Monday, June 29, 2009

Becoming Enlightened - Dalai Lama

Gassho again to Alluman for the link.

Becoming Enlightened - Dalai Lama
In Becoming Enlightened, His Holiness the Dalai Lama powerfully explores the foundation of Buddhism, laying out an accessible and practical approach to age-old questions: How can we live free from suffering? How can we achieve lasting happiness and peace?
Drawing from traditional Buddhist meditative practices as well as penetrating examples from today's troubled planet, he presents step-by-step exercises designed to expand the reader's capacity for spiritual growth, along with clear milestones to mark the reader's progress. By following the spiritual practices outlined in Becoming Enlightened, we can learn how to replace troublesome feelings with positive attitudes and embark on a path to achieving an exalted state -- within ourselves and within the larger world.

Full of personal anecdotes and intimate accounts of the Dalai Lama's experiences as a lifelong student, thinker, political leader, and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, Becoming Enlightened gives readers all the wisdom, support, guidance, and inspiration they need to become successful and fulfilled in their spiritual lives.

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The Noble Eightfold Path: The Way to the End of Suffering


The Noble Eightfold Path: The Way to the End of Suffering - Bhikkhu Bodhi
The essence of the Buddha's teaching can be summed up in two principles: the Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path. The first covers the side of doctrine, and the primary response it elicits is understanding; the second covers the side of discipline, in the broadest sense of that word, and the primary response it calls for is practice. In the structure of the teaching these two principles lock together into an indivisible unity called the dhamma-vinaya, the doctrine-and-discipline, or, in brief, the Dhamma. The internal unity of the Dhamma is guaranteed by the fact that the last of the Four Noble Truths, the truth of the way, is the Noble Eightfold Path, while the first factor of the Noble Eightfold Path, right view, is the understanding of the Four Noble Truths. Thus the two principles penetrate and include one another, the formula of the Four Noble Truths containing the Eightfold Path and the Noble Eightfold Path containing the Four Truths.

Googlebooks

Embodying the Dharma: Buddhist Relic Veneration in Asia


Embodying the Dharma: Buddhist Relic Veneration in Asia
"Perhaps fearing that conceptions of Buddhism would be tainted by superstition, Western scholars have tended to overlook relics and the practices surrounding them. Embodying the Dharma brings together essays by scholars who take holy remnants seriously. The reader will emerge with a good sense of the complexity--and importance--of relic worship in the Buddhist world."

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Sunday, June 28, 2009

The Religion of the Samurai


The Religion of the Samurai
Kaiten Nukariya's 1913 Religion of the Samurai focuses on Northern (Mahayana) Buddhism, and Zen Buddhism in particular. This short book contains a wealth of detail, as well as very lucid explanations of seemingly elusive Zen Buddhist concepts. It includes a text on the 'Origin of Man' by Kwei Fung Tsung Mih, a notable Chinese scholar who was the seventh Patriarch of the Kegon sect.

Scribed

Finding the Still Point: A Beginner's Guide to Zen Meditation

Finding the Still Point Finding the Still Point: A Beginner's Guide to Zen Meditation

Through Zen meditation it is possible to find stillness of mind, even amidst our everyday activities—and this practical book-and-CD set reveals how. John Daido Loori, one of America's leading Zen teachers, offers everything needed to begin a meditation practice. He covers the basics of where to sit (on a cushion, bench, or chair), how to posture the body (complete with instructional photographs), and how to practice Zen meditation to discover the freedom of a peaceful mind.

The accompanying CD is a meditation companion. It has ten- and thirty-minute timed practice sessions, along with guided instructions from Daido Loori and an encouraging talk on the benefits of meditation.

