The Power of the Dharma


Book Description

The Power of the Dharma: An Introduction to Hinduism and Vedic Culture offers a concise and easy-to-understand overview of the essential principles and customs of the Hindu tradition. It also provides many insights into the depth and value of the timeless wisdom of Vedic spirituality and reveals why the Dharmic path has survived for thousands of years. Author Stephen Knapp reveals why the Dharma is presently enjoying a renaissance among an increasing number of people who want to explore its teachings and see what its many techniques of self-discovery have to offer. In The Power of the Dharma, you will find: quotes by noteworthy people on the unique qualities of Hinduism; essential principles of the Vedic spiritual path; particular traits, customs, and explanations of Hindu worship; descriptions of the main yoga systems; significance and legends of the colorful Hindu festivals; benefits of Ayurveda, Vastu, Vedic astrology, and gemology; important insights of Dharmic life and how to begin. The Dharmic path can provide you the means for attaining your own spiritual realizations and experiences. This is the power of Dharma's universal teachings which have something to offer everyone!




The Book of Dharma


Book Description




Dixie Dharma


Book Description

Buddhism in the United States is often viewed in connection with practitioners in the Northeast and on the West Coast, but in fact, it has been spreading and evolving throughout the United States since the mid-nineteenth century. In Dixie Dharma, Jeff Wilson argues that region is crucial to understanding American Buddhism. Through the lens of a multidenominational Buddhist temple in Richmond, Virginia, Wilson explores how Buddhists are adapting to life in the conservative evangelical Christian culture of the South, and how traditional Southerners are adjusting to these newer members on the religious landscape. Introducing a host of overlooked characters, including Buddhist circuit riders, modernist Pure Land priests, and pluralistic Buddhists, Wilson shows how regional specificity manifests itself through such practices as meditation vigils to heal the wounds of the slave trade. He argues that southern Buddhists at once use bodily practices, iconography, and meditation tools to enact distinct sectarian identities even as they enjoy a creative hybridity.




The Dharma of Star Wars


Book Description

Is Yoda a Zen Master? Is the story of Luke Skywalker a spiritual epic? The answers, as well as excitement, adventure, and a lot of fun, are here! This revised and expanded edition of The Dharma of Star Wars uses George Lucas’ beloved modern saga and the wise words of the Buddha to illuminate each other in playful and unexpectedly rewarding ways. Matthew Bortolin writes an inspiring and totally new take on this timeless saga, from A New Hope through Revenge of the Sith and television's Clone Wars. Great fun for any Star Wars fan. Includes instruction in The Jedi Art of Mindfulness and Concentration and The Padawan Handbook: Zen Contemplations for the Would-Be Jedi.




The Power & Intelligence of Karma & Reincarnation


Book Description

In the distant past, life was pretty harsh - most work was manual labor, medicine was primitive and there was little law & order - the perfect opening to religions that promised an easy afterlife. Life was mocked as sin, "up there" awaited a magical land of plenty. These religions kept us weak, God made in the image of the local King reduced followers down to slaves/servants, down on their knees begging for mercy and seeking pity. This book asks for a paradigm change - are we still weak? Do we still think we can just run away from problems? This book is for the Strong, the Warrior, for those who see Life as a Great Gift from God, God as our Teacher, as we build the paradise right here on Earth and make Her Proud of us! Create & build a great Future for all life on earth. Only Reincarnation gives us such an opportunity.




