Long ago, the Buddha taught that we create the world with our thoughts; and the more attached we are to things being a certain way, the more we suffer. Nowhere is this clearer than with chronic illness and pain: Our self-blame, anguish, depression, fear, loneliness, anger and embarrassment are the byproducts of denying the reality of illness or pain. If we are courageous enough to set aside our beliefs, hopes, and longings for a former or mythical ideal of health, which pull us out of the present moment, we free ourselves from the hell realm of suffering. Mindfully observing what is right here-and-now enables true healing to take place--healing that moves us beyond our naive ideas of health and illness. After all, we are not brains on a stick. Mind and body are united by spirit and it is spiritual understanding that leads us to the well where wisdom, love and compassion abide--qualities vital to the recovery of wholeness and well-being. SUFFERING BUDDHA points the way to inner healing; it is not a how-to manual or glib prescription for spiritual transcendence, precisely because such are not necessary. In our own wise, awakened hearts lies the key to wellness and ease.

This book offers an accessible guide to the role that Zen has played and, alongside Buddhism, might play in both Eastern and Western attempts to alleviate mental suffering. Since its beginnings 2500 years ago, the central belief of Buddhism has been that what we perceive as “reality” is a mental representation; a religious belief which has since been substantiated by the evidence of neuroscience. The work and progress of clinical medicine, psychiatry and psychology have attempted to alleviate the sufferings of life, but the current approaches to mental health in psychiatry, the neurosciences and cognitivism don't fully address the complexity and mutual inter-relationship of the variety of factors involved in mental suffering, and its non-linear and chaotic aspects. Zen Buddhism, on the other hand, encourages access to reality, and so this book will explore, scientifically, the ways in which it’s guiding principles can be deployed to support and enhance Western, clinical solutions to mental strife.

From one of America’s most brilliant writers, a New York Times bestselling journey through psychology, philosophy, and lots of meditation to show how Buddhism holds the key to moral clarity and enduring happiness. At the heart of Buddhism is a simple claim: The reason we suffer—and the reason we make other people suffer—is that we don’t see the world clearly. At the heart of Buddhist meditative practice is a radical promise: We can learn to see the world, including ourselves, more clearly and so gain a deep and morally valid happiness. In this “sublime” (The New Yorker), pathbreaking book, Robert Wright shows how taking this promise seriously can change your life—how it can loosen the grip of anxiety, regret, and hatred, and how it can deepen your appreciation of beauty and of other people. He also shows why this transformation works, drawing on the latest in neuroscience and psychology, and armed with an acute understanding of human evolution. This book is the culmination of a personal journey that began with Wright’s landmark book on evolutionary psychology, The Moral Animal, and deepened as he immersed himself in meditative practice and conversed with some of the world’s most skilled meditators. The result is a story that is “provocative, informative and...deeply rewarding” (The New York Times Book Review), and as entertaining as it is illuminating. Written with the wit, clarity, and grace for which Wright is famous, Why Buddhism Is True lays the foundation for a spiritual life in a secular age and shows how, in a time of technological distraction and social division, we can save ourselves from ourselves, both as individuals and as a species.

The First Noble Truth is "Life is Suffering." But if the Buddha grew up in the hood he may have said "Life Sucks and Then You Die" (Chapter One) Growing up in the Bronx in all the turbulence and craziness of the '60s, Jerry Duvinsky learnt this lesson first hand: The promising lives cut short, the tragic idealism and self-destruction. But life on the streets also teaches other things, and like the lotus flower that flourishes best in the mud and slime, out of these experiences can grow a deeper understanding of life, and even perhaps a path to true acceptance and liberation.Bronx Dharma is a somewhat irreverent and darkly humorous endeavor to translate the seemingly esoteric and remote philosophies and practices of Zen Buddhism to the reality of contemporary life on the streets. Duvinsky utilizes autobiographical references from his life growing up in the Bronx during the turbulence of the 60s and 70s, his 30 years of experience conducting psychotherapy, as well as his own Zen training under the tutelage of illuminated masters in the Kwan Um tradition. Duvinsky renders some basic principles of the Dharma as taught by the Buddha 2500 years ago into fresh and relevant themes and language to serve as a guide and inspiration to the Zen curious, or others trying to lead a more "woke" life while dealing with the challenges of modern existence. Born and raised in the Bronx, Dr. Duvinsky earned his doctorate in clinical psychology from Binghamton University where he currently supervises graduate student's clinical work. He founded and directs a large private behavioral health clinic in Binghamton, New York. He has over thirty years of clinical experience. A long- time student of Zen Buddhism, he is training to be a Dharma Teacher in the Kwan Um lineage of Korean Zen, founded by the world-renowned Zen Master Seung Sahn. Duvinsky has published books integrating behavioral psychology and Eastern mindfulness practices. Sample of chapter headings: Chapter 1 - Life Sucks and Then you Die; Impermanence and the Roots of SufferingChapter 2 - Dis is Dis: All You Need is NowChapter 3 - Everything is Everything: Interpenetration and Co-arising DependenceChapter 4 - The Bronx is Burning!: Bad Situation - Good SituationChapter 6 - Bronx Rap: the Tremont Avenue SutrasChapter 8 - "Zen as Fuck": Becoming and Staying Conscious in an Unconscious World. All profits from sales of this book will go to the Three Jewels Sangha of the Kwan Um School of Zen in order to help provide a Dharma Center for the Binghamton, NY region.

The secret to happiness is to acknowledge and transform suffering, not to run away from it. Here, Thich Nhat Hanh offers practices and inspiration transforming suffering and finding true joy. Thich Nhat Hanh acknowledges that because suffering can feel so bad, we try to run away from it or cover it up by consuming. We find something to eat or turn on the television. But unless we’re able to face our suffering, we can’t be present and available to life, and happiness will continue to elude us. Nhat Hanh shares how the practices of stopping, mindful breathing, and deep concentration can generate the energy of mindfulness within our daily lives. With that energy, we can embrace pain and calm it down, instantly bringing a measure of freedom and a clearer mind. No Mud, No Lotus introduces ways to be in touch with suffering without being overwhelmed by it. "When we know how to suffer," Nhat Hanh says, "we suffer much, much less." With his signature clarity and sense of joy, Thich Nhat Hanh helps us recognize the wonders inside us and around us that we tend to take for granted and teaches us the art of happiness.

Life is beautiful. But then, there will always be times when you lose track of it. You divert from the path that you have planned to take. You forget the right directions. You become engulfed with all your day to day activities that you simply stop living. And then one day, you wake up only to discover that it is no longer the kind of life that you want. You are no longer the kind of person that you dream to be. You are no longer happy. You are simply a lost soul wandering, not knowing where to go.When you find yourself in this situation, it can all be too tempting to just put up your hands and surrender. However, you don't have to. Instead, you have to stop running and look within yourself because at the end of the day, the solution to your problems all lies within yourself. Not on other people and not on your environment. In this short guide, you will get to learn more about Zen, what it is all about and how it will help you to find your way back to your life, how to be mindful of everything around you and finally, how to be happy. Go ahead and start your journey to a life with more meaning!