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Tibetan Buddhism
Magic and Mystery in Tibet by Alexandra David-Neel
£15.75 £17.50
First published in France in 1929, MAGIC AND MYSTERY IN TIBET tells the story of the author’s experiences in Tibet, among lamas and magicians. Alexandra David-Neel’s memoir offers an objective account of the supernatural events she witnessed during the 1920s among the mystics and hermits of Tibet – including levitation, telepathy and the ability to walk on water!
She tells of great sages and sorcerers that she met; of the system of monastic education; the great teachers and their disciples; Tibetan folklore about these spiritual athletes; reincarnation and memory from previous lives; elaborate magical rites to obtain enlightenment; the horrible necromantic magic of the pre-Buddhist Bonpa shamas; mental visualisation exercises to create disembodied thought forms (tulpas); visions; phenomena of physical yoga, control of the body heat mechanism; breathing exercises; sending “messages on the wind” and much similar material.
An unusual aspect of her book is that she herself experienced many of the phenomena she describes, yet she describes them with precision and in a matter-of-fact manner, permitting the reader to draw his own conclusions about validity, interpretation in terms of psychology, and value. Particularly interesting for the modern experiencer are her detailed instructions for tumo (the yoga of heat control) and creation of thought projections.
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Bo and Bon by Dmitry Ermakov
£34.99
Bѳ and Bön: Ancient Shamanic Traditions of Siberia and Tibet in their Relation to the Teachings of a Central Asian Buddha.
Hailed as a fascinating and unique book, this is the first in-depth study of its kind comparing the ancient Bon religion with the Siberian shamanic tradition of Lake Baikal. Combining scholarly research with spiritual insight and with over 200 illustrations, maps and diagrams, the information is presented in a clear and lively way, enabling the reader to navigate easily through the various topics dealt with and to follow the threads of the intricate tapestry which is woven as the parallels between the ancient shamanic traditions of Tibet and Siberia unfold.
A Treasure Trove of Scriptural Transmission by Longchen Rabjam
£46.99
Among the works in Longchen Rabjam's famous collection, The Seven Treasuries, is this book commonly known as the Chöying Dzod. The Chöying Dzod consists of two texts: a set of source verses entitled The Precious Treasury of the Basic Space of Phenomena and Longchenpa's own commentary on those verses, A Treasure Trove of Scriptural Transmission.
Padma Publishing is engaged in the long-term project of translating into English the revered Dzogchen commentaries known as the Seven Treasuries, authored by the fourteenth-century Nyingma master, Longchen Rabjam (Longchenpa). This masterpiece, admired by scholars for centuries, synthesizes more than 600 years of development in the spiritual tradition first brought to Tibet by Padmasambhava in the eighth century. Padma Publishing editions include the English translation as well as structural outlines, critical notes, lists of key terms, and glossaries.
Producing an English edition of the Seven Treasuries is a daunting task, both scholastically and linguistically. Kyabje Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, late head of the Nyingma school of Tibetan Buddhism, felt that such a project would be an extremely important undertaking, but pointed out that these comprehensive and profoundly intricate texts presented enormous challenges to quality translation. Every line, and often each word, of Longchenpa's text presents challenges. The Padma Translation Committee established a multi-leveled editorial process, similar to the traditional manner of translation projects in Tibet's great monastic institutions. In addition to having received input and direction from Chagdud Rinpoche, the translators have benefited from several visiting scholars, who have lent their expertise in elucidating and clarifying difficult points in the texts.
It was Chagdud Rinpoche's vision that the Seven Treasuries of Longchenpa be made available to Western students of the Dzogchen tradition, and for this reason he founded the Translation Project in 1987, inviting Richard Barron (Lama Chökyi Nyima) to assist Padma in its endeavors. To date, the Padma Translation Committee has produced five of the Seven Treasuries, as well as numerous sadhana texts, ritual liturgies, prayers, and other practice materials.
Oral Tradition from Zhang-Zhung: An Introduction to the Bonpo Dzogchen Teachings of the Oral Tradition from Zhang-Zhung by John Myrdhin Reynolds
£27.99
John Myrdhin Reynolds is a linguist, translator, mystic, and initiated ngagpa (tantric yogin) of the Nyingmapa school of Tibetan Buddhism. Since his 1974 ngagpa ordination under Kyabjé Dudjom Rinpoche, he also has been known by the dharma names he was then given: Vajranatha in Sanskrit, or Rigdzin Dorje Gonpo in Tibetan.
Reynolds studied History of Religions, Anthropology, Arabic, Sanskrit, Tibetan, and Buddhist Studies at Columbia University, at the University of California at Berkeley, and at the University of Washington at Seattle. He did his PhD research in Sanskrit, Tibetan, and Buddhist Philosophy under Prof. Edward Conze.
Since then, his emphasis has been on Dzogchen and the Buddhist Tantras, particularly within the Tibetan Nyingma, Kagyu, and Bön traditions, and especially in comparison with Gnosticism and other mystical traditions of the West. For more than two decades, he has worked most closely with Chogyal Namkhai Norbu and Lopon Tenzin Namdak on translations of important Nyingmapa and Bönpo Dzogchen texts respectively. Meanwhile, he continues his researches and lectures widely in India, Europe, and America.
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