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The Bodhisattva Path to Unsurpassed Enlightenment: A Complete Translation of the Bodhisattvabhumi
by Dalai Lama Artemus B. Engle Asanga?rya Asanga's Bodhisattvabh?mi, or The Stage of a Bodhisattva, is the Mah?y?na tradition's most comprehensive manual on the practice and training of bodhisattvas--by the author's own account, a compilation of the full range of instructions contained in the entire collection of Mah?y?na sutras. A classic work of the Yog?c?ra school, it has been cherished in Tibet by all the historical Buddhist lineages as a primary source of instruction on bodhisattva ethics, vows, and practices, as well as for its summary of the ultimate goal of the bodhisattva path--supreme enlightenment.Despite the text's seminal importance in the Tibetan traditions, it has remained unavailable in English except in fragments. Engle's translation, made from the Sanskrit original with reference to the Tibetan translation and commentaries, will enable English readers to understand more fully and clearly what it means to be a bodhisattva and practitioner of the Mah?y?na tradition.
The Bodhisattva Path: Commentary on the Vimalakirti and Ugrapariprccha Sutras
by Thich Nhat HanhLearn about the bodhisattva ideal—the capacity to see the potential for awakening in everyone and aspire to help them along their path—with new commentaries on early Mahayana sutras from Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh, the monk Time magazine calls "the father of mindfulness."Based on a three-month retreat given by Ven. Thich Nhat Hanh in the winter of 1991, this book gives an historical account of the emergence of the bodhisattva ideal during the first century CE, together with Thich Nhat Hanh's previously unpublished commentaries on two early Mahayana sutras—the Ugraparipṛccha Sutra (The Questions of the Householder Ugra) and the Vimalakīrti-nirdeśa Sutra (The Instructions of Vimalakīrti). About 150 years after the death of the historical Buddha, Buddhism had begun to develop into many separate schools, in which many monks came to prioritize their own personal liberation in their teaching and practice, while making Buddhism into a series of doctrines that served their own school. They came to live in a way that was cut off from other schools and from laypeople and saw laypeople as there primarily to make offerings and support the monks, not as practitioners who could also benefit fully from the Buddha&’s teachings. Consequently, around the first century CE, there arose among lay and monastic practitioners the desire to popularize Buddhism and bring it out of the ivory tower and back in touch with life in the world, as it had been in the time of the Buddha. From this movement sprang the Mahayana path, which aimed to provide the deepest wellsprings of Buddhist thought to all people, regardless of their social background. Central to the Mahayana teachings is the idea of bodhicitta (the mind of love), which was personified in the bodhisattva, who sees the potential for enlightenment in everyone and vows to help them on their path to awakening.Soon Mahayana sutras began to appear, encouraging practitioners to develop the qualities of a bodhisattva in themselves. The Ugraparipṛccha Sutra counsels students on the bodhisattva path, giving practical instructions on how to help others suffer less. The Vimalakīrti-nirdeśa Sutra focuses on bringing the deepest teachings of Buddhism to ordinary people, with teachings on the ultimate dimension and Buddhist ethics. With his insightful commentary on these two important sutras, Ven. Thich Nhat Hanh continues the inclusive spirit of the early Mahayana practitioners.
The Bodhisattva's Brain: Buddhism Naturalized
by Owen FlanaganCan there be a Buddhism without karma, nirvana, and reincarnation that is compatible with the rest of knowledge?If we are material beings living in a material world—and all the scientific evidence suggests that we are—then we must find existential meaning, if there is such a thing, in this physical world. We must cast our lot with the natural rather than the supernatural. Many Westerners with spiritual (but not religious) inclinations are attracted to Buddhism—almost as a kind of moral-mental hygiene. But, as Owen Flanagan points out in The Bodhisattva's Brain, Buddhism is hardly naturalistic. In The Bodhisattva's Brain, Flanagan argues that it is possible to discover in Buddhism a rich, empirically responsible philosophy that could point us to one path of human flourishing. Some claim that neuroscience is in the process of validating Buddhism empirically, but Flanagan's naturalized Buddhism does not reduce itself to a brain scan showing happiness patterns. "Buddhism naturalized," as Flanagan constructs it, offers instead a fully naturalistic and comprehensive philosophy, compatible with the rest of knowledge—a way of conceiving of the human predicament, of thinking about meaning for finite material beings living in a material world.