The Dharma in Difficult Times


Book Description

The sequel to the bestseller The Great Work of Your Life shows us the way through our darkest times to our truest calling. How do we make sense of our lives when our world seems to be falling apart? This beautifully written guide from scholar and teacher Stephen Cope shows that crises don’t have to derail us from our purpose—they can actually help us to find our purpose and step forward as our best selves. In this sequel to his best-loved book, The Great Work of Your Life, Cope again takes the ancient yogic text the Bhagavad Gita—the epic narrative of the warrior Arjuna’s odyssey of self-discovery—as a roadmap for our journey to our own true calling. Then he builds on that foundation using the stories and teachings of famous figures, as well as stories of ordinary people and his own rich personal experience. Along the way, we find striking examples for finding meaning and purpose in our lives: Gandhi shows how to tap our spiritual resources and listen for our inner voice Sojourner Truth and Henry David Thoreau inspire us to seek out the unmistakable signs of dharma in the midst of chaos Marian Anderson and Ruby Sales shed light on dharma’s mystic power and how we learn to trust in it And more In the spirit of Pema Chödrön’s When Things Fall Apart, this book is required reading when you find yourself forging a path through crisis—or seeking a way through your darkest times to your truest self.




Dharma


Book Description

Stories can be both entertaining and educative. They can also be insightful and illuminating, especially when they have travelled down the generations, through the centuries, taking on new meanings with each retelling. In this genre-bending book, the first of a series, Amish and Bhavna dive into the priceless treasure trove of the ancient Indian epics, as well as the vast and complex universe of Amish's Meluha (through his Shiva Trilogy and Ram Chandra Series), to explore some of the key concepts of Indian philosophy. What is the ideal interplay between thought and action, taking and giving, self-love and sacrifice? How can we tell right from wrong? What can we do to bring out the best in ourselves, and to live a life with purpose and meaning, not just one fuelled by the ego and material needs? The answers lie in these simple and wise interpretations of our favourite stories by a lovable cast of fictional characters whom you'll enjoy getting to know.




The Power of Dharma


Book Description

After Valmiki, the illustrious sage, learned all about the life of Lord Rama, he went to the river to bathe. Close to the river were two large and pretty birds sweetly singing and playing together. A vicious hunter, who was plotting evil, shot an arrow which struck the male bird. Upon seeing her partner trembling on the ground, his body covered in blood, the hen cried out in great distress for her beloved's life. As Valmiki witnessed this ruthless hunter strike down the male bird, he became sad and thought to himself, "This was not dharma to kill a sweetly singing bird for no reason at all." As he listened to the hen pour her heart out, he said to the hunter: After what you have done to this bird, peace will be no more than a word. Then Valmiki realized that he had unintentionally created a work of poetry and he named the metre shloka because it was spoken in shoka (sadness). And thus he began penning one of the greatest texts on dharma the world has ever seen.




The Dharma of Dragons and Daemons


Book Description

In order to live, we need air, water, food, shelter…and stories. This book is about Buddhist stories: not about stories to be found in Buddhism, but about the “Buddhism” to be found in some of the classics of contemporary fantasy including the works of J. R. R. Tolkien, Hayao Miyazaki, Michael Ende, Philip Pullman, and Ursula K. LeGuin. Many books are called groundbreaking, but this one is truly unique and sure to appeal to anyone with an interest in fantasy literature. It employs a Buddhist perspective to appreciate some of the major works of modern fantasy--and uses modern fantasy fiction to elucidate Buddhist teachings. In the tradition of David Loy's cutting-edge presentation of a Buddhist social theory in The Great Awakening, this pioneering work of Buddhist literary analysis, renown scholar David Loy and Linda Goodhew offer ways of reading modern fantasy-genre fiction that illuminate both the stories themselves, and the universal qualities of Buddhist teachings. Authors examined include J.R.R. Tolkien, Philip Pullman (of The Amber Spyglass trilogy, from whose works the word "daemon" is borrowed in the title), Ursula K. LeGuin, and the anime movie Princess Mononoke.




Mixing Minds


Book Description

"We cannot find ourselves, or be ourselves, alone." - from Mixing Minds Mixing Minds explores the interpersonal relationships between psychoanalysts and their patients, and Buddhist teachers and their students. Through the author's own personal journey in both traditions, she sheds light on how these contrasting approaches to wellness affect our most intimate relationships. These dynamic relationships provide us with keen insight into the emotional ups and downs of our lives - from fear and anxiety to love, compassion, and equanimity. Mixing Minds delves into the most intimate of relationships and shows us how these relationships are the key to the realization of our true selves.