Book Description
The first complete translation of the classic Buddhist text
One of the greatest works created by any culture and overwhelmingly the most significant of all Tibetan Buddhist texts in the West, The Tibetan Book of the Dead has had a number of distinguished but partial translations. Now the entire text has not only been made available in English but also in a translation of remarkable clarity and beauty. Translated with the close support of leading contemporary masters, this complete edition faithfully presents the insights and intentions of the original work. It includes one of the most detailed and compelling descriptions of the after-death state in world literature, practices that can transform our experience of daily life, guidance on helping those who are dying, and an inspirational perspective on coping with bereavement.
Customer Reviews:
A Perfectionists' Translation of Not Really Accessible Death-Transition Rites.......2007-09-07
To begin with: Whatever you do, do not touch the upper and lower ends of the spine of the 2007 Deluxe Edition, or it will look like a shabby edition ugly quickly. The cogwheelish cutting of the page edges are nice and unusual to look at, but it is a nightmare to quickly leaf through the book that way in order to find a specific page. Which you are supposed to do, as the book is very footnote ridden (32 pages of small print). That in itself wouldn't be the problem. But from there, you may get directed further into the glossary of key terms (85 pages). One glossary entry may include, say, 16 more terms to be looked up in the same glossary... and so on so forth. From there, you might get directed to Appendix One or Two (together 22 pages). You get the drift: Major obstacle reading. My advice: Read the glossary before you read anything else, attempt to remember it all and check the footnotes only while reading the book. And remember: While you are paging forward and backward - don't touch the edges of the spine or the fancy color will come off!
So much for what is more easily rated. Originally published in 2005, the many centuries old "The Great Liberation by Hearing in the Intermediate States" - as the literal translation of the Tibetan title really reads - had been translated into English in part and faulty at that in 1927. The Dalai Lama and other dignitaries thought it would be about time to introduce a complete and better translation. That work is comprised of 14 chapters (379 pages), including even three chapters which aren't really part of the book but fit in neatly for further overstanding. The XIVth Dalai Lama provided part of the introduction (14 pages). Altogether, there are 51 introductory pages. Together with the bibliography, index and 16 full color picture pages (which are actually two related subjects only, but each enlarged in sections on the respective following pages), this book is 607 pages heavy.
The theme of the book is the myths and rites approaching, during and after the transition from one body to the next as in the context of reincarnation. The book is best for those who would like to really delve into Buddhism, as the translation is done for perfectionists, students of religion and of course Buddhists in the English speaking world. The more generally interested may be put off by the concentration on utterly unexplained rites. As in: How do they know all those things from the intermediate states? By remembering? By a prophesy? By divine telling? The rites (of reading texts) are extremely repetitive. Which has the function of conditioning in a positive sense: The neophyte is supposed to automatically recall certain passages as only then the right behavior has a chance in the dream-like states of "death". Even more difficult to read are the many Tibetan words still included. There is no chance of even guessing how to pronounce them correctly. Many are unavoidable names, but many are also regular words. Even if difficult to translate, neologisms overstandable in English would have been my choice, such as this one Iyaric term in this sentence. And let's put it this way: Tibetan words do not easily roll off the tongue such as "Mandala". There are others such as "Sarvadurgatiparisodhanatantra", not even including the many potential accents unproducable on my current keyboard. In other words, this book may be appreciated most by those who already have some prior knowledge.
The rites are a lot about veneration of and prostrating to a caleidoscope of deities. Who are one, but splintered at the same time. I was hoping to find a bit more mysticism in this book. Well, at least the chapter on the confession of sins in the beliefs of dualisms are rewarding. If you are a mystic (no matter of what branch of religion), that is. There were more traces of mysticism in the introduction than the book itself, though.
Many words of advice from Buddhism I can take, no matter wether everything corresponds to my door which leads to the same room or wether the same door shines in my light. I find the book Mind of Clear Light: Advice on Living Well and Dying Consciously by the XIVth Dalai Lama on the same subject much more accessible, if I am correct on the English title of a book I read in another language. If I would follow "The Tibetan Book of the Dead", I would think of myself to be occupied with "death" way too much. As a mystic I don't believe in death anyway, therefore I am less obsessed with checking myself for potential advance signs of death all the Imes as suggested here. The book works under the premise that life is a very bad thing anyway which should be avoided by all means. That is not my approach. Maybe there's suffering in the everlasting cycle of life, but that's fine with me, for there are some nice moments in between all the suffering. Besides: What if God/the universe/Jah/etc., which we are all part of in the mystic overstanding LIKES to experience life in the forms of various bodies, accepting the suffering along the way? Wouldn't it be egoistical to refuse life? What if "everybody" would refuse "rebirth"? I had a lot of questions like that popping up while reading this book. Other Imes, the book put a smile on my face. For example, when I imagined another religious leader, such as the Pope, giving the advice, in a certain context, to inhale one's semen through the nose, while the former is still warm. I am not that sure, wether I will ever follow THAT advice either. But it's refreshing that we can talk about any possible body function and unorthodox use. I forgot: In Tibet, that IS orthodox...
