Abiding in Emptiness

Abiding in Emptiness PDF Author: Bhikkhu Analayo
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 161429917X
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 203

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Book Description
"Abiding in Emptiness presents a practice-related exploration of emptiness in daily life and formal meditation, based on instructions found in the Buddha's Greater and the Smaller Discourses on Emptiness. This presentation provides translations of the relevant textual portions followed by explanations, a summary of the main points covered in each chapter, and practice instructions. The presentation in what follows is firmly grounded in early Buddhist thought, contextualized within the doctrinal framework provided by the early discourses, in clear awareness that this differs in some respects from perspectives underlying the Chan and the Mahāmudrā / Dzogchen traditions. Versions of the Greater and the Smaller Discourses on Emptiness exist in Pāli, Chinese, and Tibetan. Nevertheless, meditation on emptiness in its various forms has not garnered as much attention from Theravādins as it has from practitioners of Chinese and Tibetan Buddhism. In an attempt to build a bridge between these different traditions and to facilitate an adoption of emptiness practices by contemporary practitioners operating within the framework of Theravāda thought, the translations are based entirely on Pāli discourse passages. The author's annotations provide a comparative perspective on such quotations. The main part of each chapter in this book consists in practice-related explorations of quotations from the Pāli version of the Greater and the Smaller Discourses on Emptiness (the Mahāsuññatasutta and the Cūḷa- suññatasutta). Toward the end of each exploration, the author presents a verse, translated from some other Pāli text, which in one way or another captures in a poetical manner some of the main points to be kept in mind, and a summary of the main points covered in the exploration. The first part of the verse taken up in the first chapter, entirely dedicated to daily-life dimensions of emptiness practice as the indispensable foundation for going deep in formal sitting, can also serve to convey the main theme underlying this whole book"--

Abiding in Emptiness

Abiding in Emptiness PDF Author: Bhikkhu Analayo
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 161429917X
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 203

Get Book

Book Description
"Abiding in Emptiness presents a practice-related exploration of emptiness in daily life and formal meditation, based on instructions found in the Buddha's Greater and the Smaller Discourses on Emptiness. This presentation provides translations of the relevant textual portions followed by explanations, a summary of the main points covered in each chapter, and practice instructions. The presentation in what follows is firmly grounded in early Buddhist thought, contextualized within the doctrinal framework provided by the early discourses, in clear awareness that this differs in some respects from perspectives underlying the Chan and the Mahāmudrā / Dzogchen traditions. Versions of the Greater and the Smaller Discourses on Emptiness exist in Pāli, Chinese, and Tibetan. Nevertheless, meditation on emptiness in its various forms has not garnered as much attention from Theravādins as it has from practitioners of Chinese and Tibetan Buddhism. In an attempt to build a bridge between these different traditions and to facilitate an adoption of emptiness practices by contemporary practitioners operating within the framework of Theravāda thought, the translations are based entirely on Pāli discourse passages. The author's annotations provide a comparative perspective on such quotations. The main part of each chapter in this book consists in practice-related explorations of quotations from the Pāli version of the Greater and the Smaller Discourses on Emptiness (the Mahāsuññatasutta and the Cūḷa- suññatasutta). Toward the end of each exploration, the author presents a verse, translated from some other Pāli text, which in one way or another captures in a poetical manner some of the main points to be kept in mind, and a summary of the main points covered in the exploration. The first part of the verse taken up in the first chapter, entirely dedicated to daily-life dimensions of emptiness practice as the indispensable foundation for going deep in formal sitting, can also serve to convey the main theme underlying this whole book"--

Emptiness

Emptiness PDF Author: Guy Armstrong
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1614293635
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 327

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Book Description
If everything is empty, then what ceases in Nirvana and is born in rebirth? How can you live in the world without feeling trapped by it? Guy Armstrong tackles these questions and more in this richly informed, practical guide to emptiness for the meditator. It may seem odd for emptiness to serve as the central philosophy of a major religion. In fact, emptiness points to something quite different than “nothingness” or “vacancy.” And by developing a richer understanding of this complex topic, we can experience freedom as we live consciously in the world. Guy Armstrong has been a leading figure and beloved teacher of insight meditation for decades. In this book, he makes difficult Buddhist topics easy to understand, weaving together Theravada and Mahayana teachings on emptiness to show how we can liberate our minds and manifest compassion in our lives.

