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The Real Witches of New England: History, Lore, and Modern Practice
by Ellen Evert Hopman Judika IllesReveals the origins and history of the New England witch hysteria, its continuing repercussions, and the multilayered practices of today’s modern witches • Shares the stories of 13 accused witches from the New England colonies through interviews with their living descendants • Explores the positive role witches played in rural communities until the dawn of the industrial age, despite ongoing persecution • Includes in-depth interviews with 25 modern witchcraft practitioners, interwoven with practical information on the sacred calendar, herb lore, spells, and magical practices New England has long been associated with witches. And while the Salem witch trials happened long ago, the prejudices and fears engendered by the witchcraft hysteria still live on in our culture. What forces were at work that brought the witch hysteria quickly from Europe to the new American colony, a place of religious freedom--and what caused these prejudices to linger centuries after the fact? Weaving together history, sacred lore, modern practice, and the voices of today’s witches, Ellen Evert Hopman offers a new, deeper perspective on American witchcraft and its ancient pagan origins. Beginning with the “witch hysteria” that started in Europe and spread to the New World, Hopman explores the witch hunts, persecutions, mass hysteria, and killings, concluding that between forty and sixty thousand women and men were executed as witches. Combining records of known events with moving interviews with their descendants, she shares the stories of 13 New England witches persecuted during the witch trials, including Tituba and Mary Bliss Parsons, the Witch of Northhampton. Despite the number of false accusations during the witch hysteria in the New England colonies, Hopman reveals how there were practicing witches during that time and describes the positive role witches played in rural communities until the dawn of the industrial age. Exploring how the perception and practices of witches has evolved and expanded over the centuries, Hopman also includes in-depth interviews with 25 modern-day practitioners from a variety of pagan faiths, including druids, wiccans, Celtic reconstructionists, and practitioners of the fairy faith. Emerging from their insights is a treasure trove of practical information on the sacred calendar, herb lore, spells, and magical practices. Bringing together past and present, Hopman reveals what it really means to be a “witch,” redefining the label with dignity and spiritual strength.
Real Wolfmen: True Encounters in Modern America
by Linda S. GodfreyWhat’s hiding in the woods? Here is the definitive account of today’s nationwide sightings of upright, canine creatures – which resemble traditional werewolves – and a thorough exploration of the nature and possible origins of the mysterious beast. “She has the ability to send chills up and down your spine. ” —Brad Steiger, author of Real Ghosts, Restless Spirits, and Haunted Places “If you thought the likes of The Wolfman, The Twilight Saga: Eclipse, and Underworld had no basis in fact, it's time to think again!” —Nick Redfern, author of There's Something in the Woods“Real Wolfmen is a riveting work of amazing scope and depth. You’ll be hooked from the first page. ”--Rosemary Ellen Guiley, author of The Encyclopedia of Vampires and Werewolves The U. S. has been invaded – if many dozens of eyewitnesses are to be believed – by upright, canine creatures that look like traditional werewolves and act as if they own our woods, fields, and highways. Sightings from coast to coast dating back to the 1930s compel us to ask exactly what these beasts are, and what they want. Researcher, author and newspaper reporter Linda S. Godfrey has been tracking the manwolf since the early 1990. In Real Wolfmen she presents the only large-scale cataloguing and investigation of reports of modern sightings of anomalous, upright canids. First-person accounts from Godfrey’s witnesses – who have encountered these creatures everywhere from outside their car windows to face-to-face on a late night stroll – describe the same human-sized canines: They are able to walk upright and hold food in their paws, interact fearlessly with humans, and suddenly and mysteriously disappear. Godfrey explores the most compelling cases from the modern history of such sightings, along with the latest reports, and undertakes a thorough exploration of the nature and possible origins of the creature. .
