Kirjahaku

A guide to key writings from Buddhism’s meditative tradition and what they reveal about the history and practice of meditation Is it possible to capture the spirit of Buddhist meditation, which depends so much upon silence and unspoken wisdom? Can this spirit be found after two millennia? This wise and reassuring book reminds us that the Buddhist meditative tradition, geared to such concerns from its inception, has always been transmitted through texts. A great variety of early writings—poems, stories, extended practical guides, commentaries, and chants—were purposely designed to pass teachings on from one generation to the next. Sarah Shaw, a longtime practitioner and teacher of Buddhism, investigates a wide and varied range of ancient and later Buddhist writings on meditation. Many of these texts are barely known in the West but, as the author shows, they can be helpful, moving, and often very funny. She begins with early texts of the Pali canon—those that describe and involve the Buddha and his followers teaching meditations—and moves on to “commentaries,” with their copious range of practical tips, anecdotes, and accounts of early meditators. The author then considers other early texts that were inspirational as Buddhist traditions spread through India and on to China, Korea, Japan, and Tibet. Centuries after being written, early Buddhist texts have lost none of their relevance, this authoritative book shows. In a tradition characterized by flexibility and mobility, these writings offer wisdom unchanged by time.

This lively introduction to Buddhist meditation offers students and practitioners alike a deeper understanding of what meditation is and its purpose and place in the context of different Buddhist schools. The historical background and geographical spread of Buddhist meditation is explored alongside an examination of the development of meditative practices. Chapters cover basic meditative practice, types of meditation, meditation in different regions, meditation and doctrine, and the role of chanting within meditation. Although not a practical guide, Introduction to Buddhist Meditation outlines the procedures associated with Buddhist practices and suggests appropriate activities, useful both for students and interested Buddhists. Vivid quotations from Buddhist texts and carefully selected photographs and diagrams help the reader engage fully with this fascinating subject.Thoroughly revised throughout, this new edition also features a glossary and key, making it ideal reading for students approaching the topic of Buddhist meditation for the first time.

This lively introduction to Buddhist meditation offers students and practitioners alike a deeper understanding of what meditation is and its purpose and place in the context of different Buddhist schools. The historical background and geographical spread of Buddhist meditation is explored alongside an examination of the development of meditative practices. Chapters cover basic meditative practice, types of meditation, meditation in different regions, meditation and doctrine, and the role of chanting within meditation. Although not a practical guide, Introduction to Buddhist Meditation outlines the procedures associated with Buddhist practices and suggests appropriate activities, useful both for students and interested Buddhists. Vivid quotations from Buddhist texts and carefully selected photographs and diagrams help the reader engage fully with this fascinating subject.Thoroughly revised throughout, this new edition also features a glossary and key, making it ideal reading for students approaching the topic of Buddhist meditation for the first time.

Meditative practice lies at the heart of the Buddhist tradition. This introductory anthology gives a representative sample of the various kinds of meditations described in the earliest body of Buddhist scripture, the Pali canon.It provides a broad introduction to their traditional context and practice and supplies explanation, context and doctrinal background to the subject of meditation. The main themes of the book are the diversity and flexibility of the way that the Buddha teaches meditation from the evidence of the canon. Covering fundamental features of Buddhist practice such as posture, lay meditation, and meditative technique it provides comments both from the principal early commentators on Buddhist practice, Upatissa and Buddhaghosa, and from reputable modern meditation teachers in a number of Theravadin traditions. This is the first book on Pali Buddhism which introduces the reader to the wide range of the canon. It demonstrates that the Buddha's meditative tradition still offers a path of practice as mysterious, awe-inspiring yet as freshly accessible as it was centuries ago, and will be of interest to students and scholars of Buddhism as well as Buddhist practitioners.

Sarah Shaw’s lively introduction to Buddhist meditation offers students and practitioners alike a deeper understanding of what meditation is, and its purpose and place in the context of different Buddhist schools. She describes the historical background to the geographical spread of Buddhism, and examines the way in which some meditative practices developed as this process occurred. Other chapters cover basic meditative practice, types of meditation, meditation in different regions, meditation and doctrine, and the role of chanting within meditation.Although not a practical guide, An Introduction to Buddhist Meditation outlines the procedures associated with Buddhist practices and suggests appropriate activities, useful both for students and interested Buddhists. Vivid quotations from Buddhist texts and carefully selected photographs and diagrams help the reader engage fully with this fascinating subject.

