Rating: Summary: The most spirutal understanding of death & dying I've read. Review: This book gives you a spirutal, personal and intimate understanding of death and dying. More than that, it compels you to stop and take a deep and serious look at your own life and your own death. The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying helps to alievate your own fear of dying and helps you take the responsibility to prepare for your death. At the same time, it gently helps you prepare yourself for the death and dying of a loved one. The teachings and personal experiences of Sogyal are simple to understand and intrepret and incorporate into your personal life. I wholeheartedly recommend this book for every introspective person as well as for those facing the death of a loved one.
Rating: Summary: An eye-opener of a read Review: This book is like an armour for those like minded people that want a deeper understanding of life and the nature of mind. Sogyal Rinpoche takes lengths to explain in detailed chapters, the MEANING and PURPOSE of life, death and dying; how we can use our true nature of mind to overcome difficulties, and use compassion and meditation to become enlightened in this life. This is a serious book for those that want to follow the spiritual path, of believing and listening to the inner self and overcoming obstacles by healing one's self first. Sogyal Rinpoche has a lot of wisdom to teach and share through his words, and you will find that the end of the last page, you had everything to gain.
Rating: Summary: Exoteric Review: All of the above reviews that I have sampled, are falling into a trap many 'western' philosophers get caught in. The psychologist Jung saw only the exoteric meaning. This is not a book on the act of actually dying physically, it is all a metaphor to confuse the non-initiates. The book is about ego-loss, specifically 'non-game ectasy' ego-loss. It is the death dying and rebirth of the ego. The 3 bardo's just represent states that are commonly encountered in the journey. The goal is to die, transcend briefly, and then the ego is reborn and the choice lies in ascending to a higher state (permanent growth) or to go to a lower level (or the same/similiar). That is the esoteric meaning, the entire book is metaphorical, if you aren't aquainted with altered consciousness then you will be lost. Useful in psychadelic ego-loss as well.The book itself is an excellent guide, I recommend strongly to pick up a version of The book of the dead if you seek consciousness alteration, and/or ego-loss.
Rating: Summary: a lamp post on the road Review: This book should be read by or to everyone at some point in their lives. It not is not just for the buddhist. As His Holiness, the Dalia Lama explains, no matter what religion you practice the goal is the same: happiness. This book can be an inspiration at all times in life. Once you have read it through once, it is organized in such a way, so one can go back and read certain sections to help along the way. Sogyal Rinpoche captures the essence of his purpose of creating the book when he writes: "to learn how to die, is to learn how to live." That simple statement is a social commentary on the development of modern society and the direction it is heading in. The ageing and dying are quickly isolated and doctors are rarely educated in emotional or spiritual care. Sogyal Rinpoche's proposes a new attidute to those who are in a stage that we all will reach at some point. His beautiful writing style and comforting compassion radiates from the pages themselves. I do not associate myself with any one religion, but consider myself a wanderer following my own road in search for answers, for all those who feel the same, this book can illuminate some of the darkness that surrounds us all who have not yet awakened.
Rating: Summary: A classic Review: After reading other reviews, I feel it might help to say this: Yes, there is quite a substantial amount of Tibetan ritual encased in this book. But that shouldn't be a surprise, or a hindrance - it IS the "TIBETAN Book of Living and Dying", and not the "Generically Believable For Everyone, Book of Living And Dying". With that in mind, I loved reading this book. From the first page, I was drawn into a world where compassion and mindfulness reign, and it's these tools that will help us face the inevitable truth that we *are* all going to die, at some point. Rinpoche skillfully shares his own wisdom, that of many other masters, and anecdotal evidence of what may happen when we physically die, and the stages we may go through during the process. Topics discussed include the Bardo states, reincarnation, the concept of karma, and fear of the unknown. The book is very readable, and covers the material therein with sensitivity and warmth. At times, it may be difficult to the average Western mind to grasp the concepts of such things are reincarnation - but as Buddha himself did advise, the goal is to read, absorb and take what YOU find important from the lesson...not to read blindly and accept everything blindly. To anyone even vaguely interested in Buddhism, death and dying or simply becoming more aware of their own self, this book is an invaluable addition to your library. Truly a classic.
Rating: Summary: a must for a Buddhist library Review: This book fully captures the essence of Tibetan Buddhism. I don't claim to be an authority on the subject, but I was born into a Buddhist household that has remained faithful and reverent to both Mahayana and Hiyana traditions of Buddhism. From the information I've had passed on to me by both family and Tibetan Buddhist clergy, this book has never been contradictory to anything lecture I've heard. In fact, everybody seems to recommend it enthusiastically! Essentially, according to Tibetan Buddhism, the purpose of living is to cultivate the mind and purify the body and soul to prepare for death. Westerners may, at first glance, find this philosophy morbid. However, we must remember that reincarnation is integral to Buddhist text (and most world religions, for that matter; the 'one life' theory is actually relatively new). Death is explained as a transitional period, like the end of a chapter to a book. To waste away ones life is like wasting away all your money without care for the future. Basically, this philosophy heavily emphasizes living in the present with thoughtfulness and offers a plethora of Buddhist insight into life and death. It also stresses the urgency of cultivation in a day and age when we disregard life, old age, and disease as trivial matters and nothing that science cannot combat. The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying is written by a Rinpoche. For those who are not familiar with Tibetan titles, a Lama is essentially a monk who has abandond wordly comforts for a spiritual pursuit, and a Rinpoche is a recognized reincarnation of an esteemed Lama. If you are a Buddhist, I highly recommend this book. It is enlightening, insightful, and an absolute must in any Buddhist library. Whether you follow the traditions of Chinese Buddhism, Zen or Chan, take the Amitabha or Guan Yin approach, etc., as a fellow Buddhist to another, you should not go without having this book. It's available in Chinese, as well, for the Buddhists out there who are more adept at Chinese than English. For seekers, this is a wonderful guide, as well. The best part with any book as wonderful as this is that everytime you read it, you'll find new insight in the words. Beginners and established Buddhists alike will take in much insight. I also highly recommend this to Buddhists who are unfamiliar with the Tibetan traditions. The Tibetan texts will open a whole new door for you. I know from personal experience, because my mother (who is the spiritual leader of the family) was originally a student of Chinese Buddhism, but after reading this book, our entire family discovered a whole other arena of philosophies that have done nothing but enrich our practices. So whether you're already a Buddhist wishing to broaden your knowledge, a Buddhist who would like new material to absorb, or a seeker who is just curious of the fundamentals of Tibetan Buddhism, this book is definitely a must.