Compassion and Emptiness in Early Buddhist Meditation

Compassion and Emptiness in Early Buddhist Meditation PDF Author: Analayo
Publisher: Windhorse Publications
ISBN: 1909314625
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 232

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Book Description
Analayo investigates the meditative practices of compassion and emptiness by examining and interpreting material from the early Buddhist discourses. Similar to his previous study of satipaa'-a'-hana, he brings a new dimension to our understanding by comparing Pali texts with versions that have survived in Chinese, Sanskrit and Tibetan. The result is a wide-ranging exploration of what these practices meant in early Buddhism.

How to Realize Emptiness

How to Realize Emptiness PDF Author: Gen Lamrimpa
Publisher: Shambhala Publications
ISBN: 1559397497
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 136

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Book Description
Realizing emptiness or grasping the true nature of reality lies at the heart of the Buddhist path. In this book, Gen Lamrimpa offers practical instruction on Madhyamaka, insight meditation aimed at realizing emptiness. Drawing on his theoretical training as well as his extensive meditative experience, he explains how to use Madhyamaka reasoning to experience the way in which all things exist as dependently related events.

Superiority Conceit in Buddhist Traditions

Superiority Conceit in Buddhist Traditions PDF Author: Bhikkhu Analayo
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1614297339
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 184

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Book Description
Renowned scholar-monk writes accessibly on some of the most contentious topics in Buddhism—guaranteed to ruffle some feathers. Armed with his rigorous examination of the canonical records, respected scholar-monk Bhikkhu Analayo explores—and sharply criticizes—four examples of what he terms “superiority conceit” in Buddhism: the androcentric tendency to prevent women from occupying leadership roles, be these as fully ordained monastics or as advanced bodhisattvas the Mahayana notion that those who don’t aspire to become bodhisattvas are inferior practitioners the Theravada belief that theirs is the most original expression of the Buddha’s teaching the Secular Buddhist claim to understand the teachings of the Buddha more accurately than traditionally practicing Buddhists Ven. Analayo challenges the scriptural basis for these conceits and points out that adhering to such notions of superiority is not, after all, conducive to practice. “It is by diminishing ego, letting go of arrogance, and abandoning conceit that one becomes a better Buddhist,” he reminds us, “no matter what tradition one may follow.” Thoroughly researched, Superiority Conceit in Buddhist Traditions provides an accessible approach to these conceits as academic subjects. Readers will find it not only challenges their own intellectual understandings but also improves their personal practice.

An Introduction to Zen Buddhism

An Introduction to Zen Buddhism PDF Author: D.T. Suzuki
Publisher: Open Road + Grove/Atlantic
ISBN: 0802198740
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 165

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Book Description
The highly influential book that helped bring Eastern spiritual principles to the Western world. One of the world’s leading authorities on Zen Buddhism, and a Nobel Peace Prize nominee, D. T. Suzuki was the author of more than a hundred works on the subject in both Japanese and English, and was most instrumental in bringing the teachings of Zen Buddhism to the attention of the Western world. Written in a lively, accessible, and straightforward manner, An Introduction to Zen Buddhism is illuminating for the serious student and layperson alike. Suzuki provides a complete vision of Zen, which emphasizes self-understanding and enlightenment through many systems of philosophy, psychology, and ethics. With a foreword by the renowned psychiatrist Dr. Carl Jung, this volume has been acknowledged a classic introduction to the subject. It provides, along with Suzuki’s Essays in Zen Buddhism and Manual of Zen Buddhism, a framework for living a balanced and fulfilled existence through Zen.