Depositfiles

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Through the Open Door To the Vastness of Your True Being - Eckhart Tolle


Through the Open Door To the Vastness of Your True Being - Eckhart Tolle

Once you've experienced the power of the present moment, what's next? Eckhart Tolle, who ignited a spiritual awakening in the West with his bestselling The Power of Now, invites you to join him on a path that takes us even further into the profound experience of pure presence. Through the Open Door is Eckhart's highly anticipated return to audio, featuring new teachings on:

  • Achieving Space Consciousness—learning to focus on the underlying field from which all forms and thoughts arise
  • Refining your alertness to become alive and present with every cell of your body
  • The illusions that lead to suffering, spiritual longing, and the need for more time in our lives—and how to dispel them
  • How to discover true liberation beyond the limits of the thinking mind and the little self
BTjunkie

Karmapa - Two Ways of Divinity


Karmapa - Two Ways of Divinity
Apart from the exiled Dalai Lama, who is living in India, Tibetan Buddhism has various other spiritual leaders. One of them is the leader of the Karmapa sect, whose birth was already
predicted by the first Buddha, Siddharta Gautama. When the sixteenth reincarnation of the Karmapa leader died in the United States in 1981, monks start a search for the next reincarnation. Ten years later, representatives of the Chinese government in Tibet say they have found him, but an alternative candidate is pushed forward in India. This is the onset of a fierce political sparring. All in all, the production of this double portrait of both hallowed youngsters took six years. Prior to the shooting period from 1994 to 1997, director Arto Halonen (1964) had to wait for three years for permission by the Chinese authorities to film in Tibet, but he concealed the fact that the Dalai Lama and the second intended Karmapa leader, also living in exile in India, would be in his film, too.

A unique, award-winning documentary on the Karmapa and how China used him as a
springboard for its politics that has led to the violation of religious rights. On another level, the film tells the story of the existence of two rival candidates for the title of Karmapa and how the situation of two Karmapas provoked an internal crisis within the Buddhist denomination, as proponents split into different camps. The documentary was made between 1994 -1998 in Tibet, China and India and features the Dalai Lama as well as representatives of the Chinese Government.

http://rapidshare.com/files/131187927/Karmapa.part1.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/131188274/Karmapa.part2.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/131188445/Karmapa.part3.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/131188558/Karmapa.part4.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/131188656/Karmapa.part5.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/131185347/Karmapa.part6.rar

The Origins of Om Manipadme Hum: A Study of the Karandavyuha Sutra


The Origins of Om Manipadme Hum: A Study of the Karandavyuha Sutra
Om Manipadme Hum, perhaps the most well-known and most widely used of all Buddhist mantras, lies at the heart of the Tibetan system and is cherished by both laymen and lama alike. This book presents a new interpretation of the meaning of Om Manipadme Hum, and includes a detailed, annotated precis of Karandavyuha Sutra, opening up this important work to a wider audience. The earliest textual source is the Karandavyuha Sutra, which describes both the compassion of Avalokitesvara, the bodhisattva whole power the mantra invokes, and the mythical tale of the search and discovery of the mantra. Through a detailed analysis of this sutra, Studholme explores the historical and doctrinal forces behind the appearance of Om Manipadme Hum in India at around the middle of the first millennium c.e. He argues that the Karandavyuha Sutra has close affinities to non-Buddhist puranic literature, and that the conception of Avalokitesvara and his six-syllable mantra is influenced by the conception of the Hindu deity Siva and his five-syllable mantra Namah Sivaya. The Karandavyuha Sutra reflects historical situation in which the Buddhist monastic establishment was coming into contact with Buddhist tantric practitioners, themselves influenced by Saivite practitioners.

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The Buddha comes to Sussex (1979)


The Buddha comes to Sussex (1979)
A report made about Ajahn Chah's visit in England at the end of the 70s when Ajahn Sumedho and the other monks have just moved into Chithurst to set up a forest monastery there.

A small village in west Sussex is faced with the strange prospect of saffron-robed Buddhist monks in its midst. they have just set up their first western sanctuary for training along strict traditional lines.part of their tradition is to rely for their food on the local villagers: but how would Sussex villagers react when a column of monks file past with their alms bowls. this everyman report attempts to explain what they do and why and the reaction of the village to their new neighbours.

Youtube Part1

Youtube Part2

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Analytical Buddhism: The Two-Tiered Illusion of Self


Gassho to Alluman for the book.

Analytical Buddhism: The Two-Tiered Illusion of Self - Miri Albahari
The author, a lecturer in philosophy, argues that there is no self, drawing on Buddhism, Western philosophy, and neuroscience.

