Unlocking the secrets of Tantra—one of the most alluring forms of Buddhism Often misunderstood, Tantrism focuses on a particular style of meditation and ritual. Having far more to do with the sacred than the sexual, Tantric Buddhism is believed to have originated around the 5th Century AD in the rich cultural basin of Bengal and spread throughout the Asian world. Today it is widely practiced in Tibet, Japan, and the West. The Secrets of Tantric Buddhism presents accessible translations of 46 classic texts found in the Carya-Giti, a collection of teachings by more than twenty famous Siddhas, or Tantric adepts, who lived during the illustrious Pala dynasty of the 10th and 11th centuries. Renowned translator and scholar Thomas Cleary unlocks the mysteries of these texts and provides commentary for each that explains the ancient teachings in a way that makes them seem fresh and contemporary. These teachings emanate from one of the most dynamic sources of Buddhism, at the height of its religious development. They are completely nonsectarian and will be greeted enthusiastically by those interested in spirituality, world religions, and classic Buddhism.

The Ecstasy of Enlightenment is an inside look at the spiritual world of Tantra--one of the most sophisticated, alluring, and controversial forms of Buddhism. Cleary unlocks the mysteries of the Carya-Giti, a collections of teachings by more than twenty famous Siddhas, or Tantric adepts, who lived during the illustrius Pala dynasty of old Bengal. These teachings emanate from one of the most dynamic sources of international Buddhism, at the height of its religious development, and as such, they are completely nonsectarian. Particularly noteworth is Cleary's demonstration of the parallels between Tantric Buddhism in Old Bengal and the original Zen Buddhism of China.

This volume is about the Anglophone creoles to be found on the Caribbean coast of Central America (Belize, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama), and its offshore islands (Providencia, San Andrés and the Caymans) . The study of these Anglophone varieties is comparatively recent and based on current field work from Belize to Panama. One of the interesting features that emerges is the tentative map of diachronic and synchronic relationsships among the Anglophone creoles of the Caribbean, as illustrated partly by the lexicon and partly by grammatical constructions. The studies in this book are based on phonetic transcriptions of speech acts in their social and linguistic context.

This volume is about the Anglophone creoles to be found on the Caribbean coast of Central America (Belize, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama), and its offshore islands (Providencia, San Andrés and the Caymans) . The study of these Anglophone varieties is comparatively recent and based on current field work from Belize to Panama. One of the interesting features that emerges is the tentative map of diachronic and synchronic relationsships among the Anglophone creoles of the Caribbean, as illustrated partly by the lexicon and partly by grammatical constructions. The studies in this book are based on phonetic transcriptions of speech acts in their social and linguistic context.

Self-development of individuals and societies is an epochal challenge now but surprisingly very little has been written about this in the vast field of development studies and social sciences. The present book is one of the first efforts in this field and explores in detail the dynamics of pursuit of self-development and the accompanying contradictions in the self-study mobilization called Swadhyaya. Giri is one of the pioneers in bringing self-development to the core of theory and ethnographic multiverse of humanities and development studies. This outstanding book will be of interest to scholars in anthropology, sociology, development studies, humanities, and students of life all around the world.

In the Jhanctum galaxy, far beyond ours, a highly communicable contagion called the Wehtiko Influence has inexplicably escalated in its infection rate that is normally manageable by the unwavering vigilances of an alien military Corp. called the Qi-Tahh Supremacy. This outbreak began thousands of years ago, but its origin remains unknown, its actions are unpredictable and the cure is still as elusive as the contagion itself. This insidious strain does not affect all who are exposed, it cannot be eradicated and once Influenced, neither the host nor their planet can ever be completely cleansed of its barbarous effects.The Wehtiko is not an organism or a viral-based pathogen, it is an affliction of evil that unleashes the darkest nature of those Influenced. To combat the threat, the Ohdens, the Governing Council Authority mobilized the Supremacy who fights to maintain order over the populists gone mad and unravel the mystery behind the escalation. Planet Thada Argen is discovered to be ground zero, and is home to two peaceful species, the Dir-nays, a pygmy race, and the Eanois; humanoids with whom they have shared friendship and trade for decades. The Zahnobein Qi-Tahh, Wild Cards as good as their flag ship, are sent to inoculate the Influenced and prevent the Wehtiko from becoming a full-blown contagion that if not stopped here, will engulf their galaxy and spread beyond unchecked. However, during a skirmish with the Pygmies, the Elphah and eight Pridesmen are mysteriously whisked away leaving the remaining Pride to cope with the Dir-nays and an unforeseen circumstance that jeopardizes the success of their mission. They must delay searching for their missing family and complete the inoculation assignment within the allotted time, or the Life Protectors will be forced to destroy the planet and kill everyone on itincluding their own Pride.

The book contains 30 stories from different angles of our social life. Interaction, interrelation, cooperation, human value, and reality in family life are the reflections of the stories. The short stories on attributes of a good housewife, marriage, single living, and suspicion as the cause of conflict are the stories of heart touching. Our belief and faith in God and Goddess, planning for death rituals, conflict among children, sacrifices for the education of children, transfer of family genes, affection for grandchildren, skill of making happy, the value of the teacher, exchange of child, and father’s day, old age homes as a final destination are other angles of stories. Ego in married life, divorce, emerging attitudes of daughter-in-law, inputs for attraction, life realization, stories of old age home inmates, the memory of scarifies, behavior in the marriage party, continuity of family genes, fatalism, the compulsion for survival, cruelty, and glimpses of bad experiences are presented as indicators of present living The life and living from all possible directions have been summarized reflecting everyday living of families belonging to urban and mostly rural areas.