Noteworthy Bookstore Titles

This list offers you a glimpse at the books being used in our various classes and discussions.

The Meaning of Life
The Meaning of Life: Buddhist Perspectives on Cause and Effect by by His Holiness the XIV Dalai Lama

Suggested book for our Discovering Buddhism course on Karma.

In The Meaning of Life the Dalai Lama presents the basic worldview of Buddhism while answering some of life's most profound and challenging questions: Why are we in this situation? Where are we going? How should we live our lives? Do our lives have any meaning? Basing his explanation on the twelve links of dependent-arising as depicted in the Buddhist image of the Wheel of Life, and suffused with the Dalai Lama's intelligence, wit, and kindness, His Holiness vividly describes how human beings become trapped in a counterproductive prison of selfishness and suffering, and shows how to reverse the process, changing the limiting prison into a source of help and happiness for others. 

Buddhism in a Nutshell
Buddhism in a Nutshell by Lama Yeshe, Lama Zopa Rinpoche & Ven. Amy Miller

This book is the main text used in the Buddhism in a Nutshell class.

Buddhism in a Nutshell is an overview of the complete Buddhist path to enlightenment that combines the blessings and transformational teachings of Tibetan Buddhist masters Lama Thubten Yeshe and Lama Zopa Rinpoche with the candidly refreshing perspective of Western teacher Venerable Amy Miller. It provides students with the information they need for their spiritual journey along with advice on how to integrate these teachings into daily life. In addition, readers are given simple meditation techniques to help bring each topic “from the head into the heart.” Also included is an MP3 disc of the original course upon which this book was based, offering 11 hours of clear and accessible teachings from Ven. Amy Miller.

How to Meditate: A Practical Guide
How to Meditate: A Practical Guide by Kathleen McDonald (a.k.a Ven. Sangye Khadro), edited by Ven. Robina Courtin

This book is the main text for the Meditation 101 class.

In a world seemingly moving at hyperspeed, it can be daunting to simply slow down — or stop — even briefly to try to make sense of things. Meditation has been proven to help. But exactly what is it? Why practice it? Which techniques are best? This popular guide answers these and many more questions for anyone who wants to begin — or is struggling to maintain — a meditation practice. Written by a Western Buddhist nun with solid experience in both the practice and teaching of meditation, How to Meditate contains a wealth of practical advice on a variety of authentic techniques, from what to do with the mind, to how to sit, to visualizations and other traditional practices. Best of all, McDonald's warm, encouraging approach is as close to the intimacy of private instruction as a book can be.