The Real Work: Interviews and Talks, 1964-79
by William Scott Mclean Gary SnyderAmerican poet Gary Snyder on poetics, tribalism, ecology, Zen Buddhism, meditation, the writing process, and more. The Real Work is the second volume of Gary Snyder’s prose to be published by New Directions. Where his earlier Earth House Hold(1969) heralded the tribalism of the "coming revolution," the interviews in The Real Work focus on the living out of that process in a particular place and time––the Sierra Nevada foothills of Northern California in the 1970s. The talks and interviews collected here range over fifteen years (1964-79) and encompass styles as different as those of the Berkeley Barb and The New York Quarterly. A "poetics of process" characterizes these exchanges, but in the words of editor Mclean, their chief attraction is "good, plain talk with a man who has a lively and very subtle mind and a wide range of experience and knowledge."
The Real World of Fairies: A First-Person Account
by Dora van Gelder Kunz Caitlin Matthews"If we are patient and courteous, we too can find fairy allies in the wild places of nature, in the secret pathways of our dreams, in the deep wisdom of the ancient and ancestral traditions of our land, as Dora van Gelder has demonstrated." -- from the foreword by Caitlin MatthewsThe Real World of Fairies is a privileged glimpse into a joyous, animated universe. Dora's enchanting vision of her encounters with the fairy realm delights the child in us, while it excites our grown-up imagination, rekindles our creative energy, and deepens our sense of connection with nature.This new edition features a foreword by Celtic folk expert Caitlin Matthews. Caitlin's personal experiences and deep knowledge of the fairy world resonate brilliantly with Dora's, adding a fresh perspective for contemporary readers.
Real World Parents: Christian Parenting for Families Living in the Real World
by Mark Matlock"Christian families today often find themselves stuck between two stories—their own family’s story and God’s story. It’s like they’re living two lives: their Christian life and their “real world” life. The trick is figuring out how to get your family’s story to line up with God’s story in the world around us, helping you raise children who have the character, values, and mission that allows them to go out into the real world and live out a real faith. Real World Parents is a parenting book that helps you to be proactive, rather than reactive, when it comes to raising Christian kids in a world that is filled with contradictions to a life of faith. Rather than trying to raise kids who are “good Christians,” you’ll find the tools to help you live out a faith that allows your children to see what it means to live as a Christian. As a result, your kids will learn about real faith by living it out with you. Culture expert and veteran youth pastor, Mark Matlock, will help you explore issues such as: • Helping your child make decisions • The importance of failure • Knowing God’s story for your family • Changing the story your family is in • The pursuit of wisdom, and much more God has placed us here to interact with and represent him to the world by engaging with the culture—not retreating from it. Rather than trying to isolate your children from the world or draw lines that keep them from truly engaging in the world God calls us to help and heal, you can learn how to lead your family towards an integrated life where your story and God’s story come together to make a difference in the world around you."
Real Zombies, the Living Dead, and Creatures of the Apocalypse
by Brad SteigerFeaturing 30 chilling stories of reallife zombie encounters, this comprehensive and unsettling study draws upon traditions found throughout the world to dispel common depictions of zombies as lurching, flesheating automatons made popular by countless movies and books. This fascinating collection includes the stories of the Devil Baby of Bourbon Street, a monstrous creature complete with horns and tail that still lurks in the shadows of the Big Easy; Black Mama Courteaux and the great zombie war, involving hundreds of zombie soldiers battling for the supremacy of their queen; and the swamp child of Mama Cree, who still roams the bayous of Louisiana. In addition to the stories, a variety of zombierelated facts are explored, including ceremonies and initiations, zombies throughout history, sacred zombie and voodoorelated sites, and zombies and monsters of the Bible.