Sarah Shaw’s lively introduction to Buddhist meditation offers students and practitioners alike a deeper understanding of what meditation is, and its purpose and place in the context of different Buddhist schools. She describes the historical background to the geographical spread of Buddhism, and examines the way in which some meditative practices developed as this process occurred. Other chapters cover basic meditative practice, types of meditation, meditation in different regions, meditation and doctrine, and the role of chanting within meditation.Although not a practical guide, An Introduction to Buddhist Meditation outlines the procedures associated with Buddhist practices and suggests appropriate activities, useful both for students and interested Buddhists. Vivid quotations from Buddhist texts and carefully selected photographs and diagrams help the reader engage fully with this fascinating subject.

Meditative practice lies at the heart of the Buddhist tradition. This introductory anthology gives a representative sample of the various kinds of meditations described in the earliest body of Buddhist scripture, the Pali canon.It provides a broad introduction to their traditional context and practice and supplies explanation, context and doctrinal background to the subject of meditation. The main themes of the book are the diversity and flexibility of the way that the Buddha teaches meditation from the evidence of the canon. Covering fundamental features of Buddhist practice such as posture, lay meditation, and meditative technique it provides comments both from the principal early commentators on Buddhist practice, Upatissa and Buddhaghosa, and from reputable modern meditation teachers in a number of Theravadin traditions. This is the first book on Pali Buddhism which introduces the reader to the wide range of the canon. It demonstrates that the Buddha's meditative tradition still offers a path of practice as mysterious, awe-inspiring yet as freshly accessible as it was centuries ago, and will be of interest to students and scholars of Buddhism as well as Buddhist practitioners.

Stories your history books won't tell you.1772: Across the globe people struggle for freedom and justice against the stranglehold of entrenched wealth and power. New knowledge and inventions are changing the world at a breathtaking pace, upsetting the old order even as new notions of equality and human rights seize the public conscience. In this world turned upside down young bride Emily McFarland finds herself far from home and safety, living on disputed land in Colonial Georgia while Zoeth Sinclair struggles to keep his fledgling merchant trading company afloat. This is a world of secrets-secrets that could end in catastrophe for themselves or those they care for. While Zoeth struggles against his desire for his own sex, Emily must uncover the truth about her husband's past while protecting what she herself hides. As the times grow ever more perilous one careless revelation or misplaced trust could sweep away everything they have built.

Secret Diary of a 1970s Secretary is the diary of Sarah Shaw for the year of 1971, which she recently uncovered whilst clearing out her loft. Working as a secretary for the BBC at the time, Sarah's diary describes the life of a suburban girl who certainly wasn't 'swinging' but who was, ironically, not only working on a cutting edge BBC survey on sex education but also in the throes of an unlikely affair with middle-aged, working-class, Irish lift attendant, Frank.Sarah talks humorously and frankly about what it was like to be a young, working woman at the time as well as life at the BBC during the 1970s and the difficulties of navigating her first romance. She is funny and self-effacing with a self-knowledge that only few attain. Her innocence and naivety are hugely charming and the diary forms a valuable snapshot of a time not so far away that is now lost to us.

Explore the life-changing practice of mindfulness of the breath--one of the most popular and foundational meditation practices Breathing mindfulness meditation, hailed by the Buddha as "sublime," is a cornerstone of Buddhist practice, believed to be key to his own enlightenment. This powerful technique fosters a harmonious blend of awareness and tranquility, guiding practitioners towards profound meditative states and deeper wisdom. Sarah Shaw presents the evolution and significance of breathing mindfulness within the Pali Buddhist tradition. She examines: The Ānāpānasati Sutta, the essential Buddhist scripture on breathing mindfulness;The systematization of the practice through the commentarial texts like Vimuttimagga (The Path to Freedom) and Visuddhimagga (The Path of Purification);Intriguing, lesser-known systems of esoteric Theravada breath meditation nearly lost to history;The integration of breath meditation into modern spiritual practices;The importance of breath meditation to the insight meditation (vipassana) movement;And the influence of breathing mindfulness across diverse spiritual paths.Shaw's exploration reveals the enduring legacy of this practice, from its ancient origins to its contemporary resurgence.

An accessible introduction to the teachings of the Buddha told through the oral tradition of the Dīghanikāya--the preeminent text of the Pali canon. The Dīghanikāya, or Long Discourses of the Buddha, is one of the four major collections of teachings from the early period of Buddhism. The thirty-four suttas in the collection demonstrate remarkable breadth in both content and style, ranging from prescriptive ways to apply the practice of Buddhism to evocative imagery that symbolizes the teaching and ethical recommendations about how to act in the world. It is a comprehensive collection that embraces the symbiotic relationship between Buddhist practitioners of the lay and monastic paths. The Art of Listening is intended to give an introduction to the Dīghanikāya in particular and, more generally, to the insights that emerge when we view the Buddhist suttas as oral literature. Dr. Sarah Shaw offers historical and cultural background for the early suttas and discusses some of the key teachings in Buddhist philosophy including meditation, ethics, meditative states, the Four Noble Truths, and the Eightfold Path. Each sutta of the Dīghanikāya is a paced, rhythmic composition that evolved and passed intergenerationally through chanting. For hundreds of years, these timeless teachings were never written down. Examining twelve suttas of the Dīghanikāya, Dr. Shaw combines a literary approach and a personal one, based on her experiences hearing and chanting the texts aloud in Asia and the UK. At once sophisticated and companionable, The Art of Listening will introduce you to the diversity and beauty of the early suttas.

