story of our journey toward enlightenment. Award-winning author, Demi, presents the traditional story with all the simplicity of Zen Buddhist art. An appendix provides details on Zen Buddhism and the oxherding pictures.
Download or read book Time to Stand Up written by Thanissara and published by North Atlantic Books. This book was released on 2015-08-18 with total page 225 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Time to Stand Up retells the story of the historical Buddha, one of the greatest sacred activists of all time, as a practical human being whose teachings of freedom from suffering are more relevant than ever in this time of global peril. Evolving onward from the patriarchal template of spiritual warriors and their quests, former nun Thanissara explores awakening from within a feminine view where the archetypes of lover and nurturer are placed as central and essential for a sustainable world. Vital is an investigation into the pinnacle of Buddhist practice, the realization of the "liberated heart." Thanissara questions the narrative of "transcendence" and invites us into the lived reality of our deepest heart as it guides our journey of healing, reclamation, and redemption. As the book unfolds, the author examines traditional Buddhism--often fraught with gender discrimination--and asks the important question, "Can Buddhist schools, overly attached to hierarchal power structures, and often divorced from the radical and free inquiry exemplified by the Buddha, truly offer the ground for maturing awakening without undertaking a fundamental review of their own shadows?" Chapter by chapter, the book relates Siddhartha Gautama's awakening to the sea-change occurring on Earth in present time as we as a civilization become aware of the ethical bankruptcy of the nuclear and fossil fuel industry and the psychopathic corporate and military abuse of power currently terrorizing our planet. Thanissara relates the Buddha's story to real-life individuals who are living through these transitional times, such as Iraq war veterans, First Nation People, and the Dalai Lama. Time to Stand Up gives examples of the Buddha's activism, such as challenging a racist caste system and violence against animals, stopping war, transforming a serial killer, and laying down a nonhierarchical structure of community governance, actions that would seem radical even today. Thanissara explores ways forward, deepening our understanding of meditation and mindfulness, probing its use to pacify ourselves as the cogs in the corporate world by helping people be more functional in a dysfunctional systems--and shows how these core Buddhist practices can inspire a wake-up call for action for our sick and suffering planet Earth. About the Sacred Activism series When the joy of compassionate service is combined with the pragmatic drive to transform all existing economic, social, and political institutions, a radical divine force is born: Sacred Activism. The Sacred Activism Series, published by North Atlantic Books, presents leading voices that embody the tenets of Sacred Activism--compassion, service, and sacred consciousness--while addressing the crucial issues of our time and inspiring radical action.
Download or read book Nine Headed Dragon River written by Peter Matthiessen and published by Shambhala Publications. This book was released on 1998-04-28 with total page 304 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In August 1968, naturalist-explorer Peter Matthiessen returned from Africa to his home in Sagaponack, Long Island, to find three Zen masters in his driveway—guests of his wife, a new student of Zen. Thirteen years later, Matthiessen was ordained a Buddhist monk. Written in the same format as his best-selling The Snow Leopard, Nine-Headed Dragon River reveals Matthiessen's most daring adventure of all: the quest for his spiritual roots.
Download or read book Zen and the Art of Faking It written by Jordan Sonnenblick and published by Scholastic Paperbacks. This book was released on 2009-05-25 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Upon moving to a new town yet again, thirteen-year-old San Lee looks for a way to stand out and finds it in his knowledge of Zen Buddhism, but he will have some work to do if he is to be a convincing Zen master.
Download or read book Lila written by Robert Pirsig and published by Bantam. This book was released on 2013-11-06 with total page 480 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this bestselling new book, his first in seventeen years, Robert M. Pirsig, author of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, takes us on a poignant and passionate journey as mysterious and compelling as his first life-changing work. Instead of a motorcycle, a sailboat carries his philosopher-narrator Phaedrus down the Hudson River as winter closes in. Along the way he picks up a most unlikely traveling companion: a woman named Lila who in her desperate sexuality, hostility, and oncoming madness threatens to disrupt his life. In Lila Robert M. Pirsig has crafted a unique work of adventure and ideas that examines the essential issues of the nineties as his previous classic did the seventies.