No Ajahn Chah

No Ajahn Chah PDF Author: Dhamma Garden
Publisher:
ISBN: 9789578896062
Category : Buddhism
Languages : en
Pages : 203

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Book Description
The quotations in this collection have been taken from Bodhinyana, A taste of freedom, A still forest pool, Samadhibhavana, Seeing the way, Living dhamma, Food for the heart, and Venerable father, a life with Ahjahn Chah. Some quotations come from a personal collection hitherto unpublished.

A Philosophy of Emptiness

A Philosophy of Emptiness PDF Author: Gay Watson
Publisher: Reaktion Books
ISBN: 1780233256
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 176

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Book Description
We often view emptiness as a negative condition, a symptom of depression, despair, or grief—an assessment furthered by authors like Franz Kafka or the existentialists, Jean-Paul Sartre and Albert Camus. Offering an alternative view, A Philosophy of Emptiness reclaims these hollow feelings as a positive and even empowering state, an antidote to the modern obsession with substance and foundation. Digging through early and non-Western philosophy, Gay Watson uncovers a rich history of emptiness. She travels from Buddhism, Taoism, and religious mysticism to the contemporary world of philosophy, science, and art practice. Though most Western philosophies are concerned with substance and foundation, she finds that the twentieth century has seen a resurgence of emptiness and offers reasons why such an apparently unappealing concept has attracted modern musicians, artists, and scientists, as well as preeminent thinkers throughout the ages. Probing the idea of how a life without foundation might be lived—and why a person might choose this path—A Philosophy of Emptiness links these concepts to contemporary ideas of meditation and the mind, presenting a rich and intriguing take on the concept of emptiness and the history of thought.

Emptiness and Joyful Freedom

Emptiness and Joyful Freedom PDF Author: Greg Goode
Publisher: New Harbinger Publications
ISBN: 1626257302
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 406

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Book Description
The pinnacle of Buddhism's understanding of reality is the emptiness of all things. Exploring reality towards the realization of emptiness is shockingly radical. It uncovers an exhilarating freedom with nowhere to stand, while engendering a loving joy that engages the world. This path-breaking book employs the emptiness teachings in a fresh, innovative way. Goode and Sander don't rely solely on historical models and meditations. Instead, they have created over eighty original meditations on the emptiness of the self, issues in everyday life, and spiritual paths. These meditations are guided both by Buddhist insights and cutting-edge Western tools of inquiry, such as positive psychology, neuroscience, linguistic philosophy, deconstruction, and scepticism. The result is a set of liberating and usable tools for Buddhists and non-Buddhists alike.

Rebirth in Early Buddhism and Current Research

Rebirth in Early Buddhism and Current Research PDF Author: Analayo
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1614294623
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 296

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Book Description
Join a rigorous scholar and Buddhist monk on a brisk tour of rebirth from ancient doctrine to contemporary debates. German Buddhist monk and university professor Bhikkhu Analayo had not given much attention to the topic of rebirth before some friends asked him to explore the treatment of the issue in early Buddhist texts. This succinct volume presents his findings, approaching the topic from four directions. The first chapter examines the doctrine of rebirth as it is presented in the earliest Buddhist sources and the way it relates to core doctrinal principles. The second chapter reviews debates about rebirth throughout Buddhist history and up to modern times, noting the role of confirmation bias in evaluation of evidence. Chapter 3 reviews the merits of current research on rebirth, including near-death experience, past-life regression, and children who recall previous lives. The chapter concludes with an examination of xenoglossy, the ability to speak languages one has not learned previously, and chapter 4 examines the particular case of Dhammaruwan, a Sri Lankan boy who chants Pali texts that he does not appear to have learned in his present life. Rebirth in Early Buddhism and Current Research brings together the many strands of the debate on rebirth in one place, making it both comprehensive and compact. It is not a polemic but an interrogation of the evidence, and it leaves readers to come to their own conclusions.