The Bodies of God and the World of Ancient Israel
by Benjamin D. SommerIn The Bodies of God and the World of Ancient Israel, Benjamin D. Sommer investigates the notion of a deity's body and self in ancient Israel, Canaan, and Mesopotamia. He uncovers a lost ancient Near Eastern perception of divinity according to which an essential difference between gods and humans was that gods had more than one body and fluid, unbounded selves. Though the dominant strains of biblical religion rejected it, a monotheistic version of this theological intuition is found in some biblical texts. Later Jewish and Christian thinkers inherited this ancient way of thinking; ideas such as the sefirot in kabbalah and the trinity in Christianity represent a late version of this theology. This book forces us to rethink the distinction between monotheism and polytheism, as this notion of divine fluidity is found in both polytheistic cultures (Babylonia, Assyria, Canaan) and monotheistic ones (biblical religion, Jewish mysticism, Christianity), whereas it is absent in some polytheistic cultures (classical Greece). The Bodies of God and the World of Ancient Israel has important repercussions not only for biblical scholarship and comparative religion but for Jewish-Christian dialogue.
The Body And Society: Men, Women, and Sexual Renunciation in Early Christianity; Twentieth Anniversary Edition With A New Introduction
by Peter BrownFirst published in 1988, Peter Brown's The Body and Society was a groundbreaking study of the marriage and sexual practices of early Christians in the ancient Mediterranean and Near East. Brown focuses on the practice of permanent sexual renunciation-continence, celibacy, and lifelong virginity-in Christian circles from the first to the fifth centuries A. D. and traces early Christians' preoccupations with sexuality and the body in the work of the period's great writers. The Body and Society questions how theological views on sexuality and the human body both mirrored and shaped relationships between men and women, Roman aristocracy and slaves, and the married and the celibate. Brown discusses Tertullian, Valentinus, Clement of Alexandria, Origen, Constantine, the Desert Fathers, Jerome, Ambrose, and Augustine, among others, and considers asceticism and society in the Eastern Empire, martyrdom and prophecy, gnostic spiritual guidance, promiscuity among the men and women of the church, monks and marriage in Egypt, the ascetic life of women in fourth-century Jerusalem, and the body and society in the early Middle Ages. In his new introduction, Brown reflects on his work's reception in the scholarly community.
The Body Book
by Nancy RueThe ultimate resource for the "girl stuff" coming your way.The transition from girl to teenager makes the tween years a time of great change--especially in the body department! This unique and creative book for girls ages 7-11 answers the most common questions girls have during this often confusing and overwhelming stage in life. The Body Book gives girls the scoop on everything from body changes and cramps to diet and exercise in an inviting and conversational manner.The Body Book not only offers accurate, up-to-date information on personal issues tween girls experience but also shares it from a positive biblical perspective.
