Bücher veröffentlicht von Shambhala Publications Inc

Insightful lessons from the great traditions of Asian thought on:    •  The essentials of wise leadership    •  Decision-making without prejudice    •  Inspiring loyalty and maintaining authority    •  Determining an individual''s true character    •  Encouraging the best in people    •  Achieving success without sacrificing happiness

Newly selected poetry from previously published and unpublished works, Timely Rain is the definitive edition of poems and sacred songs of the renowned Tibetan meditation master.

Master Hua-Ching Ni uses straightforward language and personal experiences, as well as traditional stories and teachings of the ancient masters, to impart the wisdom of Taoism, the Integral Way. His teachings promote a simple, natural, healthy, and happy way of life that lays the foundation for spiritual self-cultivation. Master Ni emphasizes that it is important first to establish a good understanding of basic spiritual principles and then begin to realize this wisdom in daily life by adopting practices and attitudes that help to conserve, nourish, and refine the subtle energy. Among the topics he discusses in short, accessible passages are:    •  Basic spiritual self-protection    •  Self-reliance   •  Emotional balance    •  Do''s and don''ts for a healthy, natural lifestyle    •  Sleeping and dreaming    •  Diet   •  Love, sex and marriage    •  Meditations and invocations from the Taoist tradition

Our ancient ancestors believed that sports were a gift of the gods—that they were potent rituals, which, if performed correctly, would placate unseen powers, honor departed heroes, or improve the harvests. Today, sports still speak to deep yearnings, imaginings, and the irreducible need people feel to resonate with themselves and their world. But the hidden meaning, or "secret life," that lies at the heart of sports and gives them their force and magic goes largely unnoticed. The old baseball hand Wes Westrum once said, "Baseball is like church. Many attend, but few understand"—and the same could be said for sports in general. In Playing in the Zone, Andrew Cooper explores this inner dimension of sports, drawing on mythology, the history of religion, his observations on popular culture, and a wonderful array of stories and anecdotes about the world''s most accomplished athletes. The author—a clinical psychologist and longtime Zen student—compares the intense focus of the mind that is often required in spiritual practice with the experience of "playing in the zone"—that quality of mind where the most remarkable athletic feats seem to occur effortlessly. He explores the "dark side" of sports, its brutality and violence, showing how it can also provide fertile ground for self-awareness and self-transformation. Particularly insightful is the author''s discussion of how the heightened drama of sports offers a powerful vehicle for the expression of mythic imagery and symbols in popular culture.

Maurine Stuart (1922–1990) was one of a select group of students on the leading edge of Buddhism in America: a woman who became a Zen master. In this book, she draws on down-to-earth Zen stories, her friendships with Japanese Zen teachers, and her experiences as a concert pianist to apply the inner meanings of Buddhism to practicing the basic ethics of daily living—nowness, unselfishness, compassion, and good will toward every living being. She emphasizes that inner growth comes through our own efforts and intuition, especially as we cultivate them through meditation practice. We can then take what we have learned in meditation and use it to respond to our daily lives in a straightforward and creative way, guided not by concepts or dogma, but by direct insight into the reality of the present moment.

Marpa the Translator, the eleventh-century farmer, scholar, and teacher, is one of the most renowned saints in Tibetan Buddhist history. In the West, Marpa is best known through his teacher, the Indian yogin Nâropa, and through his closest disciple, Milarepa. This lucid and moving translation of a text composed by the author of The Life of Milarepa and The Hundred Thousand Songs of Milarepa documents the fascinating life of Marpa, who, unlike many other Tibetan masters, was a layman, a skillful businessman who raised a family while training his disciples. As a youth, Marpa was inspired to travel to India to study the Buddhist teachings, for at that time in Tibet, Buddhism has waned considerably through ruthless suppression by an evil king. The author paints a vivid picture of Marpa''s three journeys to India: precarious mountain passes, desolate plains teeming with bandits, greedy customs-tax collectors. Marpa endured many hardships, but nothing to compare with the trials that ensued with his guru Nâropa and other teachers. Yet Marpa succeeded in mastering the tantric teachings, translating and bringing them to Tibet, and establishing the Practice Lineage of the Kagyüs, which continues to this day.

Of particular interest for its application to business strategizing, this edition of the well-known ancient Chinese classic I Ching (The Book of Changes) guides readers through the intricacies of group dynamics and relationships within organizations of all kinds. The root text is supported by a commentary from the eleventh-century scholar Cheng-Yi, founder of the movement known as Lixue, the "study of inner design." Cheng contended that by understanding the pattern of events—the inner design of nature—one can bring about mutual understanding and cooperation among people in groups, thus facilitating the accomplishment of any tasks they might undertake. The translator''s extensive introduction gives specific, systematic guidelines for consulting the I Ching for greatest understanding and best results. Included in the afterward is a profile of the modern and Japanese organizational genius Matsushita Konosuke, founder of Panasonic and other multinational corporations, whose success has been built on the principles of the I Ching.

Lao Tzu, the legendary author of the Tao Te Ching , is also credited with the authorship of the Hua Hu Ching , which embodies some of his later teachings. During a time of political turmoil in the fourteenth century, all copies of this work were banned and ordered to be burned. Thus, few if any complete and accurate manuscripts exist today. Fortunately, the complete teachings of the Hua Hu Ching have been preserved through the oral transmission of generation after generation of Taoist masters to their disciples. In this book, Master Ni, heir to that orally transmitted wisdom, offers a superlative rendering of this reassured teaching.

