Theravada Buddhism Guides
The Pali Tradition in 2021: The Essential Books on Theravada & Insight Meditation
Theravada and Insight Books in 2021 Read More We published many books of interest from the Pali tradition in 2021. Here is a recap. See our other 2021 Year in Review Guides: Theravada/Pali/Insight | Chan, Zen, Mahayana | Tibetan Buddhism Jump to: Books | Books for Kids | Forthcoming Books | Audiobooks Receive a 30% discount on these titles through January 2nd using code 2021YE at checkout We are very happy to share with you a look back at our...Theravada: A Reader's Guide Learn More Traditional Theravada Buddhism is the set of traditions and practices that form the basis of most of the Buddhism in Southeast Asia. We have many books that uncover the richness of this tradition, and are full of surprises. View of Drikung Lamayuru Monastery (Wikipedia) Related to Theravada Buddhism: Insight Meditation | Southeast Asian Buddhism | Thai Forest Traditions | Theravada Buddhism More in Buddhism: All Buddhism | Zen & Chan | Tibetan Buddhism | Taoism | Explore...
Continue Reading >> The Buddhist Translations of Thomas Cleary: A Reader’s Guide
Thomas Cleary (1949—2021) was one of the twentieth century’s greatest translators of Asian classics. He was extremely prolific, translating and authoring countless works. Shambhala Publications has published over sixty. His books have sold millions of copies and his translations have in turn been translated into over twenty languages worldwide. His first published project, in collaboration with his brother J.C. Cleary, was the classic Blue Cliff Record, that great collection of koans. Buddhism was a large part of his translations, with...Elephants and Thai Monks | An Excerpt from In the Cool Shade of Compassion
The Art of Elephant Training An excerpt from In the Cool Shade of Compassion: The Enchanted World of the Buddha in the Jungle about the wandering monks and adepts of the village temples, hills, and forests of Thailand. An In the 1920s, when [George] Orwell and Campbell were working in Muang Ngao forest, there were still a few village abbots skilled in handling elephants in musth. These meditation masters had mastered the Khotchasatra, a collection of palm-leaf texts on elephants containing...Meditation and the Hindrances | An Excerpt from The Five Hurdles to Happiness
How the Hindrances Have Us over the Barrel of Our Monkey Minds OPENING INQUIRY Are you willing to step onto the path of meditation and its hindrance-laden twists and turns and do so with the right intentions and with the necessary knowledge to guide your steps? Act now! Limited time offer! Can your health and well-being afford for you to flip that channel? “Of course I can’t!” my mind screamed. “I need this. I deserve this.” I only required the slightest...Strengthening Mindfulness | An Exercise from The Path of Insight Meditation
Three Mindfulness Exercises 1. Daily sitting log. Here is a way to strengthen daily practice and to see its cycles more clearly. For one month or two, keep a small notebook at the place where you sit. Each day note down how long you sit. Then note down in one sentence the general qualities of the sitting such as “sleepy” or “restless and disturbed” or “calm and light” or “filled with many plans” or “easily centered on the breath,” or...Temple Boy and Spitting Cobra | An Excerpt from In the Cool Shade of Compassion
A Lesson on Revenge Ajan Ngoen was born in 1890 in the Village of Grandma Hom’s Knoll in Nakhon Pathom, a province about sixty kilometers west of Bangkok. Ngoen’s father was a farmer and herbal doctor who taught him mantras and medicine from palm-leaf texts. In 1910 Ngoen (which means “silver”) was ordained as a monk at the Monastery of Grandma Hom’s Knoll (Wat Don Yai Hom). Not long after his ordination he took up the thudong practice and left...Sacred Are the Trees: A Retelling of Ancient Stories from Biographies of the Buddha by Wendy Garling, author of Stars at Dawn Why Trees? Those familiar with the Buddha’s biography know that all major events in his life took place under trees. He was born under a shala tree (shorea robusta), for example, as his mother Maya stood upright and grasped a branch with her right hand. Young prince Siddhartha experienced his first deep meditation under a rose-apple tree. Years...
Continue Reading >> The Nyingma Summer Seminar: Reflections on a Buddhist Retreat
By Sanje Phillips This July, I attended the Nyingma Summer Seminar at the Mangala Shri Bhuti retreat land in Ward, Colorado, with Dzigar Kongtrül Rinpoche, Elizabeth Mattis Namgyel (wife), and Dungse Jampal Norbu (son). Over one hundred attendees with varied demographics sat daily meditation sessions, participated in the teachings, endured periods of silence and the usual “plain but healthy” retreat food. My experience was resoundingly positive, as we had an opportunity to explore the depths of many traditional and profound Buddhist teachings. All...We join our palms and say goodbye to a teacher who had an immense impact on the world. S.N. Goenka was a pioneer in making Vipassana meditation widely available to a secular audience. Over 170 meditation centers have been established around the globe under his auspices. His legacy will resound indefinitely. By learning to remain balanced in the face of everything experienced inside, one develops detachment towards all that one encounters in external situations as well. However, this detachment is...
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