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conversations.value: Provide a description for a book titled The Tibetan Book of the Dead about Buddhist, Reed, However with the genre: New, Used & Rental Textbooks, Humanities.
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conversations.value: As part of a Buddhist ritual, this scripture is to be read to a person who is dying, yet it also serves within Buddhist culture to remind people at all stages of life about the reincarnation cycle. While the introduction does provide a brief overview of names and concepts, this translation is not sufficient for the neophyte to understand well enough in an audio production, especially considering how many times Buddhist terms are employed in the production. An additional text guide might have been useful as a quick reference. the author, a Buddhist himself, smoothly executes the audiobook with inflection and tone that indicate his strong grasp of the material. However, his slight nasal projection might wear a bit on some listeners. <I>A Shambhala paperback.</I><I>(Aug.)</I> <BR>Copyright &copy; Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
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conversations.value: What could be a title for a book about Based, Jean-Claude, Itallie's with the genre: Arts & Photography, Music?
conversations.from: assistant
conversations.value: A title for this book could be 'The Tibetan Book Of The Dead'
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conversations.value: Provide the first five paragraphs for this book.
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conversations.value: The Tibetan Book of the Dead
  The name of an incantation text associated with Aksobhya-Vajrasattva, through which offerings are made on behalf of the deceased.
  One of the five enlightened families (pancakula) into which the meditational deities of the Buddha-body of Perfect Resource are subdivided. The deities of the Karma family include the peaceful buddhas Amoghasiddhi and Samayatdrd and the corresponding wrathful aspects Karma Heruka and Karmakrodhesvari. See Appendix Two.
  Karma Lingpa (fit. fourteenth century) is the treasure-finder who extracted from Mt Gampodar in Dakpo the cycle of teachings known as the Peaceful and Wrathful Deities: A Profound Sacred Teaching, [entitled] Natural Liberation through [Recognition of] Enlightened Intention (Zhi-khro dgongs-pa rang-grol), to which our present text belongs. See Gyurme Dorje's 'Brief Literary History'.
  Karmaprasiddhi byang-phyogs las-rab brtsegs-pa'i zhing-khams The northern buddha field of the 'Mound of Excellent Activities' (Karmaprakuta), otherwise known as the 'Matrix of Enlightened Activities' (Tib. las-rab grub-pa, Skt. Karmaprasiddhi), is the paradise presided over by the male buddha Amoghasiddhi. See Appendix Two.
  Literally meaning 'bedpost', the khatvanga is a tantric staff, comprising a long eight-sided shaft of white sandalwood, sealed with a hali-vajra at its base, and a crossed-fa/Va at its top, replete with streamers and surmounted by stacked skulls and human heads, indicative of the energy centres of body, speech and mind within the subtle body. In general, the khatvanga symbolises the union of great bliss and emptiness.
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conversations.value: Provide five more paragraphs.. Start with the sentence 'The Sanskrit term dharma carries a very broad range of meanings, derived from the Sanskrit word dhr, meaning 'to hold''.
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conversations.value: The Sanskrit term dharma carries a very broad range of meanings, derived from the Sanskrit word dhr, meaning 'to hold'. The Tibetan equivalent chos literally means 'change' or 'transformation', and refers both to the process of spiritual transformation and to the transformed result. Ten classical definitions of dharma are given by Vasubandhu in his Rational System of Exposition (Vydkhyayukti), namely: phenomenon, path leading to enlightenment, attainment of enlightenment, object of consciousness, merit, living thing, scripture, material thing, regulation, and spiritual tradition. In terms of the spiritual tradition of Buddhism, the term refers specifically to the second of the Three Precious Jewels (Skt. triratna), i.e. to the sacred teachings. See Transmission.
  One of the four principal schools of Tibetan Buddhism, named after a monastery of the same name which was founded by Khon Konchok Gyalpo in the eleventh century in western Tibet, at a site which has a slightly whitish rock surface. Sakya literally means 'pale earth'. The widespread influence of the early Sakya masters soon evolved into a whole new school of Tibetan Buddhism, the school reaching its full maturity during the time of the Sachen Gongma Nga, the five great founders of Sakya, and in particular through the influence of perhaps the greatest of these, Sakya ?audita Kunga Gyaltsen. The essence of the Sakya school's thought and practice is enshrined in the sets of instructions called 'the path and its fruit' (lam-'bras).
  Our historical buddha, who is considered to have been the fourth supreme Buddha-body of Emanation to have appeared during this particular aeon (in which context Maitreya is regarded as the fifth or future buddha). The Buddha Sakyamuni is considered by historians to have lived in the sixth century bc and is credited, according to Buddhist tradition, as the progenitor of all the contemporary Buddhist lineages relating to the sutras and certain of those related to the tantras, and for the establishment of the early Buddhist monastic community.
  The male buddha Samantabhadra is the foremost figure in the assembly of the forty-two peaceful deities. It is important to differentiate the male buddha Samantabhadra from the male bodhisattva Samantabhadra. See below and Appendix Two.