It would take you a lifetime to understand this book........2007-05-15
I just got this book, and it is so deep and exciting I want to just study it forever to find out all about what it has to say.
Expanded version with authoritative interpretations. Important!.......2006-02-07
The Tibetan Book of the Dead edited by Graham Coleman, Thupten Jinpa, translated by Gyurme Dorje (Viking) is by far the most popular example of indigenous Tibetan Buddhist treasure literature. An edition was issued in 1927 by Oxford University Press under the general editorship of W. Y. Evans-Wentz. The block-print copy, he used was an abridgment obtained in Nepal and translated by a Tibetan lama. Evans-Wentz was a scholarly Theosophist who imported certain Theosophical preconceptions into his commentary on the work. Carl Jung the prominent analytical psychologist even wrote a psychological commentary on the work prompted by Evans-Wentz. Since the 1970s, beginning with Francesca Fremantle and Chogyam Trungpa's edition of the text and more recently Robert Thurman's translation, corrected versions of the Tibetan Book of the Dead are well represented in English and other European languages. The mistakes and egregious errors of the pioneering edition have been corrected and Tibetan Buddhism now in America and Europe has been flourishing with many translations and commentaries on basic Buddhist practices as well as the indigenous literatures of Tibet.
This new edition by Graham Coleman and Thupten Jinpa uses a fuller edition of the work for translating, adding new chapters and reflecting the interpretation of contemporary masters and lineage holders of this tradition. In many ways this is the first complete The Tibetan Book of the Dead. In many ways this book is both a guide for living as well as a how to consciously move on after death. The book has been extremely popular in Central Asia among Buddhists. The Tibetan Book of the Dead contains especially written guidance and practices related to transforming our experience of daily life, on how to address the process of dying in the after-death states, and on how to help those who are dying. Some of these teachings include: methods for investigating and cultivating our experience of the ultimate nature of mind in our daily practice, guidance on the recognition of the science of impending death and a detailed description of the mental and physical processes of dying, rituals for the avoidance of premature death, the now famous great liberation by hearing that is read to the dying and the dead, special prayers are read at the time of death, and allegorical masque play that lightheartedly dramatizes the journey through the intermediate state, and a translation of the sacred mantras that are attached to the body after death and are said to bring liberation by wearing. The editors have also included two additional texts are not usually included in the first chapter there is a preliminary meditation and practices related to the cycle of teachings, and in chapter 10, instructions on methods of transforming consciousness at the point of death into a enlightened state and are an essential aspect of the practices related to dying.
The editors have gone out of their way to be sure to relate what the actual masters of these traditions mean by these practices. For that reason alone, makes this new edition of The Tibetan Book of the Dead authoritative in ways that previous editions have not been. Needless to say, this book should capture the imagination not only of students of Buddhism, but psychologists, philosophers, spiritual directors, and chaplains as well as anyone who wishes to entertain profound teachings about the survival of consciousness after death as well as ways to encourage the meaning of our own life in the everyday world.
Immense........2005-11-11
Having just recieved this book, I wonder if I will ever have time to read it. It is a stunning piece of work that has been hidden away for centuries. A must have for any buddhist library.
Amazon.com
Imagine that as you leave your body at death, you hear the voice of a loved one whispering in your ear explanations of everything you see in the world beyond. Unlike other translations of Bar do thos grol (or The Tibetan Book of the Dead), Robert Thurman's takes literally the entire gamut of metaphysical assumptions. Thurman translates Bar do thos grol as The Great Book of Natural Liberation through Understanding in the Between. It is one of many mortuary texts of the Nyingma sect of Tibetan Buddhism and is commonly recited to or by a person facing imminent death. Thurman reproduces it for this purpose, explaining in some depth the Tibetan conception of postmortem existence. Over as many as 12 days, the deceased person is given explanations of what he or she sees and experiences and is guided through innumerable visions of the realms beyond to reach eventual liberation, or, failing that, a safe rebirth. Like a backpacker's guide to a foreign land, Thurman's version is clear, detailed, and sympathetic to the inexperienced voyager. It includes background and supplementary information, and even illustrations (sorry, no maps). Don't wait until the journey has begun. Every page should be read and memorized well ahead of time. --Brian Bruya
Customer Reviews:
Tibetan Book of the Dead.......2006-03-10
The description of this book made it sound easy enough for a total novice to read. Turns out it's a lot more academic than I expected. That's not a bad thing -- it's just taking more time and effort than anticipated. If you're game for a real test of your determination to know more about this Buddhist stuff, go ahead and get it.