The Body Broken: Answering God's Call to Love One Another
by Robert BensonA lifelong Christian and seeker, Robert Benson has shared the prayers, rituals, conversations, and practices of many different denominations. His broad range of ecumenical experiences have led to moments of great joy and deep fellowship, but they have also opened his eyes to the misunderstanding and the intolerance that constantly threaten to dismember the whole Body of Christ. The Body Broken is an honest and moving meditation on the Gospel imperative to love one another as brothers and sisters, even as we choose to live and express our faith in differing ways.Benson writes longingly about the things of the faith that bind us together and gracefully about the things that keep us apart. He recounts his own journey from Nazarene to Methodist to Episcopalian and introduces us to the people and the differing expressions of faith he encountered along the way. We meet ordinary folk, including Benson's family and childhood friends, as well as legendary religious thinkers as Henri Nouwen. Some of the stories--particularly the ones about his own brother's suicide--are heartbreakingly painful; others bring to light the joy and grace of Christian love as found in acts of common worship and compassion. Although Benson acknowledges that there are--and always will be--very real differences in the ways that Christians seek to live out their faith, he reminds us of the essential beliefs that we share about God and our common dependency on God's mysterious mercy and grace, even as we look for God as through a glass darkly.In poetic prose that is reminiscent of the writing of Frederick Buechner and Annie Dillard, Benson illuminates, with wit and wisdom and humility and passion, one of the most difficult challenges that face the Church. The Body Broken is a powerful, important examination of the intolerance and divisiveness that have become an all too familiar part of the Church and a gentle, poignant call for a Christian community that embraces a spirit of love and unity even as it honors our differences.
The Body Deva: Working with the Spiritual Consciousness of the Body
by Mary Mueller ShutanA step-by-step guide to accessing the body deva, your body consciousness, for physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual healing • Details how to dialogue with the consciousness of your body to heal a variety of issues, from physical pains to limiting beliefs • Explains how our bodies, consciousness, and spirit are interconnected and how our physical bodies hold emotions and past traumas • Explores how to work with the body deva to heal spiritual patterns through the physical body, including techniques of ancestral healing, past life healing, and karmic resolution We are not our pain or our disease, nor are we defined by our limitations, restrictions, or the labels given to us. We are a whole body, a consciousness, and a spiritual being. As a holistic, interconnected being, our emotions, beliefs, physical pain, past traumas, and even imbalances created through spiritual issues are held within our physical form. By accessing them through the physical body with the body deva--the spiritual consciousness of our human body--we can heal the continuum of mind, body, and spirit. Understanding this is the true key to healing. In this step-by-step guide to understanding and working with the body deva, the consciousness of your body, Mary Mueller Shutan explains how our bodies hold the traumatic energies, emotions, physical issues, and restricting beliefs that cause us pain and feelings of disconnection. She details how to make contact and dialogue with your body deva to heal a variety of issues, from physical pains to ancestral and past life patterns to limiting ideas about what we can accomplish in this world. By working with the body deva, she shows how we can discover the reasons why our pain, beliefs, or imbalances developed and resolve them to heal mind, body, and spirit, every layer of our being. She explores how to work with the archetypes, labels, limiting beliefs, and myths that underlie our unique history and reasons for being. Shutan also examines how to work with the body deva to heal spiritual patterns through the physical body, including techniques of ancestral healing, past life healing, and karmic resolution. By learning to dialogue with the body deva, you can understand who you are on the deepest levels. You can learn why your pain and imbalances came to be and what lies unhealed within you. You can evolve beyond the limitations and restrictions in your body and your life and evolve into greater health, connection, joy, and consciousness.
The Body God Gives: A Biblical Response to Transgender Theory
by Robert S. SmithWhat is the relationship between sex and gender? Understand society's shifts in thinking and talking about sex and gender Discover how biological sex guides gender Recognize how the Bible speaks to gender and transgender Respond to affirming interpretations of Scripture Answer gender confusion with clarity and compassion In The Body God Gives: A Biblical Response to Transgender Theory, Robert S. Smith argues that God intends a person's gender to be grounded in the reality of his or her biological sex—the body God has given. In making his case, Smith critiques the central claim of transgender theory: that the sexed body does not determine the gendered self. He also evaluates contemporary changes in thought and speech about sex and gender, responding to modern confusion with biblical conviction and compassion. God speaks clearly, both in his word and in his world.