It is not unusual for Western philosophers to deny existence to the self. Following Hume and James, such philosophers have denied the self existence by treating as illusory its supposed unity and unbroken persistence. These qualities are deemed mere fictions, borne from imagination and acting upon a bundle of discrete thoughts, feelings and perceptions. In this book, Albahari also denies existence to the self, but with a new twist: unity and unbrokenness are argued to be real qualities native to consciousness. Consciousness merges with desire-driven thought and emotion to create the impression of a separate and unified self; separateness, not unity, makes the self illusory. Albahari draws this "two-tiered" model of the self-illusion from Canonical sources in Theravada Buddhist literature, augmenting it with research from neurology. Since scholars usually ascribe a "bundle theory" of no-self to Buddhism, Albahari offers a fresh perspective on this central Buddhist "no-self" concept.

Depositfiles

Lecture on Alan Watts & Zen. Dualism - Donna Quesada


Lecture on Alan Watts & Zen. Dualism - Donna Quesada
Professor Donna Quesada from Santa Monica College - lecture on Alan Watts & Zen Buddhism. Part 1 of 5. March 10th 2008 @ L.A. Library.

Youtube

Donna's Blog

Capitalism, Socialism, and Income Inequality - The Dalai Lama


Capitalism, Socialism, and Income Inequality - The Dalai Lama
Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama of Tibet, gives his perspective on capitalism, Marxism, and the widening global gap between rich and poor.

Youtube

Sunday, June 21, 2009

Rational Mysticism: Dispatches from the Border Between Science and Spirituality


Rational Mysticism: Dispatches from the Border Between Science and Spirituality
John Horgan, author of the best-selling The End of Science, chronicles the most advanced research into the mechanics—and meaning—of mystical experiences. How do trances, visions, prayer, satori, and other mystical experiences "work"? What induces and defines them? Is there a scientific explanation for religious mysteries and transcendent meditation?

John Horgan investigates a wide range of fields — chemistry, neuroscience, psychology, anthropology, theology, and more — to narrow the gap between reason and mystical phenomena. As both a seeker and an award-winning journalist, Horgan consulted a wide range of experts, including theologian Huston Smith, spiritual heir to Joseph Campbell; Andrew Newberg, the scientist whose quest for the "God module" was the focus of a Newsweek cover story; Ken Wilber, prominent transpersonal psychologist; Alexander Shulgin, legendary psychedelic drug chemist; and Susan Blackmore, Oxford-educated psychologist, parapsychology debunker, and Zen practitioner. Horgan explores the striking similarities between "mystical technologies" like sensory deprivation, prayer, fasting, trance, dancing, meditation, and drug trips.

He participates in experiments that seek the neurological underpinnings of mystical experiences. And, finally, he recounts his own search for enlightenment — adventurous, poignant, and sometimes surprisingly comic. Horgan"s conclusions resonate with the controversial climax of The End of Science, because, as he argues, the most enlightened mystics and the most enlightened scientists end up in the same place — confronting the imponderable depth of the universe.

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Encyclopedia Of Buddhism


Encyclopedia Of Buddhism
This is a general introduction and reference primarily to Buddhism, but also to Daoism, Shinto, Confucianism, and other major religious traditions of East Asia that are not covered in other volumes of the series. Articles by scholars of religion, all but one American, consider important figures, both Asian and Western; deities and other supernatural beings; rules and concepts; schools; practices; and other aspects.

Indian Philosophy - Richard King


Indian Philosophy - Richard King
This text provides an introduction to the main schools of Indian philosophy within both the Hindu and Buddhist traditions. It analyzes the schools' different doctrines and compares their approaches to specific philosophical topics - ontology, epistemology, perception, consciousness, and creation and causality. It also looks at contributions by individual thinkers, such as Bhartrhari who helped introduce linguistic analysis into Indian philosophy; and Asanga the believed founder of the Yogacara or "Practice of Yoga" school.

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Thursday, June 11, 2009

The Long Search: The Land of the Disappearing Buddha-Japan


The Long Search

Ronald Eyre takes the viewer on a pilgrimage beginning in London and spanning 150,000 miles including India, Japan, Israel, Rumania, Sri Lanka, Hong Kong, The United States, Egypt, and South Africa. Series of 13 programs, Producer: BBC/Time Life.