Robert Thurman's supplements here are worth much more than his translation.......2006-01-23
This was the first edition of the Bardo Thodrol I ever read. I had been a practicing Buddhist for about a year, but still could not understand, or really accept the idea of transmigration, i.e., a cycle of births and rebirths. It was this book that shattered my doubts, and to this day, it remains the most vivid discussion of the nature of life and death I have ever read. Yet it was not the translation that had the effect. It was the vast supplementary material supplied by Robert Thurman. The introductory essays concerning Tibetan Buddhism, living and dying in Tibetan and modern traditions, and the nature of death, are in fact worth much more than his translation. In trying render the Bardo Thodrol, an esoteric teaching of an esoteric religion, useful to all readers, Thurman sacrifices much of the intrinsic beauty of the text. He replaces words such as karma with evolution, Dharmakaya with Truth-body, and, following the tradition of Burton Watson, goes on to translate the names of various good and bad deities in a literal, clumsy translation. It was a nice effort, but ultimately, this text is made useful by Thurman's supplements, not his translation. For this, the Evans-Wentz version is still the standard. Yet, for a Buddhist who doesn't understand the cycle of birth and death, this is a great explanation.
Thurman brings clarity of mind to this translation.......2005-12-03
The introduction provided by Robert Thurman provides valuable context for understanding The Book of Natural Liberation Through Understanding In the Between. Thurman is able to reach out to non-believers by calmly explaining that Tibetan Buddhism is not about belief and dogmatism, but understanding experience more fully. He likens the monks who obtained the knowledge found in the book to spiritual scientists--an oxymoron until one understands the pragmatic value of this book. Use of this book to greater good is not dependent on the particulars of one's personal religious faith or lack thereof. The author helpfully reminds us that according to the tenets of our our scientific laws energy is neither created nor destroyed. Thus it seems likely that our whole being or part of it at least will end up going somewhere, in some form after we die. The introduction and translation are valuable tools for people who want greater understanding or for those who wish to use this book for its intended purpose.
A great translation of a famous spiritual masterpiece........2005-06-16
Uma is not the only superstar of the Thurman family. Robert Thurman has long been recognized as one of our leading scholars on Tibetan Buddhism and Tibetan culture.
This book is be read to the deceased shortly after death to remind the deceased to keep focused on the "clear light" to avoid rebirth and if rebirth cannot be avoided to guide the deceased to be reborn into the best possible situation.
The one of the secrets of the Tibetan Book of the Dead is that it is as much for the living as it is for the dead.
The demons that devour the various parts of the body as one travels through the bardos try to frighten the dead and distract them from focusing on the clear light. They are similar to life's "demons" that distract us from our purpose and the work and path we have selected.
A great translation of the classic work.
Highly recommended
Jim Connell "Hallstatt Prince"
Beautifully romanticized.......2005-01-02
This is a beautiful book, and I know of no other translation that is more readable and spiritually satisfying. Thurman is one of a handful of people responsible for buddhism's popularity in the west today. Having said that, I must also warn readers that Thurman has quite a tendency to romanticize Tibet as a pristine, untouchable place where perfection would have been inevitable, had the Chinese not destroyed the country (which undoubtedly they are destroying lives, culture, monasteries, and peace; but it has been argued that our perceptions of Tibetan buddhism could be more dangerous to Tibet than China). Donald Lopez's Prisoners of Shangri-la is an excellent book and balances Thurman's translation nicely. Tibet is a real place, and people there struggle with as many spiritual issues as westerners. The Tibetan Book of the Dead is a somewhat obscure text that has been read by more westerners than Tibetans, largely due to fanciful inclusions of the perception of Tibet as the spiritually perfected country and Tibetans as the most spiritually advanced people on earth.
Grow spiritually through your reading of this book, but please supplement it with more honest cultural translations of Tibet and Tibetans. This book should not be the sole representative of Tibetan buddhism to you. Tibet's place as a real country with a history that includes its invasions of Burma and other, unsavory facts should not make it a less valued and endangered place.
Customer Reviews:
I Want to Take You Higher..........2007-03-16
This is Leary at his most prolific, this is an awe-inspiring book that will change the way you think about Life, Death, and LSD. This book is cleverly used to ease the apprehension of one of life's most fearful moments, the moment of death. Comparing an LSD trip to Tibetan death rituals, Leary shows us how enlightenment can be gained at all stages of life, even the final.
Leary's Confusion.......2006-07-15
The so-called Tibetan Book of the Dead (which is literally translated "Liberation Through Hearing In-Between" - apparently first given the Book of the Dead nickname to associate it with the Egyptian Book of the Dead) is said to give 3 opportunities to gain liberation at death - if it doesn't occur with awareness of the Clear Light, then hopefully with the appearence of the 100 wrathful & peaceful deities, or finally at the very least pulling off a decent human rebirth.
Leary correctly saw the correlation of this root text with acid's stages - but linked the acid trip with the process of dying without liberation - i.e. the dead listener in the root text was not supposed to go through all 3 stages if possible. This is only Leary's first confusion in suggesting acid and the liberation mentioned in the root text are similar, as has been critiqued much later by teachers like Chogyam Trungpa.