The Body Heals Itself: How Deeper Awareness of Your Muscles and Their Emotional Connection Can Help You Heal
by Emily A. FrancisListen to the Emotional Wisdom of Your Muscles and Experience a Deeper Level of HealingYou know a lot about the emotions in your mind and heart, but you probably don't know much about the emotions in your muscle body. The muscles are storehouses of emotion, and pain in those muscles is how your body reveals what needs to be healed—both emotionally and physically. Organized by muscle groups, The Body Heals Itself is your ideal guide to understanding the link between your emotions and muscle bodies.This book acts as a road map for the energetic journey within your own body, showing you how to recognize and release stored emotions to let go of pain. You'll discover which emotions are often paired with a specific muscle area and how muscles speak of everything from past traumas to current celebrations. Using stretches, affirmations, visualizations, and more, Emily A. Francis teaches you to unite your mind and body for better health and emotional well-being.Praise:"Readers interested in holistic treatments and therapies will find this a solid reference."—Library Journal"Emily Francis' work is an important offering in the maturation of the emotional body. I believe the future of the planet depends on books like hers."—Katie Silcox, New York Times bestselling author of Healthy Happy Sexy"[The Body Heals Itself features] new awareness and understanding of what our bodies have to teach us and, most importantly, how we can become masterful listeners."—Thom Rutledge, psychotherapist and author of Embracing Fear and The Self-Forgiveness Handbook"The Body Heals Itself is a fascinating read. It takes us into the emotions and deep wisdom of our body in surprising ways. This book gives us tools to understand this hidden part of ourselves—one that may have formally been an acquaintance now becomes an intimate friend."—Dr. Paulette Kouffman Sherman, psychologist and author of The Book of Sacred Baths
The Body Incantatory: Spells and the Ritual Imagination in Medieval Chinese Buddhism
by Paul CoppIn centering its analysis on the Chinese material culture of deeply embodied forms of Buddhist ritual, The Body Incantatory reveals histories of practice--and logics of practice--that have until now remained hidden
The Body Incantatory: Spells and the Ritual Imagination in Medieval Chinese Buddhism (The Sheng Yen Series in Chinese Buddhist Studies)
by Paul CoppWhether chanted as devotional prayers, intoned against the dangers of the wilds, or invoked to heal the sick and bring ease to the dead, incantations were pervasive features of Buddhist practice in late medieval China (600–1000 C.E.). Material incantations, in forms such as spell-inscribed amulets and stone pillars, were also central to the spiritual lives of both monks and laypeople. In centering its analysis on the Chinese material culture of these deeply embodied forms of Buddhist ritual, The Body Incantatory reveals histories of practice—and logics of practice—that have until now remained hidden.Paul Copp examines inscribed stones, urns, and other objects unearthed from anonymous tombs; spells carved into pillars near mountain temples; and manuscripts and prints from both tombs and the Dunhuang cache. Focusing on two major Buddhist spells, or dhāraṇī, and their embodiment of the incantatory logics of adornment and unction, he makes breakthrough claims about the significance of Buddhist incantation practice not only in medieval China but also in Central Asia and India. Copp's work vividly captures the diversity of Buddhist practice among medieval monks, ritual healers, and other individuals lost to history, offering a corrective to accounts that have overemphasized elite, canonical materials.
The Body Sacred
by Dianne SylvanEach chapter of The Body Sacred includes spells, rituals, myths, and meditations designed to help you build a positive self-image and rejoice in the sacred aspects of the female body you were blessed with. Explore six divine female archetypes, and discover how these powerful themes can help you love and celebrate your body as a gorgeous, living temple of the Goddess.
The Body and Desire: Gregory of Nyssa's Ascetical Theology (Christianity in Late Antiquity #4)
by Raphael A. CadenheadAlthough the reception of the Eastern Father Gregory of Nyssa has varied over the centuries, the past few decades have witnessed a profound awakening of interest in his thought. The Body and Desire sets out to retrieve the full range of Gregory’s thinking on the challenges of the ascetic life by examining within the context of his theological commitments his evolving attitudes on what we now call gender, sex, and sexuality. Exploring Gregory’s understanding of the importance of bodily and spiritual maturation for the practices of contemplation and virtue, Raphael A. Cadenhead recovers the vital relevance of this vision of transformation for contemporary ethical discourse.