This sound and picture enhanced series has served as the basis of successful religious philosophy courses around the world. An American Film Festival Red Ribbon winner, the series gives a balanced treatment of a force that is sadly neglected in most educations, the basic beliefs of the major religions in the world today.
Ronald Eyre takes the viewer on a pilgrimage beginning in London and spanning 150,000 miles including India, Japan, Israel, Rumania, Sri Lanka, Hong Kong, The United States, Egypt, and South Africa.

Series of 13 programs on 5 DVD's. Around 25 Gb total [DVDs 1 and 2 are single layer, DVDs 3, 4 and 5 are double layer] # Disk 1 Protestant Spirit USA (Vol. 1) Hinduism: 330 Million Gods (Vol. 2) # Disk 2 Buddhism: Footprint of the Buddha-India(Vol. 3) Catholicism: Rome, Leeds and the Desert(Vol. 4) # Disk 3 Islam: There is no God but God(Vol. 5) Orthodox Christianity: The Rumanian Solution(Volume. 6) Judaism: The Chosen People(Vol. 7) # Disk 4 Religion In Indonesia: The Way of the Ancestors(Vol. 8) Buddhism: The Buddhism: The Land of the Disappearing Buddha-Japan (Vol. 9) African Religions: Zulu Zion(Vol. 10) # Disk 5 Taoism: A Question of Balance-China(Vol. 11) Alternative Lifestyles in California: West Meets East (Vol. 12) Reflections on the Long Search (Vol. 13)


http://rapidshare.com/users/BHC6OO (Disks 1,2 and 3)
and
http://rapidshare.com/users/419LG3 (Disks 4 and 5 plus avi of episode vol.9 - Zen in Japan)

Buddhism: The Land of the Disappearing Buddha-Japan (Vol. 9)

If the Buddha of India met the Buddha of Japan, would they recognize each other? To find out, this program talks to the staff in a Tokyo restaurant who keep regular Zen meditation schedules as part of their job, then on to the classical Zen calligraphy, swordfighting, archery and tea ceremony.

Three great Rinzai Zen Masters of XX century appear in this video: Mumon Yamada (1900—1988), Omori Sogen (1904—1994) and Kobori Roshi Nanrei Sohaku (1918—1992)

Mumon Yamada has authorized for the first and the only time in history, that camera can film the sanzen ( stritly private encounter of Master and student where student gives his answer to a koan )

-this episode of "The Long Search" also shows others religions and practices in Japan, like Pure Land Buddhism, Shinto, Soka-Gakkai, Tea ceremony, Archery, Caligraphy etc.

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Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Nothing Special: Living Zen


Nothing Special: Living Zen
A Zen Center weekend in a book! The delightfully contemporary teacher and bestselling author of Everyday Zen shows how to make living itself a spiritual practice and how to discover that the extraordinary is really "nothing special."

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The Meditator's Handbook


The Meditator's Handbook: A Comprehensive Guide to Eastern and Western Meditation Techniques
A clear and authoritative introduction to the different traditions of meditation by an authority in the field. Meditation is an extraordinarily powerful tool for physical and mental relaxation as well as for personal and spiritual growth. It has been practiced for thousands of years and today it continues to have serious relevance for an ever-increasing number of people. This handbook is for novice and advanced practitioners alike. It describes the theory and practice of all the major Eastern and Western approaches to meditation. With examples and clear and practical guidelines, the book shows how meditation can be used for: relaxation and dealing with stress; attaining greater concentration and awareness; achieving self-discovery and self-acceptance; and spiritual development.

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Sunday, June 7, 2009

Introduction to Meditation: How To Meditate - Yuttadhammo


How To Meditate - Yuttadhammo
Join with millions of people around the world in the practice of peace, happiness and freedom from suffering. In these videos you will find clear, simple instructions on an ancient meditation practice free from religious dogma or spiritual mumbu-jumbo; a practice that helped generation after generation of ordinary people free themselves from all forms of mental and physical suffering.