Just a small correction.......2006-06-20
"The Void" WAS the original working title for what became "Tomorrow Never Knows" - and was in fact the first song recorded during the Revolver sessions
LIFE.......2006-01-01
First, to -oo0(GoldTrader)0oo-, I'd like to make a few corrections; The Beatles never did a song called 'The Void', the one you're talking about is 'Tomorrow Never Knows'. And The Beatles and The Rolling Stones, especially, were pretty big stars even before they were introduced to this (a ton of US #1 singles, fx....)
Anyway, this is a great book, & a must-have for anyone interested in the concept of LIFE (and I still don't get people who aren't). sometimes it's a bit too 'technical' (do this, do that), and Huxley's 'The Doors Of Perception' is far better in any way. But this book is still essential, and I would recommend anybody that they buy it...
A Few Corrections.......2005-10-05
First a few corrections to ooo(Gold Trader)ooo's review just so people don't get confused with misinformation.
first-- the Beatles' song Gold Trader refers to is "Tomorrow Never Knows" on Revolver, and yes, it was obviously inspired by this book. Lennon claimed it was his only song which was actually about LSD. (Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds was about his son Julian's school drawing, according to Lennon)
second-- the Beatles were HUGE before they were ever exposed to LSD or Leary's manual, The book was written in 1964, the year Beatlemania swept the USA after being huge in Britain for over a year. That year they tried marijuana with Bob Dylan, but Lennon, who wrote "tomorrow never knows" didn't try LSD until 1965, (by accident) and sometime between then and when he wrote the song in 1966 (tomorrow never knows) is when he god clued into this book.
Another complete error already mentioned by other reviewers is about "Be Here Now" which was published in 1971, seven years after "the Psychedelic Experience." In fact, in "Be Here Now" Ram Dass talks about when Leary was writing "The Psychedelic Experience."
The internet has so many factual errors all over it, might as well correct these ones for a start.
As far as the book itself, it is quite interesting and may be of use in guiding one's experience with psychedelics. You should remember the context of this book and the times, though-- at the other pole, reacting against this extremely prescribed method of tripping was Ken Kesey with the Acid Tests, which you can read all about in Tom Wolfe's "Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test"
However, Leary's "manual" as this was, for tripping, did have a huge influence. I'd say, read this and the "Acid Test", and Ram Dass's "Be Here Now" which will let you know about some of the pros and cons of psychedelics from a very experienced tripper, then allow them all to influence your experience.
One last thing you can't forget with this "guide" is that it was written before LSD was illegal and by psychologists usuing pharmaceutical grade drugs-- not by people getting illegal drugs which they didn't know the quality or strength of. As Leary later says in the preface to "Politics of Ecstasy", the "Psychedelic Experience" and the "Psychedelic Reader" were written for a mature audience of intellectuals, not the masses of kids who would eventually try to use it.
Book Description
In this classic scripture of Tibetan Buddhismâtraditionally read aloud to the dying to help them attain liberationâdeath and rebirth are seen as a process that provides an opportunity to recognize the true nature of mind. This unabridged translation of The Tibetan Book of the Dead emphasizes the practical advice that the book offers to the living. The insightful commentary by Chögyam Trungpa, written in clear, concise language, explains what the text teaches us about human psychology. This book will be of interest to people concerned with death and dying, as well as those who seek greater spiritual understanding in everyday life.
Customer Reviews:
Tibetan Book of the Dead.......2007-01-13
A superb classic, sharing deep wisdom and guidance for life. Greatly enjoyed it and read it twice in a row. First encountered this book many years ago as a teenager. As useful now as it was then.
Small But No Extras.......2005-08-05
We accidentally ordered this book not realizing it was a pocket edition.
We ended up returning it because it did not include the glossary, pronounciation guide, etc. of the full-sized version (which we had to order directly from the publisher as it wasn't available here at Amazon.)
If you're looking for a pocket edition, though, it's just fine.
Travelling Riverside Blues.......2004-11-25
This is my favorite transliteration of the Tibetan Book of the Dead. Trungpa Rinpoche and Francesca Fremantle bring scholarly precision, elegance, and a certain audacious directness to the text. The introduction and commentary are also first-rate. The pocket edition of the paperback is lovely airline reading, as it literally fits in your pocket. (Will having this book on your person put you on any "watch lists" when you get the super-size security treatment? Dunno.)
The audio version is a terrific companion on the long and salty road trips we're exposed to out here in Western Walmartistan. "As I wander in samsara's dangerous path" indeed. The reader, Richard Gere, does have a little trouble with the more elaborate Sanskrit vocabulary, but for my money, that further humanizes the translation.
If you find this text perplexing, I humbly recommend Fremantle's guide to the TB of the D, called Luminous Emptiness, which is very strong in a rubber-meets-the-road kind of way.
Three cheers to Padmasambhava for generating this text, Karma Lingpa for communicating it to us, and the Trungpa/Fremantle team for the beautiful and workable translation!