A Tibetan patriot and unswerving follower of the Dalai Lama, Lobsang Gyatso emerges from these memoirs as a master storyteller, a fearless social critic, and a devoted Buddhist monk. With unusual wit and realism, he provides a picture of his country from the perspective of a common Tibetan, recounting his early life in Kham as a herder and a rambunctious young monk, his travels to Lhasa, his life in one of Tibet’s most famous monasteries, and his flight into exile. Outspoken and critical of both himself and his society, Lobsang Gyatso’s memoirs tell the story of his struggle for personal religious transformation and his fight to create a new vision for his country.

In this anthology, leading Western teachers of Buddhism share their personal experiences on the path of insight meditation; their understanding of the basic teachings of the Buddha; the lessons they''ve learned in their training with their own teachers; and some good advice on following the Buddha Dharma in everyday situations of work, family, and service. Contributors include:    •  Jack Kornfield    •  Sharon Salzberg    •  Larry Rosenberg    •  Sylvia Boorstein    •  Christopher Titmuss    •  Joseph Goldstein    •  Steve Armstrong    •  Narayan Liebenson Grady    •  Bhante Gunaratana    •  Gavin Harrison    •  Kamala Masters    •  Michele McDonald-Smith    •  Rodney Smith    •  Steven Smith    •  Ajahn Sumedho    •  Carol Wilson    •  Christina Feldman

In August 1968, naturalist-explorer Peter Matthiessen returned from Africa to his home in Sagaponack, Long Island, to find three Zen masters in his driveway—guests of his wife, a new student of Zen. Thirteen years later, Matthiessen was ordained a Buddhist monk. Written in the same format as his best-selling The Snow Leopard, Nine-Headed Dragon River reveals Matthiessen''s most daring adventure of all: the quest for his spiritual roots.

This book is the autobiography of the great scholar and translator Vairochana, as told to a group of his students near the end of his life in the eighth century. Responsible for bringing seminal Buddhist teachings to Tibet from India, his deep understanding of the Dharma was what enabled him to translate the essence of enlightened mind, conveyed in the Sanskrit texts, with great accuracy.

Here is a classic Chinese text on the Taoist arts of longevity and immortality. The text dates from the Five Dynasties (907-960 C. E.) and is attributed to Chungli Ch'uan and Lü Tung-pin-two of the most popular figures of Taoism and Chinese culture. This text focuses on Taoist inner alchemy, a theory and method for transforming the mind from within by using practices such as breath control, calisthenics, meditation practices, and sexual alchemy (the method of gathering energy from a sexual partner). The teachings address the following topics: • The nature of immortality and how it can be attained by realizing the laws of the Tao within us • The art of health • The art of longevity • How to deal with obstacles and recognize spiritual progress The Art of Health, Longevity, and Immortality will be of interest to both beginning students of Taoism and scholars. Wong's introduction includes a concise overview of the evolution of Taoist longevity practices as well as an elucidating section for readers who are unfamiliar with the teachings and practices of Taoist inner alchemy. She also includes a list of helpful hints for reading and understanding each section of the text.

In this compelling collection of talks, essays, interviews, and letters, Toni Packer presents a radically simple and original approach to spiritual growth free from religious authority, doctrine, symbolism, and ceremony. A former Zen teacher and student of Krishnamurti's work, Toni Packer goes beyond traditional religion and explores with the reader the root of human attachments and the source of suffering, opening the way to compassion.

The world we inhabit is enchanted--every tree, rock, and star, and even "empty" space itself, is teeming with living energy and awareness. And it's all nearer to us than our own breath. Why, then, can't we see it? Because, according to Jeremy Hayward, we are taught not to. And because our cultural conditioning keeps us in denial about the fact that a strictly scientific worldview provides only a partial, and unsatisfactory, view of reality. Letters to Vanessa is the guidebook for a generation caught in the eunuch between the hard realities of science and the genuine yearning for an experience of the sacred. In a series of letters addressed to his teenage daughter, Dr. Hayward points the way past the limits of science and shows how we can connect with the magical, multidimensional universe of soul. Along the way he presents the most recent findings of neuroscience, cognitive psychology, new biology, and physics in a most engaging and understandable way. He also provides practical meditation instructions that will enable everyone to reconnect with the joyous reality of ordinary life.

As a girl growing up in Hong Kong, Eva Wong heard and memorized many tales told to her by Hong Kong's finest professional storytellers, by actors on the radio, and by her grandmother. These popular tales of the Taoist immortals were also often dramatized in Chinese operas. The stories are of famous characters in Chinese history and myth: a hero's battle with the lords of evil, the founder of the Ming dynasty's treacherous betrayal of his friends, a young girl who saves her town by imitating rooster calls. Entertaining and often provocative, these tales usually include a moral. The immortals are role models in Chinese culture, as well as examples of enlightenment. Some of the immortals were healers, some were social activists, some were aristocrats, and some were entrepreneurs. The tales chosen by Eva Wong here are of the best-known immortals among the Chinese. Their names are household words and their stories are told and retold by one generation to the next.

"No words can explain enlightenment," says the seventh-century Zen classic Xin Ming, or "Song of Mind," yet, paradoxically, this poem is a masterpiece of expressing the inexpressible. In his commentary on it, Chan Master Sheng Yen takes a practical approach, opening up the language of the Xin Ming to show students how to approach meditation, how to deal with problems that arise in their spiritual practice, and how to accomplish the imperative task of integrating this practice into every aspect of one's life. "True understanding comes only with direct experience," according to Master Sheng Yen. "These lectures, the Buddhist sutras, songs, poems, and commentaries are useful only insofar as they encourage you to practice and incorporate the Dharma [teachings] into your daily life." The book takes the form of a week-long retreat with Master Sheng Yen, with each chapter in the form of an evening talk given on a particular section of the "Song of Mind" text-giving this book a far more intimate and accessible feel than most commentaries on Zen texts and creating a feeling of being right there with the master as he brings the text to life.