On Attaining Buddhahood in This Lifetime

On Attaining Buddhahood in This Lifetime
Author: Daisaku Ikeda
Publisher: Middleway Press
Total Pages: 135
Release: 2013-07-01
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 1938252314

What constitutes a meaningful life? What is true happiness? Nichiren Buddhism, based on the Lotus Sutra, is a teaching of hope that provides answers to these and other important questions for modern life. Ranked among the most important works in Mahayana Buddhism, Nichiren's 13th-century writings were revolutionary. In On Attaining Buddhahood in This Lifetime, Nichiren turned prevailing Buddhist thought on its head. Attaining Buddhahood, or enlightenment, he argues, does not require embarking on some inconceivably long journey toward becoming some resplendent godlike Buddha, but rather it means accomplishing a transformation in the depths of one's being and revealing one's ultimate potential within. And Nichiren dedicated his life—braving all manner of persecution—to giving people a practical means for doing so. Daisaku Ikeda's simple and straightforward commentary brings alive this important writing for the modern world. Thoughtful people of all faiths will resonate with his compassionate insights on the universal teaching of happiness that is Nichiren Buddhism.

Buddha Nature

Buddha Nature
Author: Maitreya
Publisher: Shambhala Publications
Total Pages: 409
Release: 2018-08-14
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 155939482X

The Buddha's definitive teachings on how we should understand the ground of enlightenment and the nature and qualities of buddhahood. All sentient beings, without exception, have buddha nature—the inherent purity and perfection of the mind, untouched by changing mental states. Thus there is neither any reason for conceit nor self-contempt. This is obscured by veils that are removable and do not touch the inherent purity and perfection of the nature of the mind. The Mahayana Uttaratantra Shastra, one of the “Five Treatises” said to have been dictated to Asanga by the Bodhisattva Maitreya, presents the Buddha’s definitive teachings on how we should understand this ground of enlightenment and clarifies the nature and qualities of buddhahood. This seminal text details with great clarity the view that forms the basis for Vajrayana, and especially Mahamudra, practice.

Buddhahood in This Life

Buddhahood in This Life
Author: Vimalamitra
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Total Pages: 207
Release: 2016-12-06
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1614293457

"A translation of an important Tibetan Buddhist text related to the Dzogchen practice of the Nyingma school"--

The Way to Buddhahood

The Way to Buddhahood
Author: Yin-shun
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Total Pages: 418
Release: 2012-06-25
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 0861716876

The Way to Buddhahood is a compendium of two thousand years of Chinese practice in assimilating and understanding the Buddhist experience of enlightenment. It is the first in-depth explanation of Chinese Buddhism by Yin-shun, the greatest living master of the Chinese scholar-monk tradition. The master's broad scope not only includes the traditional Chinese experience but also ideas from the Tibetan monastic tradition. This is one of those rare classic books that authentically captures an entire Buddhist tradition between its covers.

Buddhahood Embodied

Buddhahood Embodied
Author: John J. Makransky
Publisher: SUNY Press
Total Pages: 524
Release: 1997-01-01
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9780791434314

Provides many new translations of original texts formative of Mahayana concepts of Enlightenment and resolves the 1200-year-old controversy between Indian and Tibetan views of the meaning of buddhahood.

Buddhahood Embodied

Buddhahood Embodied
Author: John J. Makransky
Publisher: State University of New York Press
Total Pages: 524
Release: 1997-07-31
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 1438411766

To enter the Mahayana Buddhist path to enlightenment is to seek both to become free from our dualistic, deluded world and to remain actively engaged in that world until all others are free. How are these two apparently contradictory qualities to be embodied in the attainment of buddhahood (dharmakaya)? How can one's present practice accomplish that? These questions underlie a millennium-old controversy over buddhahood in India and Tibet that centers around a cherished text, the Abhisamayalamkara. Makransky shows how the Abhisamayalamkara's composite redaction, from Abhidharma, Prajnaparamita, and Yogacara traditions, permitted its interpreters to perceive different aspects of those traditions as central in its teaching of buddhahood. This enabled Indians and Tibetans to read very different perspectives on enlightenment into the Abhisamayalamkara, through which they responded to the questions in startlingly different ways. The author shows how these perspectives provide alternative ways to resolve a logical tension at the heart of Mahayana thought, inscribed in the doctrine that buddhahood paradoxically transcends and engages our world simultaneously. Revealing this tension as the basis of the Abhisamayalamkara controversy, Makransky shows its connection to many other Indo-Tibetan controversies revolving around the same tension: disagreements over buddhahood's knowledge, embodiment, and accessibility to beings (in Buddha nature and through the path). Tracing the source of tension to early Mahayana practice intuitions about enlightenment, the author argues that different perspectives in these controversies express different ways of prioritizing those practice intuitions.