The Tibetan Book of The Dead, read by Richard Gere.......2000-04-14
This was my first exposure to the Tibetan book of the Dead. Basically this book is an instuctional guide for traveling thru the Bardo; the period or place in which we find ourselves after death, and before incarnating into our next life or form. The book gives a very detailed description of the deities and phenomena one can expect to encounter in the Bardo, and the actions one must take to facilitate an optimal incarnation. It also instructs on the practices that we should engage in while living, to prepare for the Bardo, and therefor have the best out come of that experience. In addition, this is a guide for facilitating and guiding another person thru death and the Bardo. This is a straight forward reading of the book by Gere, it is clear and easy to understand. He is easy to listen to. The descriptions of the various dieties get a bit long winded as he decribes at least a hundred of them. Some of it is gruesome and down right scarey sounding. But the basic thing to remember is, that it is all emenating from our own mind, and not to be overcome by fear. Exposure to this information, practice and meditation on these deities can help prepare us for this experience. Apparently, if we take the correct actions (or non actions) in the bardo, we may not have to continue in samsara but can go directly to the Buddha state, or at least an incarnation in one of the more pleasant realms. I am fairly new to Tibetan Buddhism, so my interpretations of what I heard may not be a perfect reflection of the actual teachings. But that is how I heard it.
A Great Source of Wisdom and Insight into Tibetan Buddhism.......1998-05-15
Sadly, even amongst some practitioners of other sects and traditions of Buddhism not much is known about the mythology and philosophy of many of the sects and lineages of Tibetan Buddhism. The Venerable Chogyam Trungpa, Rinpoche released many of the teachings of the Kagyu and Nyingma traditions of Buddhism (into which he had been trained and initiated) to the general public and as a result provided a wonderful source of information to the student, practitioner, and teacher of Buddhism.
Average customer rating:
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Libro Tibetano De Los Muertos/The Tibetan Book of the Dead
Bardo Thodol
Manufacturer: Obelisco
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
 Book of the Dead (Tibetan)
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Book Description
The Collected Works of Chögyam Trungpa brings together in eight volumes the writings of one of the first and most influential and inspirational Tibetan teachers to present Buddhism in the West. Organized by theme, the collection includes full-length books as well as articles, seminar transcripts, poems, plays, and interviews, many of which have never before been available in book form. From memoirs of his escape from Chinese-occupied Tibet to insightful discussions of psychology, mind, and meditation; from original verse and calligraphy to the esoteric lore of tantric Buddhismâthe impressive range of Trungpa's vision, talents, and teachings is showcased in this landmark series. Volume Six contains advanced teachings on the nature of mind and tantric experiences. Chögyam Trungpa's commentary on the Tibetan Book of the Dead explains what this classic text teaches about human psychology. Transcending Madness presents a unique view of the Tibetan concept of bardo. Orderly Chaos explains the inner meaning of the mandala. Secret Beyond Thought presents teachings on the five chakras and the four karmas. Glimpses of Space consists of two seminars: "The Feminine Principle" and "Evam." In the article "Femininity," the author presents a playful look at the role of feminine energy in Buddhist teachings. "The Bardo," based on teachings given in England in the 1960s, has not been available in published form for many years.
Amazon.com
Francesca Fremantle, who many years ago helped produce a translation of The Tibetan Book of the Dead, has now taken it upon herself to unravel its complexities. Fortunately, she begins with the basic tenets of Buddhism, including karma and reincarnation, then gradually moves out to more complicated notions such as bardo (in-between state), the nonmaterial side of the elements, the ego, and psychological imprisonment. Before we even get to the text itself, we understand that as much as The Tibetan Book of the Dead is about the death experience, it also symbolizes the processes of life. Only while living can we prepare for death. In the final third of Luminous Emptiness, Fremantle begins to follow the step-by-step processes of the after-death experience, explaining difficult notions and adding background information. Anyone serious about using The Tibetan Book of the Dead will find Luminous Emptiness the next best thing to having one's own personal guru. --Brian Bruya
Book Description
The Tibetan Book of the Dead, a best-seller for three decades, is one of the most widely read texts of Tibetan Buddhism. Over the years, it has been studied and cherished by Buddhists and non-Buddhists alike. Luminous Emptiness is a detailed guide to this classic work, elucidating its mysterious concepts, terms, and imagery. Fremantle relates the symbolic world of the Tibetan Book of the Dead to the experiences of everyday life, presenting the text not as a scripture for the dying, but as a guide for the living. According to the Buddhist view, nothing is permanent or fixed. The entire world of our experience is constantly appearing and disappearing at every moment. Using vivid and dramatic imagery, the Tibetan Book of the Dead presents the notion that most of us are living in a dream that will continue from lifetime to lifetime until we truly awaken by becoming enlightened. Here, Fremantle, who worked closely with Chögyam Trungpa on the 1975 translation of the Tibetan Book of the Dead (Shambhala), brings the expertise of a lifetime of study to rendering this intriguing classic more accessible and meaningful to the living. Luminous Emptiness features in-depth explanations of: The Tibetan Buddhist notions of death and rebirth The meaning of the five energies and the five elements in Tibetan Buddhism The mental and physical experience of dying, according to the Tibetan Buddhist tradition
Customer Reviews:
Unpacking Sacred Allegory.......2004-11-23
This is a book about a very precious book, a guidebook to a guidebook if you will. I feel a deep sense of gratitude to Padmasambhava and Karma Lingpa for giving The Tibetan Book of the Dead to the world, and to Chogyam Trungpa and Francesca Fremantle for opening it up to the average English-speaker. Luminous Emptiness is a great help in digesting Padmasambhava's precious teaching on the in-betweens of being.