Rating: Summary: Humorous, Insightful...Yet Quite Ambiguous Review: This is a book which is extremely difficult to review due to the vast wealth of knowledge contained within the actual text. Sogyal Rinpoche was raised by some of the most prolific Tibetan teachers of modern times, the most well known may well have been Jamyang Khyentse Chokyi Lodro. He had been an authority on all of the traditions of Tibet and a leader in the so called, "non partisan" movement. At any rate, this book does a lot of things for us. Rinpoche explores and explains the difficult and esoteric teachings of the famous Holy Text "The Tibetan Book of the Dead" to us, as well as some most interesting autobiographical looks at his own life. The most important thing to keep in mind when reading this book, is that it's as much about life as it is about death. Sogyal Rinpoche has a great sense of humor, something that is almost a necessity when explaining texts like this to the modern reader; it helps take the edge off of the weighty material at hand. The one and only reason I gave this book four stars is that indeed many of the issues explored are very cryptic; as some reviewers have pointed out. Some of it merely must be taken in with a grain of salt. But all around it is absolutely a worthwhile read that I would not hesitate to recommend to anyone. Enjoy!
Rating: Summary: Definitely Worth Reading, perhaps twice... Review: If you look at death as a transition state from where you are now, to where "you" will be when you have exceeded your body's limits, then this book provides a guide to understanding some of that journey. This book provides one with a new viewpoint on how life and death are connected. I found it fascinating and very helpful in answering many of my own questions about what we can expect in the dying process. The level of detail is quite remarkable and can only be attributed to the few enlightened beings that have experienced some of this process and found a way to share that experience with those of us still here. The scary part is how reading this can bring back memories of actually being in the "between" state and those memories are what help validate the book's message. If you only read one book this lifetime, perhaps this should be the one.
Rating: Summary: not for everyone Review: This is not the Buddhism I know, and I found it totally unhelpful. I have to admit that I did not read the whole book, but after 60 pages of feeling frustrated and insulted, I had to give up. In those 60 pages, I got no sense of what a Buddhist perspective on death and dying might be. It seems that belief in an afterlife is crucial both to coping with the fear of death and to living a more just and harmonious existence, as if without that reassurance, there is no further insight to be found in Buddhism that could keep us all from running amok. (Is this really so central to Buddhist ethics and its approach to the fear of death? Not to my way of thinking.) Instead of exploring the meaning of that belief in an afterlife (apparently reincarnation?), the reader gets lots of silly references to pseudo-scientific "proof" of an afterlife and superficial comparisons of Buddhist thought and practice to Christianity, Judaism, and Hinduism. A vague and flimsy condemnation of "modern civilization" and its supposed effects on the members of that civilization is also a central part of the author's argument. We live in an admittedly competitive and conflict-ridden world, but is the answer to our dilemma real so simple as translating Tibetan Buddhist practice wholesale into our lives? I say "translate" and, yet, the author fails even to take this step. He recommends mantras in Tibetan that apparently have magical effects on crowds, but if you want to know what they mean, you'll have to flip to the appendix. This is reminiscent of the use of Latin in Catholic mass, which rather transparently invests all religious authority in Latin-literate priests. Similarly, the author gushes about the powers of various masters, and a close relationship with a paternalistic "master" generally seems to be a much more important ground of proper practice than anything that could be realistically adopted by most of us screwed-up moderns, who have neither the means nor the inclination to follow our own Buddhist master.
Rating: Summary: Remember - This is not the Original Book. Review: Read the Introduction: "In 1927, Walter Evans-Wentz published his translation of an obscure Tibetan Nyingma text and called it the Tibetan Book of the Dead. Popular Tibetan teacher Sogyal Rinpoche has transformed that ancient text, conveying a perennial philosophy that is at once religious, scientific, and practical." If you are looking for the original and first translation of the "Bardo Thodol" or "The Tibetan Book of the Dead" then you should get "The Tibetan Book of the Dead" (1927) by W.Y.Evans-Wentz. The Evans-Wentz version is considered by many to be too technical for most people. Also because it is a literary masterpiece, it can be hard to read for the layman. This is why this version was made. This version is a more popular version but remember that this is just a new interpretation of that old book which is written in an easier language so that the average Joe can understand it. However it is an "Interpretation" and if you like this book then you should at least attempt to read the original classic from Evans-Wentz. The original classic does not attempt to explain everything for you but this book does try a good amount of "explanation" and although some will need this, you are better off trying to figure things out for yourself. So if you like this book - then get the original work to see the differences, of which there are many! In this writers opinion this "readers digest" version is good but the original is still the better option for those serious about learning the mystery of the Bardo Thodol.
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