Addresses the universal question of how we can achieve meaningful lives and peaceful deaths. The Dalai Lama says we must learn to cultivate compassion and positive thoughts and actions.

His Holiness the Dalai Lama's teaching-a beautiful and accessible presentation of the time-honored path to enlightenment–is one of the world's great spiritual treasures. The Joy of Living and Dying in Peace underscores the importance of "practice"-of awareness through meditation, compassion, patience, and effort—in lending rich and joyous meaning to this lifetime, and so to our passage to the next. His Holiness the Dalai Lama offers his thoughts on achieving a meaningful life and death. At the heart of his eloquent presentation is this lesson: by cultivating compassion, wisdom, and positive thought and action-in short, by living a good life-we can approach death without fear or regret, and welcome our passage and rebirth. He teaches that the way to a peaceful death is to live a meaningful life by practicing love and compassion. The book also provide straightforward lessons on how to embrace death and impermanence, which ultimately leads to a life of peace, joy and spiritual fulfillment.

My true desire is that this book impacts many, that it impacts you, and that as you read the words that follow, they change your life. You begin to open your mind and heart, and through the reading of these humble words, you feel your life shift. You begin to understand what it feels like to release expectations, and as you do, your suffering begins to lighten until it floats away like a feather in the wind. I further wish that as you work through forgiving others and yourself that you begin to feel a change in your life. That with each act of forgiveness the burden of life lifts, and you begin to experience a sense of joy, peace, and love in your life. I wish that with each chapter, you feel the joy in living and the joy in dying. Please take a chance, read this book, risk opening your heart, and allowing the words to touch you. You will see things in your life change and shift, and your suffering may be lifted. If the words in this book help accomplish that one single thing in your life, then this book has done exactly what I wished it would do. Thank you to all who dare to experience The Joy of Dying.

A New York Times Bestseller! For millennia, Buddhists have enjoyed the limitless benefits of meditation. But how does it work? And why? The principles behind this ancient practice have long eluded some of the best minds in modern science. Until now. In this groundbreaking work, world-renowned Buddhist teacher Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche invites us to join him in unlocking the secrets behind the practice of meditation. Working with neuroscientists at the Waisman Laboratory for Brain Imaging and Behavior, Yongey Mingyur provides clear insights into modern research indicating that systematic training in meditation can enhance activity in areas of the brain associated with happiness and compassion. He has also worked with physicists across the country to develop a fresh, scientifically based interpretation of the Buddhist understanding of the nature of reality. With an infectious joy and insatiable curiosity, Yongey Mingyur weaves together the principles of Tibetan Buddhism, neuroscience, and quantum physics in a way that will forever change the way we understand the human experience. Using the basic meditation practices he provides, we can discover paths through everyday problems, transforming obstacles into opportunities to recognize the unlimited potential of our own minds. With a foreword by bestselling author Daniel Goleman, The Joy of Living is a stunning breakthrough, an illuminating vision of the science of Buddhism and a handbook for transforming our minds, bodies, and lives.

The author of The Healing Power of Mind draws on Buddhist scripture, firsthand accounts, and other sources to present an overview of Tibetan Buddhist teachings on facing death with openness and insight Buddhism teaches that death can be a springboard to enlightenment—yet for all but the most advanced meditators, it will be the gateway to countless future lives of suffering in samsara. Tulku Thondup wrote this guide to help us heal our fear and confusion about death and strengthen our practice in anticipation of this transition, and to help us realize the enlightened goal of ultimate peace and joy—not only for death and rebirth, but for this very lifetime. In simple language, he distills a vast range of sources, including scriptures, classic commentaries, oral teachings, and firsthand accounts. The book includes: • A downloadable audio program of guided meditations (URL provided in the book) • An overview of the dying process, the after-death bardo states, and teachings on why, where, and how we take rebirth • Accounts by Tibetan "near-death experiencers" (delogs), who returned from death with amazing reports of their visions • Ways to train our minds during life, so that at death, all the phenomena before us will arise as a world of peace, joy, and enlightenment • Simple meditations, prayers, and rituals to benefit the dead and dying • Advice for caregivers, helpers, and survivors of the dying The paperback edition links to a downloadable audio program providing guided instructions by the author on how to visualize Amitabha Buddha in the Pure Realm; how to receive his blessings; how to visualize transforming your body into light and sound at the time of death; how to share the blessings with compassion for all sentient beings; and how to rest in oneness. By becoming intimate with this practice while we're alive, we can alleviate our fear of death, improve our appreciation of this life, and prepare for death in a very practical way, while planting the seeds for rebirth in the Pure Land.

An insightful collection of teachings about death and dying to help face life's greatest mystery calmly and with equanimity. Lifetimes of effort go into organizing, designing, and structuring every aspect of our lives, but how many people are willing to contemplate the inevitability of death? Although dying is an essential part of life, it is an uncomfortable topic that most people avoid. With no idea what will happen when we die and a strong desire to sidestep the conversation, we make all kinds of assumptions. Living Is Dying collects teachings about death and the bardos that have been passed down through a long lineage of brilliant Buddhist masters, each of whom went to great lengths to examine the process in minute detail. Renowned author and teacher Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse responds to the most common questions he's been asked about death and dying--exploring how one prepares for death, what to say to a loved one who is dying, and prayers and practices to use as a handhold when approaching the unknown territory of death. Whether you are facing death today or decades from now, preparing for it can help to allay your worst fears and help you appreciate what it means to be truly alive.

Even if a person lives a hundred years, he will die eventually. This is the natural cycle of life and death, which was determined before we were born. Nonetheless, when we face this final parting from life, how many of us can do so without sorrow? How many of us are able to thoroughly penetrate the truth of life and death and let go? A human life is like a drop of dew on grass, like the wind, frost, or lightning. Although we might understand the inevitability of death, we still adamantly refuse to discuss it. This book presents Dharma Master Cheng Yen's teachings on life and death. Through it, she hopes to expel superstitions about living and dying and bring clarity to our confusion regarding life and death, so that we can free ourselves of afflictions and fear regarding the natural course of life.