You can learn a lot from allegory. Because the text (the TB of the D) is not about what it seems to be, the reader really has to work at identifying what, in his/her own experience, the text might be referring to. Instant introspection. The Tibetan Book of the Dead is really good for that, and Fremantle does a fine job of guiding the reader baffled by innumerable Sanskrit names into a comfortable detente, if not full-on interaction, with the text.
Fremantle lets the reader in on a secret: the TBD is actually about your body, world, and experience right now in very concrete terms. I'll give an example that will also give some experience with the technology given in the TBD. Notice that everything and everyone is color-coded? In his brilliant book Love of Knowledge, Tarthang Tulku gives a practical exercise that gives this significance and immediacy:
"Visualize as intense colors the positive, negative, or neutral feeling that accompanies each sensory experience. Sight is associated with white, hearing with green, smell with yellow, taste with red, and touch with blue. 'Feed' the energy of the feeling into color...With continued practice, feelings may grow fluid, no longer arising in expected ways" (303). You might want to give this a try, and then dig into the book again.
This world is becoming less and less liveable, largely thanks to our lousy attitude about things and beings. (The proto-Fascism of the press, pulpit, and politics of plunder and petroleum ain't helping.) Even though it's becoming more difficult to live, we can at least make dying a gesture of dignity and peace. Being aware of death is an old technique for appreciating life, for making life worth living. May your journey be bright.
Luminous Emptiness.......2004-09-03
Having been a practitioner and student of Buddhism myself for over 36 years, I can honestly say that Luminous Emptiness is the most comprehensive and clear presentation of the Tibetan Book of the Dead that I have ever read. Freemantle explains every topic she addresses clearly, simply, lucidly and thoroughly, without the confusing jargon that so often leaves the reader lost and confused in other similar books. One senses behind her written words the presence of a compassionate, knowledgeable and gentle friend who wants to make sure that you understand everything she is presenting. Luminous Emptiness by Francesca Freemantle is a must-read for anyone interested not only in the Tibetan Book of the Dead, but in Tibetan Buddhism in general and Dzogchen as well -- beginner and advanced students alike.
With extensive writings on this profound work.......2003-06-19
Luminous Emptiness: Understanding The Tibetan Book Of The Dead by Buddhist teacher and practitioner Francesca Fremantle, presents the classic and enduring "Tibetan Book of the Dead" as a sacred scripture for the living to follow in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition. Extensive writings on the foundations of this profound work combined with a meticulous translation of the work itself, make for an absorbing and strongly recommended addition to Buddhist Studies reading lists and reference collections.
Book Description
The Tibetan Book of the Dead is one of the texts that, according to legend, Padma-Sambhava was compelled to hide during his visit to Tibet in the late 8th century. The guru hid his books in stones, lakes, and pillars because the Tibetans of that day and age were somehow unprepared for their teachings. Now, in the form of the ever-popular Tibetan Book of the Dead, these teachings are constantly being discovered and rediscovered by Western readers of many different backgrounds--a phenomenon which began in 1927 with Oxford's first edition of Dr. Evans-Wentz's landmark volume. While it is traditionally used as a mortuary text, to be read or recited in the presence of a dead or dying person, this book--which relates the whole experience of death and rebirth in three intermediate states of being--was originally understood as a guide not only for the dead but also for the living. As a contribution to the science of death and dying--not to mention the belief in life after death, or the belief in rebirth--The Tibetan Book of the Dead is unique among the sacred texts of the world, for its socio-cultural influence in this regard is without comparison. This fourth edition features a new foreword, afterword, and suggested further reading list by Donald S. Lopez, author of Prisoners of Shangri-La: Tibetan Buddhism and the West. Lopez traces the whole history of the late Evans-Wentz's three earlier editions of this book, fully considering the work of contributors to previous editions (C. G. Jung among them), the sections that were added by Evans-Wentz along the way, the questions surrounding the book's translation, and finally the volume's profound importance in engendering both popular and academic interest in the religion and culture of Tibet. Another key theme that Lopez addresses is the changing nature of this book's audience--from the prewar theosophists to the beat poets to the hippies to contemporary exponents of the hospice movement--and what these audiences have found (or sought) in its very old pages.
Customer Reviews:
A classic.......2005-02-11
This translation deserved the good reviews. The text has been summed up well in other reviews. A word about the author seems appropriate. It is worth pointing out that W.Y. Evans-Wentz was an American (one reviewer stated that W.Y. E-W was English).The confusion here stems from the fact that W.Y. E-W went to Oxford, England, as a Rhodes scholar. He was a very articulate and erudite man - well versed in the Western classics, Western mystery tradition etc. - and in his footnotes, he made frequent cross references to such.