The Body of Christ: The Church
by Thomas H. Groome"The body of Christ : the Church : based on the curriculum framework course IV: Jesus Christ's Mission Continues in the Church". This is part of the Credo series.
The Body of Faith: A Biological History of Religion in America (Chicago History of American Religion)
by Robert C. FullerThe postmodern view that human experience is constructed by language and culture has informed historical narratives for decades. Yet newly emerging information about the biological body now makes it possible to supplement traditional scholarly models with insights about the bodily sources of human thought and experience. "The Body of Faith" is the first account of American religious history to highlight the biological body. Robert C. Fuller brings a crucial new perspective to the study of American religion, showing that knowledge about the biological body deeply enriches how we explain dramatic episodes in American religious life. Fuller shows that the body's genetically evolved systems--pain responses, sexual passion, and emotions like shame and fear--have persistently shaped the ways that Americans forge relationships with nature, to society, and to God. The first new work to appear in the Chicago History of American Religion series in decades, "The Body of Faith" offers a truly interdisciplinary framework for explaining the richness, diversity, and endless creativity of American religious life.
The Body of God: An Ecological Theology
by Sallie McFagueAward-winning theologian Sallie McFague here develops a striking and novel vision of the universe, one that takes seriously and radically both contemporary science and the incarnational commitments of the Christian tradition.
The Body of the Cross: Holy Victims and the Invention of the Atonement
by Travis E. AblesThe Body of the Cross is a study of holy victims in Western Christian history and how the uses of their bodies in Christian thought led to the idea of the cross as a substitutionary sacrifice. Since its first centuries, Christianity has traded on the suffering of victims—martyrs, mystics, and heretics—as substitutes for the Christian social body. These victims secured holiness, either by their own sacred power or by their reprobation and rejection. Just as their bodies were mediated in eucharistic, social, and Christological ways, so too did the flesh of Jesus Christ become one of those holy substitutes. But it was only late in Western history that he took on the function of the exemplary victim.In tracing the story of this embodied development, The Body of the Cross gives special attention to popular spirituality, religious dissent, and the writing of women throughout Christian history. It examines the symbol of the cross as it functions in key moments throughout this history, including the parting of the ways of Judaism and Christianity, the gnostic debates, martyr traditions, and medieval affective devotion and heresy. Finally, in a Reformation era haunted by divine wrath, these themes concentrated in the unique concept that Jesus Christ died on the cross to absorb divine punishment for sin: a holy body and a rejected body in one.
The Boko Haram Insurgence In Nigeria: Perspectives from Within (New Directions in Islam)
by Edlyne Eze AnugwomThis book focuses on the Boko Haram insurgence in Nigeria, and provides information on the origin and growth of the sect, antecedent and historical factors behind the insurgence, assessing a variety of socio-political drivers. The structure, organization and ideology of the sect are analysed, paying attention to internal splits within the group, as well as external relations with the Nigerian state, and global jihadism. The diverse and wide ranging issues covered in the book makes it valuable for academic researchers, students and policy practitioners both within Africa and beyond.
The Bold Christian: Using Your God Given Spiritual Authority as a Believer
by Rev Chuck DavisOpposition! It is inevitable in any worthwhile pursuit. Jesus even promised challenge in the faith journey, “In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). There is a bit of a reflex in us when hearing these words from Jesus—you have overcome but what about me. It does not always feel like I am overcoming.Davis presents the case that one key aspect of being an overcomer for the Christ follower is the notion of spiritual authority. Living in a world that is rooted in power, Christ followers are challenged daily by powers that seek to interrupt or trample their success in the journey through Christ—the world and the kingdom of darkness. Davis believes that while followers receive empowerment from the Holy Spirit, this power is only fully operational as they function out of their God-given authority. As believers, everything they need is at their disposal. However, they must actively appropriate their authority, both in attitude and in action. Davis provides a biblical theology of authority and real life examples of how he and others have embraced their spiritual authority to advance the kingdom of God. In essence, it is a manual for overcoming spiritual opposition in everyday life.
