Books
A complete list of recommended books
This list is not by any mean a rating of these books, each one of these is an jewel of wisdom and inspiration by itself.
1. Sogyal Rinpoche - The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying: The Spiritual Classic & International Bestseller; Revised and Updated Edition
In 1927, Walter Evans-Wentz published his translation of an obscure Tibetan Nyingma text and called it the Tibetan Book of the Dead. Popular Tibetan teacher Sogyal Rinpoche has transformed that ancient text, conveying a perennial philosophy that is at once religious, scientific, and practical. Through extraordinary anecdotes and stories from religious traditions East and West, Rinpoche introduces the reader to the fundamentals of Tibetan Buddhism, moving gradually to the topics of death and dying. Death turns out to be less of a crisis and more of an opportunity. Concepts such as reincarnation, karma, and bardo and practices such as meditation, tonglen, and phowa teach us how to face death constructively.
2. Eckhart Tolle - The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment
Ekhart Tolle's message is simple: living in the now is the truest path to happiness and enlightenment. And while this message may not seem stunningly original or fresh, Tolle's clear writing, supportive voice, and enthusiasm make this an excellent manual for anyone who's ever wondered what exactly "living in the now" means. Foremost, Tolle is a world-class teacher, able to explain complicated concepts in concrete language. More importantly, within a chapter of reading this book, readers are already holding the world in a different container--more conscious of how thoughts and emotions get in the way of their ability to live in genuine peace and happiness.
3. Chogyal Namkhai Rinpoche - Dzogchen Teachings
An extensive introduction of Dzogchen teachings by Chogyal Namkhai Rinpoche. This book is An updated version of the former "The Teachings of Chogyal Namkhai Norbu" (from "The Mirror" magazine, based on lectures from 1993-7) re-ordered, edited, & end-noted, it briefly describes Yogacharya; Shine, Sutra vs. Tantra, modern vs. ancient Bon, Yantra Yoga, bodhichitta, Mahamudra etc. Per many other Tibetan works, it's a union of legend/myth & reality/practicality--traditional hagiography, metaphors, & assumptions are mixed with high teachings, practices, & views.
4. Keith Dowman - The Flight of the Garuda, Second Edition: The Dzogchen Tradition of Tibetan Buddhism
Songs of realization with commentary, instructions, humor and description from the genuine, unfabricated View. A must-read for any serious student of Dzogchen.
5. Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche - The Tibetan Yogas of Dream and Sleep
Wangyal Rinpoche delivers more than a guide to the practice of Dream Yoga- he delivers a guide to a complete nondual practice. The book includes meditation instructions, Guru Yoga and Dakini practices, breathing instructions, a guide to basic Tibetan bioenergetics, a little history of the Bon tradition, a brief introduction to Tantra and Dzogchen, and even a glossary filled with Tibetan and Sanskrit terms used throughout the book. There is enough here to begin a spiritual practice beyond dream yoga.
6. Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche - As It Is Vol. 1 (As It Is)
The teachings presented in As It Is, Volume I are primarily selected from talks given by the Dzogchen master, Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche, in 1994 and 1995, during the last two years of his life. The unambiguous Buddhist perception of reality is transmitted in profound, simple language by one of the foremost masters in the Tibetan tradition. Dzogchen is to take the final result, the state of enlightenment itself, as path. This is the style of simply picking the ripened fruit or the fully bloomed flowers. Tulku Urgyen's way of communicating this wisdom was to awaken the individual to their potential and reveal the methods to acknowledge and stabilize that prospective. His distinctive teaching style was widely known for its unique directness in introducing students to the nature of mind in a way that allowed immediate experience. This book offers the direct oral instructions of a master who inspired admiration, delight in practice, and deep trust and confidence in the Buddhist way.
7. Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche - As It Is, Vol. 2
The teachings presented in As It Is, Volume II are primarily selected from talks given by the Dzogchen master, Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche, in 1994 and 1995, and are a continuation to the teachings in Volume one.
8. Tsoknyi Rinpoche - Carefree Dignity: Discourses on Training in the Nature of Mind
Tsoknyi Rinpoche is the son of the great late Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche. His teaching style embodies a vividness that is a play between himself and his audience. His immediateness includes gestures and examples that entice us to understanding. Through guided meditations he offers direct participation as a delightful enhancement to our practice. Simple, straightforward and profound, Carefree Dignity is a book that captivates our intellect while enriching our awareness.
9. Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche - Blazing Splendor: The Memoirs of Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche
With unsurpassed honesty and humility, the highly influential meditation master Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche offers a glimpse into the remarkable reality of Tibetan Buddhism, as well as an in depth portrait of the lost culture of old Tibet. This grand narrative stretches across generations, providing an inspiring glimpse into a realm of remarkable human achievement quite different from our familiar, mundane world. Intimate in tone, these personal memoirs recount the influences and experiences that shaped one of the great spiritual teachers of our time. Blazing Splendor is of both spiritual and historical importance.