Realism and Religion: Philosophical and Theological Perspectives
by Michael ScottThis book draws together a distinguished group of philosophers and theologians to present new thinking on realism and religion. The religious realism/antirealism debate concerns the questions of God’s independence from human beings, the nature of religious truth and our access to religious truths. Although both philosophers and theologians have written on these subjects, there has been little sustained investigation into these issues akin to that found in comparable areas of research such as ethics or the philosophy of science. In addition, the absence of any agreed approach to the problem underlines both the need for fresh thought on it and the fruitfulness of this area for further research. The editors’ introduction sets the context of the realism debate, traces connections amongst the essays which follow, and proposes lines for future development and enquiry. The contributors present a variety of contrasting positions on key issues in the religious realism debate and each opens up new and important themes. Gordon Kaufman, Peter Lipton and Simon Blackburn provide the opening chapters and the context for the collection; Alexander Bird, John Hare, Graham Oppy and Nick Trakakis, Merold Westphal, and John Webster explore topics that are central to the debate. This volume of original essays will both introduce newcomers to the field and suggest new lines of research for those already familiar with it.
The Realism of Piero della Francesca: Life And Work (Visual Culture in Early Modernity)
by Joost KeizerThe fifteenth-century Italian artist Piero della Francesca painted a familiar world. Roads wind through hilly landscapes, run past farms, sheds, barns, and villages. This is the world in which Piero lived. At the same time, Piero’s paintings depict a world that is distant. The subjects of his pictures are often Christian and that means that their setting is the Holy Land, a place Piero had never visited. The Realism of Piero della Francesca studies this paradoxical aspect of Piero’s art. It tells the story of an artist who could think of the local churches, palaces, and landscapes in and around his hometown of Sansepolcro as miraculously built replicas of the monuments of Jerusalem. Piero’s application of perspective, to which he devoted a long treatise, was meant to convince his contemporaries that his paintings report on things that Piero actually observed. Piero’s methodical way of painting seems to have offered no room for his own fantasy. His art looks deliberately styleless. This book uncovers a world in which painting needed to validate itself by cultivating the illusion that it reported on things observed instead of things imagined by the artist. Piero’s painting claimed truth in a world of increasing uncertainties.
The Realist Hope: A Critique of Anti-Realist Approaches in Contemporary Philosophical Theology (Heythrop Studies in Contemporary Philosophy, Religion and Theology)
by Christopher J. InsoleTaking into consideration analytical, continental, historical, post-modern and contemporary thinkers, Insole provides a powerful defence of a realist construal of religious discourse. Insole argues that anti-realism tends towards absolutism and hubris. Where truth is exhausted by our beliefs about truth, there is no conceptual space for doubting those beliefs; only a conception of truth as absolute, given and accessible can guarantee the very humility, sense of fallibility and sensitivity to difference that the anti-realist rightly values. Cutting through some of the tired and well-rehearsed debates in this area, Insole provides a fresh perspective on approaches influenced by Wittgenstein, Kant, and apophatic theology. The defence of realism offered is unusual in being both analytically precise, and theologically sensitive, with a view to some of the wider and less well-explored cultural, ethical and political implications of the debate.
Reality and the Mind: Epistemology
by Celestine N. C. BittleIt lies in the very nature of epistemology to question the capability of man's mind to contact reality and to know what things are in themselves, the validity of all knowledge, and consequently also of science, it at sake. The foundations of human knowledge are challenged, examined and frequently attacked. An acquaintance with this problem and its possible solution will be, therefore, a matter of prime importance for every seeker of the truth and for every student of philosophy.—Print ed.
Reality and Wisdom: Exploring the Buddha's Four Noble Truths and The Heart Sutra
by Lama Migmar TsetenA clear and comprehensive guide to practicing the foundational Buddhist teachings of the four noble truths—and how these truths can lead to the liberating insight of the &“wisdom gone beyond.&”Written in a warm and accessible style by one of today&’s most respected Tibetan Buddhist masters, Reality and Wisdom leads the reader on a journey of discovery beginning with the very first teachings of the Buddha and into the profound experience of emptiness. The first section of the book explores the bedrock Buddhist teachings of the four noble truths—insights into freedom from suffering from craving—which underpin all schools of Buddhism. Lama Migmar presents and explores these foundational Buddhist truths with humor and insight, explaining how, from a Mahayana Buddhist perspective, these truths serve as crucial supports for cultivating the transformative wisdom of emptiness. In the book&’s second half, Lama Migmar illuminates the terse and enigmatic lines of the Heart Sutra, perhaps the most studied and revered of all Mahayana Buddhist scriptures. The Heart Sutra presents the reader with a vision of reality as it is perceived by a buddha, a vision underpinned by and infused with the radical flexibility and possibility of emptiness and the engagement and responsiveness of profound compassion. The clarity, warmth, and vibrancy of Lama Migmar&’s writing combined with the comprehensiveness and detail of his presentations of key Buddhist teachings make this book a valuable resource for a range of readers, from beginners to more advanced practitioners seeking to deepen their practice.