The Bond with the Beloved: The Mystical Relationship of the Lover & the Beloved
by Llewellyn Vaughan-LeeLlewellyn Vaughan-Lee portrays the awakening of the seeker to the bond of love that has existed within the human heart since the beginning of time. Drawing on sources both Sufi and Christian, he details the unfolding of this eternal love affair between the human seeker and the Divine Beloved. As it explains the tremendous importance of this mystical relationship not only to the lover but to the world, this book suggests that through the inner relationship with the Beloved the lover brings this higher consciousness into every day life and helps the world remember that it belongs to God.
The Bondage Breaker
by Neil T. AndersonHarmful habits, negative thinking, and irrational feelings can all lead to sinful behavior and keep you in bondage. If you feel trapped by any of these strongholds in your life, know that you are not alone--you can break free. In this book, Neil T. Anderson offers a wholistic approach to spiritual warfare that is rooted in the Word of God. As you read stories of others who have been locked in spiritual battles, you will learn the underlying whys and hows behind these attacks, and discover the truth that sets people free in Jesus. You Can Break the Chains Holding You Captive.
The Bondage Breaker Study Guide
by Neil T. AndersonBreak the Chains and Experience Your Freedom in Christ Harmful habits, negative thinking, and irrational feelings can all lead to sinful behavior and keep you in bondage. If you feel trapped by any of these strongholds in your life, know that you are not alone—you can break free. This bestselling study guide has brought hope to countless thousands of readers facing negative spiritual attacks. Here you will find many insights and practical strategies for overcoming your struggles.
The Bone Box
by Bob HostetlerCombining the adrenaline-fueled adventure of Indiana Jones with the thrills of a Steve Berry Novel, The Bone Box is the latest in biblical archeological suspense. Archeologist and agnostic Randall Bullock has come to Israel to try and resurrect his crumbling career and shattered life. Teaming up with Miri Sharon, a beautiful representative of Israeli Antiques Authority, the two unearth a stone casket marked "Joseph, son of Caiaphas," which contains several fragile scrolls that document the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. This discovery launches Miri and Randall, along with his estranged nineteen-year-old daughter, Tracy, into a race to validate the monumental find, no matter what the Israeli authorities, media circus, and archaeological rivals want the world to believe. Forced to face the power of this historical resurrection, Randall must also struggle with his own beliefs -- or lack of them -- while trying to keep the consequences of their discovery from taking a disastrous turn. The Bone Box, fraught with political intrigue, is a suspense-filled blend of historical fact, romance, and transforming faith. Through all the danger and struggle, Randall discovers how easy -- and deadly -- it is to ignore the evidence and reject the true story of Christ.
The Bone Box: A Novel
by Bob HostetlerCombining the adrenaline-fueled adventure of Indiana Jones with the thrills of a Steve Berry Novel, The Bone Box is the latest in biblical archeological suspense. Archeologist and agnostic Randall Bullock has come to Israel to try and resurrect his crumbling career and shattered life. Teaming up with Miri Sharon, a beautiful representative of Israeli Antiques Authority, the two unearth a stone casket marked "Joseph, son of Caiaphas," which contains several fragile scrolls that document the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. This discovery launches Miri and Randall, along with his estranged nineteen-year-old daughter, Tracy, into a race to validate the monumental find, no matter what the Israeli authorities, media circus, and archaeological rivals want the world to believe. Forced to face the power of this historical resurrection, Randall must also struggle with his own beliefs -- or lack of them -- while trying to keep the consequences of their discovery from taking a disastrous turn. The Bone Box, fraught with political intrigue, is a suspense-filled blend of historical fact, romance, and transforming faith. Through all the danger and struggle, Randall discovers how easy -- and deadly -- it is to ignore the evidence and reject the true story of Christ.