Thrangu Rinpoche has often taught the transformation of our confused mind, which is full of delusion and defilements, into an enlightened mind. Here he describes the confused mind in terms of the eight consciousnesses, which are the five sensory consciousnesses, the mental consciousness, the afflicted consciousness (which gives us our sense of ¿I¿ and ¿me¿) and the alaya or storehouse consciousness. These are described and then Rinpoche describes how these are transformed into the five wisdoms of the five Buddha families. Included is a chart of the five Buddha families listing characteristics of each including their related skandha, klesha, chakra and colour.

This introduction to Buddhist psychology supplies essential instructions for successful meditation practice. Rinpoche presents meditation practices that can powerfully influence and ultimately transform the mind into the purified mind of a Buddha. He clearly describes how consciousnesses operate in everyday perception and how at the time of Buddhahood, these same consciousnesses express the five primordial wisdoms of the five Buddha families.

Meditation techniques, including mindfulness, have become popular wellbeing practices and the scientific study of their effects has recently turned 50 years old. But how much do we know about them: what were they developed for and by whom? How similar or different are they, how effective can they be in changing our minds and biology, what are their social and ethical implications? The Oxford Handbook of Meditation is the most comprehensive volume published on meditation, written in accessible language by world-leading experts on the science and history of these techniques. It covers the development of meditation across the world and the varieties of its practices and experiences. It includes approaches from various disciplines, including psychology, neuroscience, history, anthropology, and sociology and it explores its potential for therapeutic and social change, as well as unusual or negative effects. Edited by practitioner-researchers, this book is the ultimate guide for all interested in meditation, including teachers, clinicians, therapists, researchers, or anyone who would like to learn more about this topic.

This is the story of fifth century CE India, when the Yogacarin Buddhists tested the awareness of unawareness, and became aware of human unawareness to an extraordinary degree. They not only explicitly differentiated this dimension of mental processes from conscious cognitive processes, but also offered reasoned arguments on behalf of this dimension of mind. This is the concept of the 'Buddhist unconscious', which arose just as philosophical discourse in other circles was fiercely debating the limits of conscious awareness, and these ideas in turn had developed as a systematisation of teachings from the Buddha himself. For us in the twenty-first century, these teachings connect in fascinating ways to the Western conceptions of the 'cognitive unconscious' which have been elaborated in the work of Jung and Freud. This important study reveals how the Buddhist unconscious illuminates and draws out aspects of current western thinking on the unconscious mind. One of the most intriguing connections is the idea that there is in fact no substantial 'self' underlying all mental activity; 'the thoughts themselves are the thinker'. William S. Waldron considers the implications of this radical notion, which, despite only recently gaining plausibility, was in fact first posited 2,500 years ago.

This Very Short Introduction introduces the reader to the teachings of the Buddha and to the integration of Buddhism into daily life. What are the distinctive features of Buddhism? Who was the Buddha, and what are his teachings? How has Buddhist thought developed over the centuries, and how can contemporary dilemmas be faced from a Buddhist perspective? Words such as 'karma' and 'nirvana' have entered our vocabulary, but what do they mean? Damien Keown's book provides a lively, informative response to these frequently asked questions about Buddhism.

All religions teach codes of ethical behavior. So too does Buddhism. This books is a translation of an indispensable exposition of the three sets of vows that are central to Tibetan Buddhist codes of discipline--the pratimoksa vows of individual liberation; the vows of the bodhisattva, who selflessly strives for the liberation of all beings; the vows of the esoteric path of tantra. Here, the late Dudjom Rinpoche provides his authoritative commentary on the role of ethics and morality in Buddhist practice, outlining in detail the meaning and scope of the vows, and giving practical advice on maintaining the vows as supportive tools in the journey toward enlightenment.

A Buddhist manual for replacing an anxious, narrow, uncomfortable identity with one that is expansive, peaceful, and capable. In the shamanic worldview of Tibet, the five elements of earth, water, fire, air, and space are accessed through the raw powers of nature and through non-physical beings associated with the natural world. The Tibetan tantric view recognizes the elements as five kinds of energy in the body and balances them with a program of yogic movements, breathing exercises, and visualizations. In Dzogchen teachings, the elements are understood to be the radiance of being, and are accessed through pure awareness. Healing with Form, Energy, and Light offers the reader healing meditations and yogic practices on each of these levels. Tenzin Rinpoche's purpose is to strengthen our connection to the sacred aspect of the natural world and to present a guide that explains why certain practices are necessary and in what situations practices are effective or a hindrance. And the world too is transformed from dead matter and blind processes into a sacred landscape filled with an infinite variety of living forces and beings. "The secrets freely given in this volume can help us lay sound foundations for whatever yogic practice we may adopt. Tenzin Rinpoche has rendered all a great service." —Yoga Studies

This Volume Contains Not Only A Translation Of The Root Verses Of The Third Karmapa, But Also An Extensive Commentary By Thrangu Rinpoche Giving The Background To Each Concept Introduced By These Verses.

For all its emphasis on the direct experience of insight without reliance on the products of the intellect, the Zen tradition has created a huge body of writings. Of this cast literature, the writings associated with the so-called Five Houses of Zen are widely considered to be preeminent. These Five Houses—which arose in China during the ninth and tenth centuries, often referred to as the Golden Age of Zen—were not schools or sects but styles of Zen teaching represented by some of the most outstanding masters in Zen history. The writings of these great Zen teachers are presented here, many translated for the first time. These include: • The sayings of Pai-chang, famous for his Zen dictum "A day without work, a day without food" • Selections from Kuei-shan’s collection of Zen admonitions, considered essential reading by numerous Buddhist teachers • Sun-chi’s unique discussion of the inner meaning of the circular symbol in Zen teaching • Sayings of Huang-po from The Essential Method of Transmission of Mind • Excerpts from The Record of Lin-chi, a great classical text of Zen literature • Ts’ao-shan’s presentation of the famous teaching device known as the Five Ranks • Selections of poetry from the Cascade Collection by Hsueh-tou, renowned for his poetic commentaries on the classic Blue Cliff Record • Yung-ming’s teachings on how to balance the two basic aspects of meditation: concentration and insight