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MIND BEYOND DEATHThe Dzogchen Ponlop RinpocheAn indispensable guidebook through the journey of life and death, Mind Beyond Death weaves a synthesis of wisdom remarkable in its scope. With warm informality and profound understanding of the Western mind, The Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche makes the mysterious Tibetan teachings on the bardos—the intervals of life, death, and beyond—completely available to the modern reader. Drawing on a breathtaking range of material, Mind Beyond Death shows us how the bardos can be used to conquer death. Working with the bardos means taking hold of life and learning how to live with fearless abandon. Exploring all six bardos—not just the three bardos of death—Mind Beyond Death demonstrates that the secret to a good journey through and beyond death lies in how we live. Walking skillfully through the bardos of dream, meditation, and daily life, The Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche takes us deep into the mysterious death intervals, introducing us to their dazzling mindscape. This tour de force gives us the knowledge to transform death, the greatest obstacle, into the most powerful opportunity for enlightenment. With both nuts-and-bolts meditation techniques and brilliant illumination, Mind Beyond Death offers a clear map and a sturdy vehicle that will safely transport the reader through the challenging transitions of this life and the perilous bardos beyond death. "One of the most brilliant Tibetan Buddhist teachers of his generation.... In this priceless and immensely practical guide, the complete spectrum of the Buddhist teachings on death is explained by Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche with remarkable clarity and thoroughness. These ancient teachings, handed down by the great master Padmasambhava, can, if we take them to heart, revolutionize our modern view of life and death, and possess an extraordinary potential to transform our way of living and dying."—Sogyal Rinpoche, author of The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying "Very few things are more important than helping people come to terms with death—how to think about it, prepare oneself and others for it, and, just in case, navigate it oneself when the time comes. It is the great secret way to enrich one's life, to live more vibrantly, happily, and lovingly. Ponlop Rinpoche's excellent book, Mind Beyond Death, is a great contribution. Read it and it will open doors for you into a new vision of life."—Robert Thurman, Jey Tsong Khapa Professor, Columbia University; translator of The Tibetan Book of the Dead "Astonishing....Mind Beyond Death picks up where The Tibetan Book of the Dead leaves off...This stunning work will prepare the seeker of truth for the moments before, during, and beyond the material expiration of our body, our vessel....This reviewer has been reading esoteric spiritual texts since age 17 and has never seen as clear and skillful a description ....splendid."--New Age Retailer "This is the most significant work in English on the six bardos since the publication of transcripts of two seminars given many years ago by my guru, Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche. Now, once again, these wonderful teachings are illuminated by the deep wisdom and compassion of a genuine master."—Francesca Fremantle, author of Luminous Emptiness: A Guide to the Tibetan Book of the Dead, and translator (with Chogyam Trungpa) of The Tibetan Book of the Dead: The Great Liberation through Hearing in the Bardo It is timely that The Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche, a Tibetan lineage master learned in the ways of the West and in the English language, has bestowed on us a direct and fresh explanation of the bardo principles that transcends the distance of translation. In writing Mind Beyond Death...Rinpoche's words light the way for us, offering us guidance in this life, the next life, and the bardos in between."—Ven. Alak Zenkar Rinpoche, from the Foreword of Mind Beyond Death "Mind Beyond Death goes a long way toward demystifying these teachings about the transition between one life and another and making them relevant to everyday life. 'The way to meet death fully,' says Ponlop Rinpoche, 'is to die every day, to every moment, to everything. To our thoughts, to our agony, to our emotions, to our loving relationships—even to our joy.' At forty-one, Ponlop Rinpoche, who makes his home in Seattle, is at the forefront of a new generation of traditionally trained Tibetan Buddhist scholar-teachers. You're sure to hear more from him in the future."