A few people now fault E-W' work - because of the universal sweep of his intuitions.It has even been suggested that he corrupted the purity of the Tibetan teachings - by his inter-cultural or trans-cultural horizons.Some Tibetan Lamas (i.e. Trungpa) have faulted E-W's work on such grounds.Western afficionadoes of Tibetan Buddhism - people who like to imagine themselves among the elect(Professors and pop followers alike) have chimed in.
Such people forget (or prefer to ignore) the fact that W.Y.Evans-Wentz spent many years studying and working with Tibetan Lamas. Be assured, W.Y. Evans-Wentz' projects had the blessing of his Tibetan co-worker - Lama Kazi Dawa Sammdup. There are those who would argue that this blessing did not extend to the commentary material - subsequently added by E-W, after his work with the Lama. But how E-W presented the material to a Western audience - was his business.
Death is most certainly a universal experience - and E-W placed it in a truly universal context. Is that so surprising?
The Jungian commentary appended to the first ed. of this text has also come in for criticism (some editions now delete it). But Jung had something - when suggesting that we ought to read the TBD 'BACKWARDS' - to understand the difficulties modern minds get into - when trying to approach such territory. Still, as E-W points out, late medieval Western culture had a similar perspective on death. It was part of life, we similarly understood the need to 'live our dying' - and the need to 'die-in-life' to find the greater spiritual life. There are chapels in Europe, constructed entirely of human bones. It looks morbid to modern people - but, in fact, it signified a triumph over death. Death is the greatest adventure. Whatever we may be doing, death is the ultimate destination that awaits us. Many European cathedrals have a 'memento mori' - an image of death, saying: "I was as you are;as I am, so shall ye be. " Will you be able to pay the ferryman - when the boat comes?
Not "Pop Buddhism," A Guide For The Living.......2004-04-28
This is not the Richard Gere "pop Buddhism" approach. This is the work of an English academic in the early 20th Century, as he uncovers an "Oriental" classic for a Western audience. Evans-Wentz even brings Carl Jung into the picture for the Westerners, as Jung's psychology was "New School" at the time and offered a sublime link between Oriental and Occidental thinking. I hold this book in the highest regard, not because it is a mystical Buddhist text, but rather because it offers tips for daily living and and self-actualization. As with most quality philosophical doctrines, this book is a paradox...a book of the dead that is really an abstract book for the living, regardless of religion or nationality. It is a refreshing and enlightening break from an increasingly fundamental world.
The Original Book and Translation (1927).......2003-10-14
This is the original "Tibetan Book of the Dead". All other versions are a toned-down version of this work by different authors who want to accommodate people who do not want to put the work in. You need to put the work in. No one can spoon-feed this kind of wisdom to you.
The Tibetan Book of the Dead is an extremely authoritative translation of the original texts of the "Bardo Thodol" by Lama Kazi Dawa-Samdup who schooled W.Y.Evans-Wentz in Tibetan Buddhism. The book is an extremely important piece of work for both the scholars of psychology and religion, and the lay person who has the time to spend working on it. The book is also the reality behind the "Necronomicon" which has been popularized by fiction writers, such a H.P.Lovecraft, but has been completely taken out of its true context.
To begin with, this book is a beautiful book once you truly understand the message that it is trying to convey to the reader - or more correctly, when the reader correctly understands the message that is being conveyed. It has a primordial air to it and is certainly ancient in its wisdom and understanding. The book was translated in the early 1900s and was first published in 1927. Be warned - this book is exceptionally difficult to read because the standard of grammar used is of the highest acumen humanly possibly. Evans-Wentz was a Doctor of Literature, a Doctor of Science and a Master of Arts. If you don't have a full size Oxford dictionary, then you will have trouble reading it. There is also a difficulty in the translation. There are many Tibetan words that do not exist in English so Evans-Wentz sometimes derives a more descriptive meaning behind the message that is trying to be communicated to the reader. Dr. C.G. Jung has written an introduction at the start of the book which is mostly concerned about explaining the Tibetan meaning of the words "Soul" and "Mind". It is for reasons like these that the book requires multiple readings to fully absorb the information that is being presented. So what exactly is The Tibetan Book of the Dead? It is a corpus with several teachings. Tibetan Buddhist monks believe that if you understand the meaning of death then you will understand the meaning the life. It expounds in detail on the illusions of the human mind and gives a context for working out many questions that are philosophical and spiritual in nature.
The book is essentially split into three parts. The first part has introductions from various students of theology, psychology and Buddhism. Evans-Wentz then explains the nature of the book and gives a rough breakdown of what we will find in the "Bardo Thodol" and how it is used to help the dead find their way to Nirvana during the after-death ceremonies (like an Irish wake) but also how the book can be used as a guide for the living, which is its true intended purpose. The middle part of the book is the "Bardo Thodol" translated directly into English and third part covers the topic of Buddhism in general with references to the different schools of thought and Christianity.