Reality, Grief, Hope: Three Urgent Prophetic Tasks
by Walter BrueggemannWalter Brueggemann is one of the most highly regarded Old Testament scholars of our time; talk-show host Krista Tippett has even called him "a kind of theological rock star." In this new book Brueggemann incisively probes our society-in-crisis from the ground up.Pointing out striking correlations between the catastrophe of 9/11 and the destruction of ancient Jerusalem, Brueggemann shows how the prophetic biblical response to that crisis was truth-telling in the face of ideology, grief in the face of denial, and hope in the face of despair. He argues that the same prophetic responses are urgently required from us now if we are to escape the deathliness of denial and despair.Brueggemann’s Reality, Grief, Hope boldly confronts the dominant forces of our time, taking on principalities and powers that vie for our souls, and calls the church to courageous action.
Reality Is All The God There Is: The Single Transcendental Truth Taught by the Great Sages and the Revelation of Reality Itself
by Avatar Adi SamrajContemporary renderings of the dharma of the great sages of Advaita Vedanta and Buddhism from the Realized Spiritual Master Avatar Adi Da Samraj • Includes transmissions of wisdom teachings of the great sages Gotama Sakyamuni, Nagarjuna, Shankara, and Ribhu • Presents classic texts of spiritual realization from the perspective of a Realized Teacher • Provides insight into the ultimate realization possible when dualistic consciousness has been transcended In this book Avatar Adi Da Samraj offers his unique renderings of the dharma of the great sages of Advaita Vedanta and Buddhism, including Gotama Sakyamuni, Nagarjuna, Shankara, and Ribhu. Rather than simply translate their teachings from available source texts, Avatar Adi Da, himself a Realized Master, respeaks them as one who has personally realized their truth, revealing that the Buddhist “Nirvana” and the Advaitic “Brahman” point to the same transcendental condition. Avatar Adi Da’s transmissions restore to these texts the profound communication intended by the spiritual masters who created them. The ego nurtures the illusion of separation, an illusion that cannot be removed by the ego’s own efforts. It is only the spiritual master who makes possible the realization of egoless consciousness. The great sages proclaimed a state of spiritual realization that exceeded both worldly dualism and mystical seeking. They had awakened to a reality that spoke of abiding in a state of consciousness only. Avatar Adi Da brings these remarkable declarations back to life and then concludes with his own unique description of a realization that transcends even these extraordinary utterances--the realization of Reality As It Is, free of all forms of the ego’s search.
The Reality of Being: The Fourth Way of Gurdjieff
by Jeanne De SalzmannAs the closest pupil of the charismatic spiritual master G. I. Gurdjieff (1866-1949), Jeanne de Salzmann was charged with carrying on his teachings of spiritual transformation. Known as the Fourth Way or "the Work," Gurdjieff's system was based on teachings of the East that he adapted for modern life in the West. Now, some twenty years after de Salzmann's death, the notebooks that she filled with her insights over a forty-year period (and intended to publish) have been translated and edited by a small group of her family and followers. The result is this long-awaited guide to Gurdjieff's teaching, describing the routes to be traveled and the landmarks encountered along the way. Organized according to themes, the chapters touch on all the important concepts and practices of the Work, including:awakening from the sleep of identification with the ordinary level of beingself-observation and self-rememberingconscious effort and voluntary sufferingunderstanding symbolic concepts like the Enneagramthe Gurdjieff Movements, bodily exercises that provide training in Presence and the awareness of subtle energiesthe necessity of a "school," meaning the collective practice of the teaching in a groupMadame de Salzmann brings to the Work her own strong, direct language and personal journey in learning to live that knowledge of a higher level of being, which, she insists, "you have to see for yourself" on a level beyond theory and concept. De Salzmann consistently refused to discuss the teaching in terms of ideas, for this Fourth Way is to be experienced, not simply thought or believed.