  Certain chapters of the present work end with these words of admonition that the seal of commitment (samayamudra), through which buddha-mind is secured, is to be resolutely applied by those who receive the teaching. See Seal and Commitment.
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conversations.value: Provide the last four paragraphs.
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conversations.value: PART ONE: NATURAL LIBERATION OF THE INTERMEDIATE STATE OF REBIRTH: A TEACHING REVEALING THE NATURAL EXPRESSION OF VIRTUE AND NEGATIVITY IN THE INTERMEDIATE STATE OF REBIRTH 320-34
  PART TWO: SUPPLEMENT TO A TEACHING REVEALING THE NATURAL EXPRESSION OF VIRTUE AND NEGATIVITY IN THE INTERMEDIATE STATE OF REBIRTH, ENTITLED GONG OF DIVINE MELODY 335-41
  Act One: Exhortation by the Deity of Good Conscience following the Entry into the Hells of the Wrongdoing One Laksanaraka 336-39
  Act Two: Celebratory Speech by the Deity of Good Conscience as the Virtuous Householder Srljata sets off for the Realms of Higher Rebirth 339-41
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conversations.value: Provide the first four paragraphs for this book.. Start with the sentence 'The Tibetan Book of the Dead
  Nevertheless, as is often the case with treasure finders, at an early age Nyima Tragpa had visions of Padmasaṃbhava and developed an interest in the Nyingma school'.
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conversations.value: The Tibetan Book of the Dead
  Nevertheless, as is often the case with treasure finders, at an early age Nyima Tragpa had visions of Padmasaṃbhava and developed an interest in the Nyingma school. As he wished to study with a Nyingma master, he was sent to Dzogchen Padma Rigdzin (1625–1697), who became his main teacher. He also became the student of Karma Chagme and the great tertön Düdul Dorje (1615–1672), among others. Düdul Dorje, in particular, confirmed that the boy was the incarnation of Pholungpa, and having taken a great liking to him, designated him the holder of his own Vajrakīlaya treasure teaching. In 1668 he accompanied his root teacher, Padma Rigdzin, on a pilgrimage to Tsari, and when his master undertook a strict three-year retreat, Nyima Tragpa joined him, marking the beginning of his life as a yogin. Shortly thereafter, he also began to teach, and his exceptional charisma inspired patrons to shower him with adulation and generous offerings. This trend continued and was perhaps the cause of problems he encountered later in life.
  In 1684, inspired by a vision he had while traveling in Nepal, Nyima Tragpa went to Mindroling monastery to meet Terdag Lingpa, who, delighted with the encounter, appointed him as the holder of his own terma, Yamāntaka, Destroyer of Arrogant Spirits. Nyima Tragpa practiced the Yamāntaka teaching in secret and attained mastery of it, and he subsequently became known as a powerful exorcist and a lama gifted with miraculous powers.
  Eventually, Karma Lingpa's teachings passed from Mindroling to Dzogchen monastery. Orgyan Tenzin taught them to Padma Thegchog Tenpe Gyaltsen (1712–1771), the first incarnation of his father and the third abbot of Tagmo Gang monastery. Padma Thegchog transmitted the termas to the third Dzogchen Rinpoche, Ngedon Tendzin Zangpo (1759–1792) of Dzogchen monastery, who preserved the texts of the Great Liberation through Hearing in xylographic form in the mid-eighteenth century, perhaps for the first time. This edition presented Nyima Tragpa's textual arrangement of the Great Liberation through Hearing in the Intermediate States found today in most editions of the text (as exemplified in the bibliography). This xylographic edition was not actually compiled at Dzogchen monastery, however. When the first Dzogchen Rinpoche, Padma Rigzin, founded Rudam monastery, later widely known as Dzogchen monastery, he asked Nyima Tragpa to become its first abbot. Nyima Tragpa declined this responsibility, citing an injunction in his own termas that exhorted him to travel constantly. Nevertheless, Dzogchen monastery became the seat of Nyima Tragpa's successive incarnations.
  THIS TRANSLATION HAS followed Chögyal Namkhai Norbu's intent, specified in his "Note on the Translation" in the 1983 Italian edition: "Rather than rendering the text from a strictly academic perspective, I have chosen an approach better suited to the Western lay public that remains, however, true to the original."
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conversations.value: Provide five more paragraphs.
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conversations.value: Do not be afraid! Do not be terrified! Do not become bewildered! Recognize these wrathful deities to be the enlightened form of your pure awareness. They are your own meditation deities, so do not be frightened. In reality, they are the actual presence of Buddha Amoghasiddhi and his consort. Have faith and reverence! Recognition and liberation will occur simultaneously.
  Upon hearing these words, if the deceased recognize the meditation deities, he or she will dissolve indivisibly into the deities, and thereby become enlightened in the enjoyment dimension of enlightenment.