The middle part of the book, the actual "Bardo Thodol", is split into three parts. There is an introduction at the start which explains the entry into the "Chikhai Bardo", the first of the Bardo regions that one automatically enters at the point of death. Then there is the second phase of the "Bardo Thodol", the "Chonyid Bardo" before the final phase of the "Bardo Thodol" the "Sidpa Bardo". Essentially these three areas can be explained as - the moment of death and the dawning of the light or nirvana, the karmic illusions of worldly things and finally the rebirth process. However do not think that this means that everybody is reborn or that Tibetans/Buddhists take reincarnation literally. It is all part of a thinking puzzle. You have got to work out things for yourself. There are hidden meanings in there. You must compare the different concepts in this book to find out what it really means! Question the "Bardo Thodol". Question what it teaches! Question what it says about itself!
The Bardo Thodol is a technical and thoroughly scientific examination of consciousness that is still highly regarded as one of the most logical and controlled methods of understanding the mind and its relation to the world of phenomena. At first glance the book may seem horrid, uncanny and evoke a fear by the mere mention of the word "death", but this is a book about the living, dedicated to life and expounds on some of the most important questions that man can ask himself. It is extremely satisfying and worthy of repetitive readings. There is a pile of footnotes to help guide you through each page.
Enormously recommended! ! ! !
(As a side note Evans-Wentz wrote several other books to follow up on this one. They should be read in the following order - (1)The Tibetan Book of the Dead, (2) Tibet's Great Yogi Milarepa, (3)Tibetan Yoga and Secret Doctrines and (4)The Tibetan Book of the Great Liberation.)
The Definitive Book of the Mind.......2003-03-23
First published in 1927. Translated by LAMA KAZI DAWA-SAMDUP. Edited by Dr. W.Y Evans-Wentz, formerly of Jesus College, Oxford who spent the rest of his life dedicating himself to following the teachings of this very translation. This writer is the one who first produced the teachings of 'The Tibetan Book of the Dead' to occident man in the west. It still remains the definitive edition to this day. The book also has many footnotes and an important lengthy introduction by C.G. Jung to introduce the occident mind to the nature of the book. The footnotes are the helping hand in reading and understanding the text.
This is a book about the raw mind. It may take you many lifetimes to understand. You may understand it after the first reading. There are no devices, tools, sects, schools or Gods used to get you there. This is a book about your mind. The mind is the only device you should need along with the book to bring you to the understanding of - knowing the nature of reality. Then when you are done with the book pass it on and use the only tool that this book expounds on. The mind.
I have not even attempted to read anything else since I found this book. That is because it is definitive. The book only needs your mind. Nothing else. That is why this book is THE definitive book of the mind. Christians should not be afraid of this book in any way shape or form. It is good natured, good willing and does nothing more than help expand your goodness.
It is through the book of the dead that you will learn the book of life.
As the recently deceased Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi, of Tiruvannamalai, South India, admonished Evans-Wentz when he sojourned in his ashram he said - "Each of you should ask yourself, 'who, or what, am I?' Why am I here incarnate? Whither I am destined? Why is there birth and why is there death?'"
This book has never been equaled by any other book. And I am not just talking about within the confines of theology.
This is THE book.
The central book of Thanatology.......2000-09-25
This book is probably the pre-eminent "global" text on Ars Moriendi. Stripped of culturally conditioned paraphernalia ( various Bodhisattvas, elaborate Mahayanist mythologies etc ), what remains is probably the most descriptive essay on the "great beyond" ( apart from Plato's "Phaedo", which I find even more aesthetically and cognitively persuasive, but greatly differing in spirit ).
Among the greatest merits of the book are, IMO, a clear exposition of the Trikaya doctrine, ie. Mahayanist ontology; subtle psycho-spiritual analysis ( mainly in footnotes ) of 'Knower' ( principle of consciousness, caitanya or shes-pa - permanent reincarnating "I": an entity in perfect concordance with Tantricism but not very plausible in Buddhist Theravada orthodoxy ) and visionary cartography of the three ( "Divine"( Chikai ), noetic/causal ( Chonyid ), and psychic/imaginal ( Sidpa )) supraphysical Bardo states/worlds.
Probably the biggest failure is Jung's introduction, something that makes a man suspicious whether Jung had read "Bardo Thodhol" at all. Avalon's foreword is not bad, but also not very illuminating. What makes the book readable and understandable are Evans Wentz's intro and footnotes without which "The Tibetan Book of the Dead" would be a dry and dull read. Since inception of Wentz's "Tibetan Canon" ( 4- 5 books ) many eminent authors ( Chogyam Trungpa, Tarthang Tulku, Sogyal Rinpoche,..) have written numerous works on the Vajrayana, but, as far as I'm concerned- they haven't succeeded in surpassing these early masterpieces.
Average customer rating:
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The Tibetan Book of the Dead
W.Y. Evans-Wentz
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
Book of the Dead (Tibetan)
| Bible & Other Sacred Texts
| Religion & Spirituality
| Subjects
| Books
ASIN: B000GYCXV4 |
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