The Reality of God and Historical Method: Apocalyptic Theology in Conversation with N. T. Wright (New Explorations in Theology)
by Samuel V. AdamsAfter a flurry of heated debates in the mid-twentieth century over the relationship between faith and history, the dust seems to have settled. The parties have long since dispersed into their separate camps. The positions are entrenched and loyalties are staked out. This first volume in the New Explorations in Theology is a deliberate attempt to kick up the dust again, but this time as a constructive development of what is now being called "apocalyptic theology." Samuel Adams argues that any historiography interested in contributing to theological knowledge must take into consideration, at a methodological level, the reality of God that has invaded history in Jesus Christ. He explores this idea in critical dialogue with the writings of New Testament historian and theologian N. T. Wright, whose work has significantly shaped the current conversation on this problem. The Reality of God and Historical Method is a fresh, bold and interdisciplinary exploration of the question: How is it possible to say that a particular historical person is the reconciliation of the world?
The Reality of Our Sacred Human Nature: Our Origins and Our Destiny
by Imam ShuaibeTHE REALITY OF OUR SACRED HUMAN NATURE “The Reality of Our Sacred Human Nature” is the first book to be written upon a research methodology found in the first three verses of the 87th Chapter of the Holy Qur’an. Those verses, when understood and applied to researching any subject matter, call for knowing four particular things about the object of your research: #1. The form of the object of your research. #2. Its place within a system, particular and universal. #3. Its potential to grow from simple to complex. #4. Its place in the guidance of G’d. When these four things are understood about anything, the one who possesses that knowledge knows everything about that thing. The great call in the pursuit of sacred wisdom is summarized in the command “Know Thyself.” Since human nature is the cornerstone of our existence, Imam Faheem applied this research methodology to the study of our Common, Sacred Original Human Nature.
The Reality of Prayer
by E. M. BoundsPray, Pray and Pray some more! God loves it and the Devil hates it. In The Reality of Prayer Bounds explores how prayer is A Privilege, Princely & Sacred, how it Fills Man's Poverty with God's Riches, Our Lord's Model Prayer, The Holy Spirit and Prayer and much more. The word "Prayer" expresses the largest and most comprehensive approach unto God. It gives prominence to the element of devotion. It is communion and intercourse with God. It is enjoyment of God. It is access to God. "Supplication" is a more restricted and more intense form of prayer, accompanied by a sense of personal need, limited to the seeking in an urgent manner of a supply for pressing need. "Supplication" is the very soul of prayer in the way of pleading for some one thing, greatly needed, and the need intensely felt. E. M. Bounds offered perhaps a more profound understanding of prayer than any other contemporary Christian thinker. His classic books on the personal communication with God explore how prayer must come from the whole being and strengthens faith in Christian lives. Edward McKendree Bounds was a clergyman of the Methodist Episcopal Church South and author of eleven books, nine of which focused on the subject of prayer. Bounds was a practicing lawyer at age nineteen and after three years, began preaching for the Methodist Episcopal Church, South. At the time of his pastorate in Brunswick, Missouri, war was declared. Bounds became a prisoner of war after refusing to take the oath of allegiance to the Federal Government. Upon release he served as chaplain of the Fifth Missouri regiment until the close of the war.