—Shambhala Sun "Drawing on a great range of material, this book about death is very much a book about life. The Dzogchen Ponlop [Rinpoche] (born 1965) is known as one of the finest Tibetan teachers of his generation, and he is considered to be as well versed in the psychology of his Western students as he is in the dharma. The bardos, or intermediate states, are popularly understood to be the realms between death and rebirth. In these formidable and skillfully elucidated teachings he explains the bardos of life as well, and how an understanding of all six bardos is an essential guide in the present as well as the hereafter."--Tricycle "It is a must for anyone wanting to find a way into the teachings on the intervals between death and rebirth as described in the Tibetan traditions. Written with extraordinary freshness...Mind Beyond Death is about far more than just the Tibetan view of death. It is a truly Buddhist book because it goes right to the heart of the human problem and from there looks at the teachings of the Buddha. There is so much to recommend about this book. From whatever tradition or school of Buddhism the reader is from, it speaks directly in the voice of the Dharma. Like a many-faceted jewel, beautiful new aspects appear from whatever angle it is viewed."--The Middle Way "Even newcomers will find it accessible...a fine pick [for] any new age collection--particularly those strong in Tibetan spirituality."--California Bookwatch "Western theologans are often left stumbling for a powerful reply to skeptics who say whatever is on the other side cannot be truly known. Evidently not enough researchers have read Tibetan texts and, in particular, Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche. To write that his work is astonishing does not come anywhere near being accurate. Mind Beyond Death picks up where The Tibetan Book of the Dead leaves off. Imagine oneself at the end of a long, satisfying life, fortunate to be breathing clearly, if weakly, and feeling the ebb of prana, our life energy. Fully conscious and very much aware, we simply sense the end; the transition is at hand. Ponlop takes us into and through that passing on. "This stunning work will prepare the seeker of truth for the moments before, during, and beyond the material expiration of our body, our vessel. Through seven concise chapters, a trained, listening, open mind arrives at the statement: 'Mind endures because it is unborn and unceasing...because it transcends our concepts of time and space.' The states of consciousness experienced will determine whether one's mind beyond death is able to transcend space and time or must come back to live again in the waking dream of some form of this life. Being compassionate, Ponlop provides the reader with exercises that contribute to our being able to focus, overcome obstacles, and practice entering the dream state. This reviewer has been reading esoteric spiritual texts since age 17 and has never seen as clear and skillful a description as found in the fifth chapter, 'Evaporating Reality.' In this extraordinarily articulate section, Ponlop makes his strongest portrait of the 'subtle dissolution process' of how our consciousness dissolves into space. One's awareness is 'simply open and vast, like a clear sky.' "This splendid book has a striking Escher-like cover photo, six appendices, four pages of notes, and a 20-page glossary. It can be stocked in religion, philosophy, and consciousness sections."—New Age Retailer ...Mind Beyond Death is an expansion upon a series of lectures given by author Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche in 2003 at the Treasury of Knowledge Retreat. The book focuses on Buddhism's six bardos, or stages of life. Of these, the text focuses most heavily on death and on preparing for death, not just in response to an impending crisis such as illness, but as a part of everyday life. The book also offers a fascinating, if sometimes challenging and intricately detailed, storehouse of Tibetan Buddhist thought. It provides some practical thought exercises, visualization techniques and yogic techniques on how to become focused on the present, along with more ambitious and esoteric goals such as 'planning your last thought.'"—Feminst Review The Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche is one of the foremost scholars and educators of his generation in the Nyingma and Kagyu schools of Tibetan Buddhism. An accomplished meditation master, calligrapher, visual artist, and poet, he is also well-versed in Western culture and technology. He is the primary architect for the many websites under the Nalandabodhi/Nitartha umbrella and publisher of Bodhi magazine, an internationally distributed Buddhist periodical. He is the author of Wild Awakening (2003) and Penetrating Wisdom (2006). EXPLORE THIS TITLE FURTHER... 1559392762, 9781559392761 | |
MIND BEYOND DEATHThe Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche | |
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