  If, on the basis of a spiritual teacher's previously given oral instructions, the deceased recognize these visions as the natural manifestation of the energy of their own pure awareness, they will attain liberation. As when one sees a stuffed lion but does not recognize it as such, the lion skin may cause confusion and fright, but once it is perceived as only a facade and is revealed for what it really is, fear disappears. Similarly, when the assembly of blood-drinking deities appears, filling all of space with their huge bodies and giant limbs, the dead will certainly become bewildered and terrified; but on hearing this introduction, they will immediately be able to recognize these wrathful deities as their own manifestations, or meditation deities.
  When this recognition occurs, the two inner lights, the clear light you have previously meditated on, explained by a teacher and practiced during your lifetime, and the clear light that arises naturally now at the moment of death, come together like son and mother. The clear light will thus arise naturally in a self-liberating manner, face to face with itself, like meeting an old friend, and thereby the deceased will be spontaneously released in the dimension of their own natural radiant pure awareness.
  If this introduction is not received, even virtuous people at this point may fail to recognize the situation they are in, and continue to wander in cyclic existence. Thereafter, the eight wrathful gaurī and the eight piśācī with different animal heads will arise from within the mind of the deceased and manifest before him or her.
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conversations.value: Delete the first sentence.
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conversations.value: They are your own meditation deities, so do not be frightened. In reality, they are the actual presence of Buddha Amoghasiddhi and his consort. Have faith and reverence! Recognition and liberation will occur simultaneously.
  Upon hearing these words, if the deceased recognize the meditation deities, he or she will dissolve indivisibly into the deities, and thereby become enlightened in the enjoyment dimension of enlightenment.
  If, on the basis of a spiritual teacher's previously given oral instructions, the deceased recognize these visions as the natural manifestation of the energy of their own pure awareness, they will attain liberation. As when one sees a stuffed lion but does not recognize it as such, the lion skin may cause confusion and fright, but once it is perceived as only a facade and is revealed for what it really is, fear disappears. Similarly, when the assembly of blood-drinking deities appears, filling all of space with their huge bodies and giant limbs, the dead will certainly become bewildered and terrified; but on hearing this introduction, they will immediately be able to recognize these wrathful deities as their own manifestations, or meditation deities.
  When this recognition occurs, the two inner lights, the clear light you have previously meditated on, explained by a teacher and practiced during your lifetime, and the clear light that arises naturally now at the moment of death, come together like son and mother. The clear light will thus arise naturally in a self-liberating manner, face to face with itself, like meeting an old friend, and thereby the deceased will be spontaneously released in the dimension of their own natural radiant pure awareness.
  If this introduction is not received, even virtuous people at this point may fail to recognize the situation they are in, and continue to wander in cyclic existence. Thereafter, the eight wrathful gaurī and the eight piśācī with different animal heads will arise from within the mind of the deceased and manifest before him or her.
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conversations.value: Provide the last five paragraphs.. End with the sentence ' Gene Smith (TBRC serial number 0874) comprising seventeen texts, with some variation in the order and in the texts.'.
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conversations.value: The twenty-eight īśvarī consist of four groups of six yoginīs each plus four gatekeepers, symbolizing the enactment of the four kinds of activity.
  The twenty-eight īśvarī and the four yoginī gatekeepers surround the thirty wrathful deities in the specified positions.
  The wisdom of the expanse of reality, Vairocana, is immutable, beyond the dualism of subject and object. The total pacification of illusion, it is free of all mental construction, like the sky. Mirrorlike wisdom, Akṣobhya, is the base from which clarity and emptiness manifest; it is the great source of all wisdom. The total pacification of the consciousness, which is the base of all from which the other consciousnesses develop, serves as the base of the other three wisdoms. Like the surface of a limpid mirror, it is free of the stains of dualism. The wisdom of equality, Ratnasambhava, represents the total perfection in the equality of everything and in the equality of existence and liberation. The total pacification of pride, it is knowledge of the equality between self and others and of the indivisibility of existence and liberation. The wisdom of discernment, Amitābha, is the knowledge of all things distinctly in the variety of their manifestations and in their ultimate nature. The total pacification of craving, it is knowledge of the essential empty nature of things and of the relation between cause and effect, the nature of the multifarious relative manifestations. Action-accomplishing wisdom, principally Amoghasiddhi, is marvelous enlightened activity, never hindered in its aspects. The total pacification of jealousy, it spontaneously achieves the aims of others by means of unimpeded body, voice, and mind.
  Extracting the heart symbolizes cutting at the root the working of the mind; extracting the organs symbolizes closing the door of the senses; pulling out entrails symbolizes the purification of clinging; severing limbs symbolizes the termination of negative actions; drinking blood symbolizes the consummation of attachment; gnawing on bones symbolizes the purification of aversion.
  IV. An edition contained in the collection of E. Gene Smith (TBRC serial number 0874) comprising seventeen texts, with some variation in the order and in the texts.