10. Tulku Thondup - Masters of Meditation and Miracles: Lives of the Great Buddhist Masters of India and Tibet (Buddhayana Series)
Masters of Meditation and Miracles presents colorful biographies of thirty-five realized teachers whose lives were full of peace, enlightenment, and amazing miracles. They flourished in Tibet, the Roof of the World, in its golden days. These teachers belong to the Longchen Nyingthig lineage of the Nyingma school of Tibetan Buddhism, a cycle of mystical teachings revealed by the great scholar and adept Jigme Lingpa. From the first master, Garap Dorje, to the present, each spiritual personality has his or her own distinctive role to play in this great lineage. In retelling their stories in his own words, the author has sought to bring out their inner feelings as well as their external activities: how they faced and healed physical pain, how they dealt with emotional turmoil, how they overcame spiritual or meditative illusions, and most important, what experiences they had when they awakened their own inner Buddha Mind and Buddha qualities. These biographies not only provide great sources of teachings on meditation, but will also kindle a spiritual flame in the hearts of readers.
11. Dalai Lama - The Art of Happiness: A Handbook for Living
The Art of Happiness is read like an enchanting Indian tale by Howard Cutler and Ernest Abuba. Gyatso, His Holiness the Fourteenth Dalai Lama, is the spiritiual and temporal leader of the Tibetan people. Cutler helps to blend psychology with the Dalai Lamas Buddhist meditations and stories. Gyatso talks about how to defeat depression, anxiety, anger, and jealousy through meditation. He discusses relationships, health, family, work, and spirituality and how to find inner peace while facing these struggles.
12. Shunryu Suzuki Roshi - Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind
A respected Zen master in Japan and founder of the San Francisco Zen Center, Shunryu Suzuki has blazed a path in American Buddhism like few others. He is the master who climbs down from the pages of the koan books and answers your questions face to face. If not face to face, you can at least find the answers as recorded in Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind, a transcription of juicy excerpts from his lectures. From diverse topics such as transience of the world, sudden enlightenment, and the nuts and bolts of meditation, Suzuki always returns to the idea of beginner's mind, a recognition that our original nature is our true nature. With beginner's mind, we dedicate ourselves to sincere practice, without the thought of gaining anything special. Day to day life becomes our Zen training, and we discover that "to study Buddhism is to study ourselves." And to know our true selves is to be enlightened. --Brian Bruya
13. Chogyal Namkhai Norbu Rinpoche - The Supreme Source: The Fundamental Tantra of the Dzogchen Semde
Kunjed Gyalpo or All Creating King (Supreme Source) is one of the most-important Dzogchen Semde (mind series) root tantras, transmitted by Garab Dorje. The book includes a large section introducing the Semde tradition of the Dzogchen teaching and forward by Norbu Rinpoche. The rest of the book consist of the original tantra text, translated into simplified English and commentraied by Norbu. In a sense this is the bible of the Dzogchen Semde tradition.
Tenzin Wangyal Rinpcohe - Healing with Form, Energy, and Light: The Five Elements in Tibetan Shamanism, Tantra, and Dzogchen
In the highest teachings, the elements constituting the universe are understood to be the radiance of being and are accessed through pure awareness. This book offers the reader healing meditations and yogic practices on each of these levels.
15. Nyoshul Khen Rinpoche - A Marvelous Garland of Rare Gems: Biographies of Masters of Awareness in the Dzogchen Lineage (A Spiritual History of the Teachings of Natural Great Perfection)
A Marvelous Garland of Rare Gems: Biographies of Masters of Awareness in the Dzogchen Lineage is the only comprehensive history of the Nyingtik lineage, which forms the core of the body of teachings known as Dzogchen (Great Perfection) in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition. It was written by the late Nyoshul Khen Rinpoche, Jamyang Dorje (1931-1999), one of the most outstanding and knowledgeable exponents of Dzogchen. In this work, framed as a series of biographical accounts, Nyoshul Khenpo provides a wealth of information invaluable to spiritual practitioners as well as to historians studying the cultures of central Asia. In his introduction, Sogyal Rinpoche underscores the importance of this work: There could come a time in the future,[Nyoshul Khenpo] wrote, when holders of the lineage would profess to transmit the lineage without being able to recall even the names of its masters. This is why he considered this history to be as indispensable as our eyes or our life force, providing all the grounds and inspiration ever needed for total conviction. He compared the life stories of the vidyadhara masters in this lineage to a fine chain of gold or a garland of rare gems. With immense attention to detail, Nyoshul Khenpo maps out the ultimate lineage of direct transmission, the heart of all the lines of transmission of Dzogpachenpo from the primordial buddha to the present day, showing the connection between masters and students in an unbroken line of succession. His work stands out because of its completeness, for it includes all of the distinct lineages, along with the lives of the students of the great masters, stories from the oral tradition, and the different teaching styles. Anyone who matters is represented here, every link in the chain, including masters of our time. It is a milestone, and I do not feel that it will ever be equaled.
16. Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche - Zurchungpa's Testament
A renowned classic of Buddhism previously unavailable in English explained by one of the most renowned and respected teachers of the last generation.