Torrent

Youtube

Website

Friday, June 5, 2009

Dying into the river of Existence - Adyashanti


Dying into the river of Existence - Adyashanti
Dying into the River of Existence offers a profound and intimate investigation into the freedom of spiritual awakening. Recorded live at a weekend intensive with Adyashanti, it includes talks and direct inquiry dialogues with the audience.

Demonoid

Sankyoku - Ensemble Yonin no Kaï


Sankyoku - Ensemble Yonin no Kaï
This ensemble of four musicians playing traditional music was created in 1957, when each of its four members was awarded a gold medal in Moscow at the international Competition of Traditional Instruments (three of them won awards for pieces of traditional repertoire up to the 19th century, and all four of them for contemporary pieces). Recently, two of its members have changed. Since then, The Yonin no Kai Ensemble have given many concerts, both in Japan and abroad. As evident from their discography, these artists have made an exceptional contribution to Japanese music, ancient as well as contemporary: they have recorded, so far, as much as fifteen albums with traditional music, and some ten albums with contemporary compositions.

Part 1
Part 2

Kakuban - Shingon Texts


Kakuban - Shingon Texts
This volume includes five texts by Kukai ("On the Differences between the Exoteric and Esoteric Teachings"; "The Meaning of Becoming a Buddha in This Very Body"; "The Meanings of Sound, Sign, and Reality"; "The Meanings of the Word Hum"; and, "The Precious Key to the Secret Treasury"), and two by Kakuban ("The Illuminating Secret Commentary on the Five Cakras and the Nine Syllables"; and "The Mitsugonin Confession").

Demonoid

Thursday, June 4, 2009

Cloud Path, Journey of a Wandering Monk (2006)


Gassho to Nickxon for the link.

Cloud Path, Journey of a Wandering Monk (2006)
Cloud Path, Journey of a Wandering Monk is a documentary about a distinguished Buddhist monk. This was originally a locally produced TV program that had been aired in Korea and was selected by the Korea Foundation as an outstanding work for introducing Korean culture abroad. The original content has been dubbed into English, French, and Spanish. The documentary records the activities of Paul Muenzen (Buddhist name: Hyongak 玄覺), a Harvard University graduate who became a monk, as he learns the Manhaeng (萬行), experiences of the secular world. Along with its highly acclaimed cinematography, various aspects of Korea's rich traditional culture, such as samulnori (四物놀이) and onggi (crockery 옹기), are seen through the eyes of this American monk.

Asian DVD Club

Wednesday, June 3, 2009

Zen Buddhism: Shunryu Suzuki Roshi Interviews


Zen Buddhism: Shunryu Suzuki Roshi Interviews
A collection of very rare interviews and talks with the late Shunryu Suzuki.
Youtube Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5

Tuesday, June 2, 2009

Come Come Come Upwards (1989)

Gassho to Ossi for the link.

Come Come Come Upwards (1989)
About two women as they search in divergent ways for the Buddhist path. One woman, Soonyeo (Kang Soo-yeon), leaves her broken home to become a nun at a rural convent, where her troubled past life both consumes her inner life (as we see in flashbacks) and informs her reading of religious scripture. She meets Jinsung, an ascetic nun who excels at meditation but is inexperienced in the ways of the world. When Jinsung secludes herself in a cave to meditate, she is raped by a wily old monk, and is forced to reckon with her faith, and place in the world. Meanwhile, the monastery’s Abbess expels Soonyeo after an alcoholic criminal, whom Soonyeo saved from suicide, creates havoc at the convent. Soonyeo leaves the monastic life, but is torn between countryside and city, the sequestered spiritual life and the wearying world of dust.

Asian DVD Club

Monday, June 1, 2009

Happiness in a Material World - Dalai Lama


Happiness in a Material World - Dalai Lama
Here the Dalai Lama shows how centuries of Buddhist wisdom can bring meaning to our own lives. With an introduction to Buddhist practice to begin, this book then gives the life stories of the 13th Dalai Lama, the 14th Dalai Lama and Atisha. The main section is then a teaching entitled "Happiness in a Material World" followed by the "Path to Happiness".

His Guide to
Happiness is of course influenced by Buddhism. But it really is not a religious approach but rather a very practical one: We can achieve happiness by developing our mind and applying it, in other words by personal development.

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