Buddhist Religion

Discover the origins and traditions of world religions! With so many religions in the world, it isn’t always easy to recall each faith’s key influences, spiritual figures, and dogmas. Written in easy-to-understand language, Religion 101 offers a fascinating—and memorable—glimpse at the...

An ancient and deeply revered practice, Buddhism is even more popular now than it has been in decades. The secret behind its steady rise is due in part to the plethora of benefits Buddhism reaps upon those who practice it and apply its teachings to their lives. Through mindfulness and meditation, Buddhism injects peace and clarity into the minds and lives of those who dedicate themselves to it. Those wonderful benefits can be a part of your life as well through the careful study of its various tenets.

Many of us, even on our happiest days, struggle to quiet the constant buzz of anxiety in the background of our minds. All kinds of worries—worries about losing people and things, worries about how we seem to others—keep us from peace of mind. Distracted or misled by our preoccupations, misconceptions, and, most of all, our obsession with ourselves, we don't see the world clearly—we don't see the world as it really is.

The realm of emotion is one of those areas where Buddhism and Western psychology are often thought to be at odds: Are emotions to be valued, examined, worked with as signs leading us to deeper self-knowledge? Or are they something to be ignored and avoided as soon as we recognize them?

Observing an encounter between Catholic and Buddhist monks in 1996 at the Abbey of Gethsemani, near where he grew up in rural Kentucky, Fenton Johnson found himself unable to make the sign of the cross. His distance from his childhood faith had become so great - he considered himself a rational, skeptical man - that he could not participate in this most basic ritual. Impelled by this troubling experience, Johnson began a search for the meaning of the spiritual life.

Happy Relationships is designed for all of us who are sometimes challenged by our husbands, wives, kids, parents, and best friends. It’s for those in happy marriages and close-knit families who want to feel closer and more connected to the most important people in their lives. Happy Relationships is a relatable and useful guide with practical applications to help us stay attuned and cultivate understanding with our dearest people.

Is there more to Buddhism than sitting in silent meditation? Is modern Buddhism relevant to the problems of daily life? Does it empower individuals to transform their lives? Or has Buddhism become too detached, so still and quiet that the Buddha has fallen asleep? Waking the Buddha tells the story of the Soka Gakkai International, the largest, most dynamic Buddhist movement in the world today - and one that is waking up and shaking up Buddhism so it can truly work in ordinary people's lives.

This remarkable collection of 73 verses contained in the 'Khuddaka Nikaya' section of the Pali Canon dates from the BC 6th century. It is said to be the earliest voices of women in recorded history. The verses, some brief, some more extended, are the utterances of the bhikkhunis, the nuns at the time of the Buddha, concerning their life and their ‘awakening’.

Immersed in Buddhist psychology prior to studying Western psychiatry, Dr. Mark Epstein first viewed Western therapeutic approaches through the lens of the East. This posed something of a challenge. Although both systems promise liberation through self-awareness, the central tenet of Buddha's wisdom is the notion of no-self, while the central focus of Western psychotherapy is the self. This book wrestles with the complex relationship between Buddhism and psychotherapy.

Parenting is not always fun, but the dynamism of life gives us excitement, discovery, and pleasure. This book is a record of my experiences of parenting and practices of Zen. I owe them all to my children. They are gifts from God, irreplaceable treasures. The more serious I was with parenting, the deeper it became. When I faced parenting with a passion like a flame and at other times with calmness like ice, my attention became as sharp as a blade, and I could see some essence. That was a moment when a fire in my heart became a flame.

For “spiritual explorers” ready to travel beyond Western bounds, a beginner’s guide to Asian spiritual traditions spanning regions, cultures, and history Asian spiritual practices, from yoga and tai chi to qigong and mindfulness meditations, permeate our culture. But these practices are...

The author of Breakfast with Buddha brings his characteristic whimsy to a new novel about New York book editor Otto Ringling and Mongolian monk Volya Rinpoche, who embark on a road trip from Rinpoche's meditation center in North Dakota to the glitter and glitz of the Las Vegas strip.

Lojong is a powerful Tibetan Buddhist practice created especially for training the mind to work with the challenges of everyday living. It teaches our hearts to soften, reframes our attitude toward difficulty, and allows us to discover a wellspring of inner strength. In this recorded retreat, Pema Chödrön introduces the lojong teachings and explains how we can apply them to any situation in our life—because, as Pema says, "every moment is an opportunity for awakening."

Hideo Yonezawa (1909-1991) was a physician who lectured and wrote extensively on Shin Buddhism from a layperson’s perspective. His thoughts are made available to English speakers for the first time in Marvin Harada’s translation of Awaken to Your True Self.

The dumpster fire of life rages on, but you got this. Practice six rules to keep you grounded, weather the storm, and actually be a decent person. It may seem like the world is going to hell in a hand basket right now. Whether it's big stuff like politics and climate change, or just the daily spin of paying your bills, getting to work on time, and fending off social media trolls, we can all admit, modern life ain't easy.

What do we mean by mental development? By mental development we do not mean only those brief periods of our lives which we spend sitting cross-legged, counting our breath or looking at an image or reciting a formula. By mental development, we mean all those techniques or methods whereby we can change our mental orientation whereby we can change the way in which we view ourselves and the world around us. In this tradition, we are concerned with demonstrating the integration, the union between meditation, and our daily experience.

If you’ve ever been interested in why sacred geometry continues to show up in many religions throughout history, then this book is for you. You’ll uncover the mysteries about our holographic reality, and that everyone is traveling between parallel realities in their Merkabah. Knowledge of Buddhist Mandalas provides insight into the ultimate truth…you are a masterpiece in the making.

This little audiobook contains the core teaching on Buddhism by the Dalai Lama. It includes thought-provoking quotations about the importance of love and compassion, and the need for individual responsibility, fusing ancient wisdom with an awareness of the problems of everyday life.

As it turns out, Buddha had quite a lot to say on the subject of gratitude, including citing it as one of the four keys to the Gate of Heaven. Studies show - and experts counsel - that gratitude is a key component of our happiness. People who are grateful about events and experiences from the past, who celebrate triumphs instead of focusing on losses or disappointments, tend to be more satisfied. Gratitude can help us transform our fears into courage, our anger into forgiveness, our isolation into belonging, and another’s pain into healing.

The Dīghanikāya or Long Discourses of the Buddha is one of the four major collections of teachings from the early period of Buddhism. Its 34 suttas (in Sanskrit, sutras) demonstrate remarkable breadth in both content and style, forming a comprehensive collection. The Art of Listening gives an introduction to the Dīghanikāya and demonstrates the historical, cultural, and spiritual insights that emerge when we view the Buddhist suttas as oral literature.