I'm wondering what people's favorite Buddhism or Buddhism-related books are. Were you drawn to Buddhism, as many are, through books?
One book I remember reading when I first exploring Buddhism was Awakening the Buddha Within, by Lama Surya Das. In addition to being a great overall intro to Tibetan Buddhism, it's part autobiography and an all around good read. It inspired me to look further into Dharma and Tibetan Buddhism in particular. Lately I lent it to my mother, who I think is only mildly interested in Dharma, and she confirmed that it was a good page-turner.
A book I've often heard mentioned in the past is What The Buddha Taught, by Rahula Walpola, a Theravadan monk. Though I haven't read it, I have flipped through it and it does indeed seem to be a solid introduction to the teachings, especially through the lense of the Theravada tradition.
My All Time Most Enjoyable Buddhism Reads:
-Awakening the Buddha Within, Lama Surya Das
Lama Surya Das radiates enthusiastic energy when writing and talking about Dharma, and the autobiographical portions woven into the book are interesting in and of themselves.
-The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying, Sogyal Rinpoche
This was the first book I ever read specifically dealing with the topic of death, bardo, and rebirth. Like most
well-written modern Dharma books, it is also an all-illuminating and thoroughly grounded guide to the entire spiriual path of Tibetan Buddhism by a Lama highly familiar with western thought.
-A Flash of Lightning in the Dark of Night, HH The Dalai Lama
I first read this as assigned reading for a class my Lama was teaching on Shantideva's The Bodhisattva's Way of Life, the incredibly beautiful poetic text of Mahayana Buddhism. This book is from a commentary by His Holiness the Dalai Lama. It is a fairly brief but highly inspiring view of the entire Mahayana path. This is my favorite book to go back and re-read when I feel that I have drifted away from the foundation of my practice. The root text itself is powerful enough to make you feel like you could shed tears.
-How to Meditate, Kathleen MacDonald (aka Sangye Khandro)
What I like about this book is that it's highly practical while being deeply grounded in the Tibetan teachings. Things like visualization practices never came natural to me as a westerner, and the author explains these in a very clear and no BS way.
-Attention Revolution, Alan Watts
I originally read excerpts from this when I attended a course on shamatha meditation at my Dharma center, which was taught by someone who works for Wisdom Publications. The bit we read was so enticing that I had to get my hands on it as soon as it was released a few months later.
After all the material I had read on meditation before this book came out, this one blew me away. The author is a scientist and long-time meditator, and this work is an exciting, insightful, eye-opening and highly practical approach to meditation. I recommend reading it before, after, or in tandem with more traditional teachings like Stages of Meditation by HH The Dalai Lama, a commentary on Mahakamalashila's influential text. The latter is important for understanding the classical Tibetan approach to meditation practice. The former is a much more modern and accessible guide.
So, anyone want to drop a title or give us a list of your favorite reads?
I'm wondering what people's favorite Buddhism or Buddhism-related books are. Were you drawn to Buddhism, as many are, through books?
One book I remember reading when I first exploring Buddhism was Awakening the Buddha Within, by Lama Surya Das. In addition to being a great overall intro to Tibetan Buddhism, it's part autobiography and an all around good read. It inspired me to look further into Dharma and Tibetan Buddhism in particular. Lately I lent it to my mother, who I think is only mildly interested in Dharma, and she confirmed that it was a good page-turner.
A book I've often heard mentioned in the past is What The Buddha Taught, by Rahula Walpola, a Theravadan monk. Though I haven't read it, I have flipped through it and it does indeed seem to be a solid introduction to the teachings, especially through the lense of the Theravada tradition.
My All Time Most Enjoyable Buddhism Reads:
-Awakening the Buddha Within, Lama Surya Das
Lama Surya Das radiates enthusiastic energy when writing and talking about Dharma, and the autobiographical portions woven into the book are interesting in and of themselves.
-The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying, Sogyal Rinpoche
This was the first book I ever read specifically dealing with the topic of death, bardo, and rebirth. Like most
well-written modern Dharma books, it is also an all-illuminating and thoroughly grounded guide to the entire spiriual path of Tibetan Buddhism by a Lama highly familiar with western thought.
-A Flash of Lightning in the Dark of Night, HH The Dalai Lama
I first read this as assigned reading for a class my Lama was teaching on Shantideva's The Bodhisattva's Way of Life, the incredibly beautiful poetic text of Mahayana Buddhism. This book is from a commentary by His Holiness the Dalai Lama. It is a fairly brief but highly inspiring view of the entire Mahayana path. This is my favorite book to go back and re-read when I feel that I have drifted away from the foundation of my practice. The root text itself is powerful enough to make you feel like you could shed tears.
-How to Meditate, Kathleen MacDonald (aka Sangye Khandro)
What I like about this book is that it's highly practical while being deeply grounded in the Tibetan teachings. Things like visualization practices never came natural to me as a westerner, and the author explains these in a very clear and no BS way.
-Attention Revolution, Alan Watts
I originally read excerpts from this when I attended a course on shamatha meditation at my Dharma center, which was taught by someone who works for Wisdom Publications. The bit we read was so enticing that I had to get my hands on it as soon as it was released a few months later.
After all the material I had read on meditation before this book came out, this one blew me away. The author is a scientist and long-time meditator, and this work is an exciting, insightful, eye-opening and highly practical approach to meditation. I recommend reading it before, after, or in tandem with more traditional teachings like Stages of Meditation by HH The Dalai Lama, a commentary on Mahakamalashila's influential text. The latter is important for understanding the classical Tibetan approach to meditation practice. The former is a much more modern and accessible guide.
So, anyone want to drop a title or give us a list of your favorite reads?
