The Tibetan Book Of Living And Dying: A Spiritual Classic from One of the Foremost Interpreters of Tibetan Buddhism to the West

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As a book, The Tibetan Book of the Dead has a mystical origin story and a publication history unlike any other.

To date, more than three million copies have been printed, [ citation needed] in 34 languages and 80 countries. We’d Like to invite you to download our free 12 min app , for more amazing summaries and audiobooks. I am particularly moved by his unceasing and intelligent devotion to his tradition and his teachers: read this book and savour the lovingness of this special link.

Sogyal quotes such diverse figures as Mother Teresa, Shakespeare, and William Blake imbuing the book with a poetic but sometimes convoluted style. Fear of death and ignorance of the afterlife are fueling that destruction of our environment that is threatening all of our lives. Rinpoche sees his life's task in transplanting the wisdom of Buddha to the West by offering training in the vision set out in The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying.

Since it was published twenty years ago, Sogyal Rinpoche’s The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying has earned its status as a modern classic of Tibetan Buddhism.I think the publication of this book was something historic and we must celebrate it as a moment in time when Buddhism really began to take root in the western in countries. Also there was a lot of mysticism in these stories and just over dramatics like I was watching a Hollywood film with these spiritual teachers who are all knowing who spread their teachings, like Yoda.

Helping the dying, then, must include the possibility of spiritual care, because it is only with spiritual knowledge that we can truly face, and understand, death. what is most important in this life along with how to work with our mind and its perceptions/projections as well as our ego (8. Although experts agree that this section, could have been published as a stand-alone book, Rinpoche respectfully disagrees and guides us through more in-depth topics of spirituality. This ties in with the teaching of other religions and with modern psychology: you create your own heaven and your own hell. Most people feel that they are not bound by this reality, we’re all connected yes but today at this moment you are separate.

Nurses, doctors, and those professionally involved with care for the dying have told me how they have integrated these methods in their daily work, and I have heard many accounts of ordinary people using these practices and finding that they transformed the death of a close friend or relative. Then the gods’ wives and lovers no longer dare approach them, but throw flowers to them from a distance, with casual prayers that they be reborn again as gods. Yet practical and emotional care are not enough; people who are dying need love and care, but they also need something even more profound. To ensure you’re on the right path never forget to set up a time for yourself to introspect and look back on how the day was and where you can make changes to lead a more fruitful existence.

I cannot say that this was an easy read as it is quite spiritual and me being a westener, found the wording quite hard work at times, especially when I was so so tired and scared.Concepts such as reincarnation, karma, and bardo and practices such as meditation, tonglen, and phowa teach us how to face death constructively. I often think of the words of the great Buddhist master Padmasambhava: “Those who believe they have plenty of time get ready only at the time of death. The most important thing to understand about The Tibetan Book of the Dead is that it is meant to be read aloud.