What was it like to be a secretary in the 1970s? Drawing on the reminiscences of more than 60 women, this book describes their everyday working lives and vividly recreates their world of typewriters, telephones and Tippex. It compares their experiences with their portrayals in popular media and by feminist writers. What emerges is a more nuanced picture, one that is revealing, authentic and amusing. This is a must for former secretaries and anyone with an interest in social history.

Edwardian Culture: Beyond the Garden Party is the first truly interdisciplinary collection of essays dealing with culture in Britain c.1895-1914. Bringing together essays on literature, art, politics, religion, architecture, marketing, and imperial history, the study highlights the extent to which the culture and politics of Edwardian period were closely intertwined. The book builds upon recent scholarship that seeks to reclaim the term ‘Edwardian’ from prevalent, restrictive usages by venturing beyond the garden party – and the political rally – to uncover some of the terrain that lies between. The essays in the volume – which deal with both famous writers such as J. M. Barrie and Arnold Bennett, as well as many lesser-known figures – draw attention to the nuanced multiplicity of experience and cultural forms that existed during the period, and highlight the ways in which a closer examination of Edwardian culture complicates our definitions of ‘Victorian’ and ‘Modern’. The book argues that the Edwardian era, rather than constituting a coda to the Victorian period or a languid pause before modernism shook things up, possessed a compelling and creative tenor of its own.

Edwardian Culture: Beyond the Garden Party is the first truly interdisciplinary collection of essays dealing with culture in Britain c.1895-1914. Bringing together essays on literature, art, politics, religion, architecture, marketing, and imperial history, the study highlights the extent to which the culture and politics of Edwardian period were closely intertwined. The book builds upon recent scholarship that seeks to reclaim the term ‘Edwardian’ from prevalent, restrictive usages by venturing beyond the garden party – and the political rally – to uncover some of the terrain that lies between. The essays in the volume – which deal with both famous writers such as J. M. Barrie and Arnold Bennett, as well as many lesser-known figures – draw attention to the nuanced multiplicity of experience and cultural forms that existed during the period, and highlight the ways in which a closer examination of Edwardian culture complicates our definitions of ‘Victorian’ and ‘Modern’. The book argues that the Edwardian era, rather than constituting a coda to the Victorian period or a languid pause before modernism shook things up, possessed a compelling and creative tenor of its own.

Walker and Shaw link the teaching of ten commonly taught reading strategies such as sequencing, compare and contrast, and prediction to picture book titles. Each chapter of the book provides a strategy, a graphic organizer to teach it with, and an in-depth modeled discussion of how to use the strategy with two or three books. Additionally, each chapter furnishes an annotated bibliography of other books that would lend themselves easily to the teaching of this strategy. Grades K-3.The book is written particularly for the use of teacher librarians who are being asked to support actual reading instruction as part of the instructional program in their library media center (as opposed to the usual program of literary appreciation, reading motivation etc), but are not given long periods of time to work with students. These lessons are quick and self-contained. Each lesson comes with reproducible templates to make laminated graphic organizers that can be used again and again with various books to teach each of the ten strategies. Elementary teachers would also find this book useful.

This lavishly illustrated book investigates an outstanding eighteenth-century example of a samut khoi, a type of beautiful folding book found in Southeast Asia, which became particularly popular as a repository for the Buddha’s teachings. Written in Pali and produced in the Kingdom of Siam, its finely executed pictures, painted on khoi paper, show key incidents from stories of the past lives of the Buddha as he prepares for Buddhahood. These tales, historically one of the principal means whereby Buddhist teachings were communicated, known as Jãtakas, are a favourite theme for manuscript art. Uniquely for such manuscripts, however, this samut khoi also offers an extensive series of scenes from the last life of the Buddha, including his final awakening and teaching, which is distinctive to the region. These related narratives all contribute to a superb example of eighteenth-century manuscript and calligraphic art. As well as affording great artistic opportunities for expressing the beauty of the Buddha’s words and achievements, samut khois are repositories for popular chants and short distillations of doctrine. This book describes the context to this unusually rich expression of Thai Buddhist creativity and, in retelling the stories depicted, reveals the continued appeal of its closely related art and narrative traditions.

Set in the alternate Star Trek universe, a second trio of novels features the dark alter egos of characters from Voyager, New Frontier, and Deep Space Nine. Original. 50,000 first printing.