If you have been practicing Buddhism for a while, why do you still have problems? And how do you balance the sometimes different needs of spiritual and psychological perspectives? Rob Preece draws on his personal experience - over two decades as a psychotherapist and many years as a meditation teacher - to explore and map the psychological influences on our struggle to awaken. Wisdom does not always come as a flash of inspiration, but from the slow-often painful-working of experience. As we detach from our ideals of perfection and develop our acceptance of imperfection, our love and compassion can grow, and with this, our psychological and spiritual health will benefit as well. The Wisdom of Imperfection delves into this journey of individuation in Buddhist life, looking at the psychological process beneath the traditional path of the compassionate-minded Bodhisattva.

"The key to a happier and more successful world is the growth of compassion." --His Holiness the Dalai Lama

Giving and receiving affection is the key to happiness, and compassion is the key that opens our hearts to affection. Illuminating themes touched upon in The Good Heart and The Art of Happiness, this generous and gentle book contains some of the most beloved teachings on compassion that the Dalai Lama has ever offered. Touching and transformative, The Compassionate Life is a personal invitation from one of the world's most gifted teachers to live a life of happiness, joy, and true prosperity.

Collected here for the first time are four of the Dalai Lama's most accessible and inspiring teachings on compassion. The purpose of life is to be happy, His Holiness reminds us. To be happy, we should devote ourselves to developing our own peace of mind; the more we care for the happiness of others, the greater our own peace of mind. Therefore, we must develop compassion for others in order to be truly happy.

In these four teachings--imbued with the gentle humor and extraordinary kindness of this incomparable teacher--His Holiness explores altruism and the need for compassion on an individual as well as a global scale. He offers specific practices for developing loving-kindness and compassion in even the most difficult situations.

"We all have temporary and ultimate fears...those of this life, and those of the future. But among all of our fears, our greatest fear is the fear of death. Dying with Confidence gives us the method to grasp the stronghold beyond death. Thank you, Anyen Rinpoche, for this incredibly kind book."—Garchen Rinpoche, highly respected Tibetan elder and teacher, he is the subject of the upcoming film For the Benefit of All Beings. In this book, Anyen Rinpoche gives practical information that will benefit wanting to explore the depth of the teachings on dying skillfully, in accord with the teachings of Tibetan Buddhism. Encouraging readers to honestly look at both life and death, and to contemplate our impermanence deeply, the author shows us how to use the very process of dying to further our goal of enlightenment, and guiding us to genuine compassion, and a wise and fulfilling live in the here-and-now. "This is a wonderful book! A very practical guide grounded in the author's personal experience and deep reflections on death. The sample end-of-life documents that Anyen Rinpoche provides—for example, 'Dharma Will'—are equally valuable."—José Ignacio Cabezón, Dalai Lama Professor, UC Santa Barabara

A Spirituality & Practice "Best Spiritual Books of 2010" winner.

First Invite Love In is a beautiful collection of exercises inspired by the ancient meditative arts of Tibetan Buddhism. Tana Pesso and the Penor Rinpoche work together to create a guidebook for anyone who would like to live more compassionately, wisely, and with an open and inviting heart.

Moment by moment, thought by thought, step by step we can transform our minds through time-tested compassion practices, and ultimately create a garden of delight out of any life history or current circumstance, regardless of how traumatic or difficult. There are countless examples of people from all spiritual paths, faiths, and religions who have experienced terrible hardships or even themselves created hardships and suffering for others, who have turned their minds towards love and compassion and found peace and happiness.