The Reality of the Mind: St Augustine's Philosophical Arguments for the Human Soul as a Spiritual Substance (Routledge Library Editions: Philosophy of Religion)
by Ludger HölscherAmong the various approaches to the question of the nature of the mind (or soul), Augustine’s philosophical arguments for the existence of an incorporeal and spiritual substance in man and against materialism are here thoroughly examined on their merits as a source of insight for contemporary discussion. This book, originally published in 1986, employs Augustine’s method of introspection, and argues that, as a philosopher, Augustine can teach the modern mind how to detect the reality of such a spiritual subject in and through basic human acts and faculties, such as imagination, memory, knowledge, free-will and self-knowledge. It presents a critical dialogue with various materialistic anthropologies directly addressed by Augustine himself, or those which have arisen at later periods, including epiphenomenalism, mind-brain identity theory, Marxism and others.
Reality Queen
by Debbie DigiovanniIn her second mom-lit adventure, author Debbie DiGiovanni chronicles the unpredictable life of an empty-nest mom named Stephy who finds her hands full when she becomes a production assistant for a television show. Through several twists of fate, her role with the Home Living Channel suddenly changes from behind-the-scenes to before-the camera as she becomes the central figure of a reality show about an average woman whose every move is documented by a camera crew. With an arrogant television executive and a personal staff who are further complicating her once-simple life, her challenges mount until a series of God-directed events bring a real reality check to the mayhem around her.
Reality Tour (Chosen Girls)
by Cheryl Crouch G StudiosChosen Girls is a dynamic new series that communicates a message of empowerment and hope to Christian youth who want to live out their faith. In Book 8, Harmony is beyond excited to be heading out on a road trip with the Chosen Girls. But her “ultimate vacation” turns “ultimate nightmare” when she and her cousin Lucinda make a series of bad choices—the worst of which puts them on the wrong side of the law. Thankfully, Harmony and Lucinda both learn that only Jesus can give the kind of full life they long for.
Reality’s Fugue: Reconciling Worldviews in Philosophy, Religion, and Science
by F. Samuel BrainardScience, religion, philosophy: these three categories of thought have organized humankind’s search for meaning from time immemorial. Reality’s Fugue presents a compelling case that these ways of understanding, often seen as competing, are part of a larger puzzle that cannot be rendered by one account of reality alone.This book begins with an overview of the concept of reality and the philosophical difficulties associated with attempts to account for it through any single worldview. By clarifying the differences among first-person, third-person, and dualist understandings of reality, F. Samuel Brainard repurposes the three predominant ways of making sense of those differences: exclusionist (only one worldview can be right), inclusivist (viewing other worldviews through the lens of one in order to incorporate them all, and thus distorting them), and pluralist or relativist (holding that there are no universals, and truth is relative). His alternative mode of understanding uses Douglas Hofstadter’s metaphor of a musical fugue that allows different “voices” and “melodies” of worldviews to coexist in counterpoint and conversation, while each remains distinct, with none privileged above the others. Approaching reality in this way, Brainard argues, opens up the possibility for a multivoiced perspective that can overcome the skeptical challenges that metaphysical positions face.Engagingly argued by a lifelong scholar of philosophy and global religions, this edifying and accessible exploration of the nature of reality addresses deeply meaningful questions about belief, reconciliation, and being.
Reality’s Fugue: Reconciling Worldviews in Philosophy, Religion, and Science
by F. Samuel BrainardScience, religion, philosophy: these three categories of thought have organized humankind’s search for meaning from time immemorial. Reality’s Fugue presents a compelling case that these ways of understanding, often seen as competing, are part of a larger puzzle that cannot be rendered by one account of reality alone.This book begins with an overview of the concept of reality and the philosophical difficulties associated with attempts to account for it through any single worldview. By clarifying the differences among first-person, third-person, and dualist understandings of reality, F. Samuel Brainard repurposes the three predominant ways of making sense of those differences: exclusionist (only one worldview can be right), inclusivist (viewing other worldviews through the lens of one in order to incorporate them all, and thus distorting them), and pluralist or relativist (holding that there are no universals, and truth is relative). His alternative mode of understanding uses Douglas Hofstadter’s metaphor of a musical fugue that allows different “voices” and “melodies” of worldviews to coexist in counterpoint and conversation, while each remains distinct, with none privileged above the others. Approaching reality in this way, Brainard argues, opens up the possibility for a multivoiced perspective that can overcome the skeptical challenges that metaphysical positions face.Engagingly argued by a lifelong scholar of philosophy and global religions, this edifying and accessible exploration of the nature of reality addresses deeply meaningful questions about belief, reconciliation, and being.
