Both practical and whimsical, this book presents Tibetan Buddhist altars witha three-dimensional pop-up flair. Color illustrations, b&w photos.

In this comprehensive book, Lama Surya Das provides a bridge between East and West, past, present and future, making sacred and profound Tibetan teachings clear and easily accessible for anyone who wants to lead a more enlightened and sane life. Utilizing the unique Buddhist guidelines embodied in the Noble Eight Fold Path and the traditional Three Enlightenment Trainings of Virtue, Meditation and Wisdom, he elucidates the tried and true path of spiritual transformation - including key principles such as karma, rebirth and mind-training, as well as the highest, most secret teaching of Tibet, Dzogchen. In this wonderful marriage of the practical and the profound, Lama Surya Das reveals how sacred wisdom can be integrated into our busy lives. He offers a unique approach to the comprehensive wisdom of ancient Tibetan teachings on conscious living and dying and shows that the power of the Buddha is resting within us all. Drawing on Buddhist spirituality and wisdom, this is a view of the world written for Western seekers.

The thangka is a way for Tibetan Buddhist monks to bring the life and teachings of the Buddha to the people through the visual medium of paint. These paintings were rolled up and taken on journeys, used as traveling altars, or hung when certain deitieswere honored. Meulenbeld takes us through 37 thangkas that present a pictorial journey of the life of Buddha, Siddhartha Guatama, and the evolution of Tibetan Buddhism. 37 color plates. Glossary. Bibliography. Index.

Confronting an urban nightmare of drugs, violence, and despair, a leading American Buddhist tests her faith in non-violence by putting spirituality to work where it really counts--in the community.

Transform your home into a calm, balanced and harmonious oasis using architect Anjie Cho's helpful advice, drawing on her background in green design and feng shui. You don't have to get rid of all your possessions and become an ascetic to change your space and discover the benefits that living in a considered, organic way can bring. The easy suggestions in Holistic Spaces show you how to implement the principles of feng shui and green design in your home. Written for the way we live today, as we move toward a more mindful approach to health, diet and the way that we choose the objects in our homes, this is the perfect guide to help you to clear and refresh your living environment. Learn how to make every room in your home serve its highest purpose, create eco-friendly spaces, bring nature indoors, choose colours for maximum impact, select a space for meditation practice, and overall, create a peaceful and organic home. From the bedroom to the home office, these intuitive, straightforward tips will teach you to how improve your spaces to boost the flow of energy through your life.

The first scholarly monograph on Buddhist maṇḍalas in China, this book examines the Maṇḍala of Eight Great Bodhisattvas. This iconographic template, in which a central Buddha is flanked by eight attendants, flourished during the Tibetan (786–848) and post-Tibetan Guiyijun (848–1036) periods at Dunhuang. A rare motif that appears in only four cave shrines at the Mogao and Yulin sites, the maṇḍala bore associations with political authority and received patronage from local rulers. Attending to the historical and cultural contexts surrounding this iconography, this book demonstrates that transcultural communication over the Silk Routes during this period, and the religious dialogue between the Chinese and Tibetan communities, were defining characteristics of the visual language of Buddhist maṇḍalas at Dunhuang.

Kalachakra is a system of highest tantra practice for overcoming the limitations imposed by historical, astrological, and biological cycles so as to become a Buddha for the benefit of all. His Holiness the Dalai Lama and other great Tibetan teachers have been conferring the Kalachakra initiation in the West, empowering prepared practitioners to engage in its meditations. Large numbers of people also attend this initiation as interested observers and gain inspiration for their spiritual growth. Introduction to the Kalachakra Initiation explains on a practical level and in everyday language the theory of tantra, the vows, commitments, and their implications, the factors to consider in deciding if one is ready to attend a Kalachakra initiation as a participant, how to visualize during the initiation, and the most important thoughts and feelings for participants and observers at each step of the empowerment. In preparing this guidebook, Alexander Berzin has done a great service to everyone interested in the Kalachakra initiation. It will help people to prepare for the ceremony and understand the essential points of each step of the procedure.