We need to know that we are imprisoned, we need to investigate how we entrap ourselves, and we need to discover how to overcome our habitual patterns. The circumstances of life do not have to destroy us or drag us into degraded realms. We all possess the means to live a rich, full, and good existence if we develop a kind and disciplined relationship with ourselves. We may have forgotten our fundamental openness and wakefulness. It is not necessary to ask why this is the case or who is to blame. The approach here is to learn how we can change from neurotic self-destructive behavior to sanity, gentleness, and goodness. The path to that relationship is supported by meditation, but meditation doesn't have to be heavy or ambitious. We don't have to cultivate the self-image of being spiritual people. It is better to be ordinary to avoid the fancy labels and to have some kind of perspective about the journey. The point is not to make ourselves into better or different people, but just to become comfortable with living in our skin. It is in learning how we do harm to ourselves and others that we become able to give up doing so. Cultivating decency and gentleness is always possible. And doing so makes a genuine life. It doesn't seem to matter where we start from. Illness, poverty, or despair may be the best starting place. Sometimes it is the person who is the most trapped or who suffers the greatest pain or the deepest sorrow who is best equipped to transcend the survival mentality and to live a fully awakened life.

We think of enlightenment as something that happens all at once, like a tidal wave that cleans away everything impure. In truth, however, realization happens incrementally, from moment to moment. And in any moment when true wisdom is recognized, all concepts and afflictions are freed right on the spot and we can affirm for ourselves that the experience of enlightenment is possible. When we do, we experience a moment of the mind of a buddha - "momentary buddhahood."

In this tantalizing presentation, Anyen Rinpoche offers a vision of the crucial necessity of mindfulness in any exploration of the Buddha's path - especially the path of tantric practice.

Tibetan medicine is a unique and holistic system of healing. It has been continuously practiced for over a thousand years, but has still to take its place in the history of medicine as we know it in the West.This volume presents for the first time a comprehensive introduction to the arcane Tibetan art of healing. The author has provided a well-documented, original and detailed study of Tibetan psychiatry, the world`s oldest system of medical psychiatry. Translated here--for the first time in English--are three fascinating chapters about mental illness from the rGyud-bzhi, the ancient and most important Tibetan medical work. Reproductions of the rare Tibetan texts are also included. Supplementing these translations are extensive explanations of Tibetan psychiatric theory and treatment drawn from the author`s research and interviews with Tibetan refugee doctors in India and Nepal. Great care has been taken to identify over 90 pharmacological substances used in Tibetan psychiatric medicines, and these are listed in an appendix along with their English and Latin botanical names.Deeply researched and clearly written, this work will be of interest to both scholars and general readers in the fields of Buddhist studies, holistic healing, Oriental medicine, transpersonal psychology, ethnopsychiatry and medical anthropology.

By engaging deeply with the wisdom and practices of the Buddhist path, we are brought face to face with the true nature of our mind and reality. We are taken beyond our stories and opinions, our hopes and our fears, to the place of clarity and peace inherent within us all. The nature of mind is limitless, infinite like the sky, and when we recognize it, we awaken to profound compassion and insight.

This collection of thirty-one teachings, drawn primarily from the Nyingma school of Tibetan Buddhism, provides a gateway into practice for those new to Buddhism and fresh access to timeless truths for longtime practitioners. Readers will appreciate the distinct voices and approaches of both renowned contemporary teachers and great masters of the recent past.

Includes contributions by:

• Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche
• Phillipe Cornu
• His Holiness the Dalai Lama
• Dilgo Kyentse Rinpoche
• Dudjom Rinpoche
• Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche
• Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche
• Dzogchen Rinpoche
• Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche
• Francesca Fremantle
• Patrick Gaffney
• Gyalwang Drukpa Rinpoche
• Jamyang Kyentse Chokyi Lodro
• Kalu Rinpoche
• Khetsun Sangpo Rinpoche
• Christine Longaker
• Nyoshul Khen Rinpoche
• Orgyen Tobgyal Rinpoche
• Frank Ostaseski
• Ringu Tulku Rinpoche
• Sakya Jetsun Chimey

The preliminary practices of Tantra aren't a hurdle to be gotten through in order to get somewhere else; they're an extraordinarily rich collection of practices which have much to offer as a means

If you have been practicing Buddhism for a while, why do you still have problems? And how do you balance the sometimes different needs of spiritual and psychological perspectives? Rob Preece draws on