Realize the Power of Your Christian Identity
by Julie NgwabiAre You Facing an Identity Crisis?When Jesus asked, &“Who do the crowds say that I am?&” in Luke 9:18, He illustrated the importance of identity. The world is constantly creating and assigning, which causes many people go through life confused about who they really are. How can you discover your God-given identity and protect it from the enemy who so desperately wants to steal it from you?In Realize the Power of Your Christian Identity, author Julie Ngwabi seeks to unmask deceptions and help you live the life God designed especially for you. Using the wisdom of the Scriptures, she leads you on a journey of discovering your true identity and purpose as a born-again believer.In the midst of a chaotic world, you can enjoy the peace and freedom of knowing that your identity is secure. Jesus Christ has paid the price for you, and has already won the victory. Realize the Power of Your Christian Identity will inspire you to live a meaningful life, pursue a closer walk with your loving heavenly Father, and claim your identity!
Realizing Awakened Consciousness: Interviews with Buddhist Teachers and a New Perspective on the Mind
by Richard BoyleIf, as Buddhism claims, the potential for awakening exists in all human beings, we should be able to map the phenomenon with the same science we apply to other forms of consciousness. A student of cognitive social science and a Zen practitioner for more than forty years, Richard P. Boyle brings his sophisticated perspective to bear on the development of a theoretical model for both ordinary and awakened consciousness.Boyle conducts probing interviews with eleven prominent Western Buddhist teachers (Shinzen Young, John Tarrant, Ken McLeod, Ajahn Amaro, Martine Batchelor, Shaila Catherine, Gil Fronsdal, Stephen Batchelor, Pat Enkyo O'Hara, Bernie Glassman, and Joseph Goldstein) and one scientist (James Austin) who have experienced awakening. From the paths they traveled to enlightenment and their descriptions of the experience, he derives three fundamental properties of awakened consciousness. He then constructs an overarching model that explains how Buddhist practices help free the mind from attachments to reality and the self and make possible the three properties of awakening. Specifically, these teachers describe how they worked to control attention and quiet the mind, detach from ideas and habits, and open themselves to compassion. Boyle's account incorporates current theories of consciousness, sociological insights, and research in neuroscience to advance the study of awakened consciousness and help an even greater number of people to realize it.
Realizing Genjokoan
by Taigen Dan Leighton Shohaku OkumuraDogen, the thirteenth-century Zen master who founded the Japanese Soto school of Zen, is renowned as one the world's most remarkable religious geniuses. His works are both richly poetic and deeply insightful and philosophical, pointing to the endless depths of Zen exploration. And almost precisely because of these facts, Dogen is often difficult for readers to understand and fully appreciate. Realizing Genjokoan is a comprehensive introduction to the teachings and approach of this great thinker, taking us on a thorough guided tour of the most important essay-Genjokoan-in Dogen's seminal work, the Shobogenzo. Indeed, the Genjokoan is regarded as the pinnacle of Dogen's writings, encompassing and encapsulating the essence of all the rest of his work. Our tour guide for this journey is Shohaku Okumura, a prominent teacher in his own right, who has dedicated his life to translating and teaching Dogen. This volume also includes an introduction to Dogen's life from Hee-Jin Kim's classic, Eihei Dogen: Mystical Realist, with updated annotations by Okumura.