The Buddha, Geoff and Me

The Buddha, Geoff and Me
Author: Edward Canfor-Dumas
Publisher: Random House
Total Pages: 290
Release: 2013-05-03
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1446447812

Ed is having a hard time - at work, in his love life and, well, generally. Then he meets an unlikely Buddhist - who drinks and smokes and talks his kind of language. Bit by bit, things begin to change... Ed doesn't always take Geoff's advice. Or, when he does he lapses at the crucial moment. His path to understanding is not a straight one, especially as life keeps throwing more and more 'stuff' at him. Often he fails - like most of us, in fact. But sometimes he manages to get it right. And when he does, surprising things begin to happen ... In The Buddha, Geoff and Me Edward Canfor-Dumas brings all his skills to bear in an absorbing story of everyday city life, where the characters stand out with all their human strengths and weaknesses, and the ending brings Ed - and perhaps all of us? - a hope we didn't necessarily expect. The Buddha, Geoff and Me - for anyone who's ever begun to wonder what the whole damn thing is all about ...

The Buddha's Teachings on Social and Communal Harmony

The Buddha's Teachings on Social and Communal Harmony
Author: Bodhi
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Total Pages: 241
Release: 2016-12-13
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1614293732

In a world of conflict and strife, how can we be advocates of peace and justice? In this volume acclaimed scholar-monk Bhikkhu Bodhi has collected and translated the Buddha’s teachings on conflict resolution, interpersonal and social problem-solving, and the forging of harmonious relationships. The selections, all drawn from the Pali Canon, the earliest record of the Buddha’s discourses, are organized into ten thematic chapters. The chapters deal with such topics as the quelling of anger, good friendship, intentional communities, the settlement of disputes, and the establishing of an equitable society. Each chapter begins with a concise and informative introduction by the translator that guides us toward a deeper understanding of the texts that follow. In times of social conflict, intolerance, and war, the Buddha’s approach to creating and sustaining peace takes on a new and urgent significance. Even readers unacquainted with Buddhism will appreciate these ancient teachings, always clear, practical, undogmatic, and so contemporary in flavor. The Buddha’s Teachings on Social and Communal Harmony will prove to be essential reading for anyone seeking to bring peace into their communities and into the wider world.

The Buddha in Your Mirror

The Buddha in Your Mirror
Author: Woody Hochswender
Publisher: Middleway Press
Total Pages: 168
Release: 2012-03-01
Genre: Self-Help
ISBN: 1938252012

While the notion that “happiness can found within oneself” has recently become popular, Buddhism has taught for thousands of years that every person is a Buddha, or enlightened being, and has the potential for true and lasting happiness. Through real-life examples, the authors explain how adopting this outlook has positive effects on one's health, relationships, and career, and gives new insights into world environmental concerns, peace issues, and other major social problems.

The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism

The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism
Author: Robert E. Buswell, Jr.
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Total Pages: 1300
Release: 2013-11-24
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0691157863

The most comprehensive and authoritative dictionary of Buddhism ever produced in English With more than 5,000 entries totaling over a million words, this is the most comprehensive and authoritative dictionary of Buddhism ever produced in English. It is also the first to cover terms from all of the canonical Buddhist languages and traditions: Sanskrit, Pali, Tibetan, Chinese, Japanese, and Korean. Unlike reference works that focus on a single Buddhist language or school, The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism bridges the major Buddhist traditions to provide encyclopedic coverage of the most important terms, concepts, texts, authors, deities, schools, monasteries, and geographical sites from across the history of Buddhism. The main entries offer both a brief definition and a substantial short essay on the broader meaning and significance of the term covered. Extensive cross-references allow readers to find related terms and concepts. An appendix of Buddhist lists (for example, the four noble truths and the thirty-two marks of the Buddha), a timeline, six maps, and two diagrams are also included. Written and edited by two of today's most eminent scholars of Buddhism, and more than a decade in the making, this landmark work is an essential reference for every student, scholar, or practitioner of Buddhism and for anyone else interested in Asian religion, history, or philosophy. The most comprehensive dictionary of Buddhism ever produced in English More than 5,000 entries totaling over a million words The first dictionary to cover terms from all of the canonical Buddhist languages and traditions—Sanskrit, Pali, Tibetan, Chinese, Japanese, and Korean Detailed entries on the most important terms, concepts, texts, authors, deities, schools, monasteries, and geographical sites in the history of Buddhism Cross-references and appendixes that allow readers to find related terms and look up equivalent terms in multiple Buddhist languages Includes a list of Buddhist lists, a timeline, and maps Also contains selected terms and names in Thai, Burmese, Vietnamese, Lao, Khmer, Sinhalese, Newar, and Mongolian