How we create our own problems and how Buddhist psychology can help us solve them.

Publisher's Description:

Buddhism asserts that we each have the potential to free ourselves from the prison of our problems. As practiced for more than twenty-six hundred years, the process involves working with, rather than against, our depression, anxiety, and compulsions. We do this by recognizing the habitual ways our minds perceive and react — the way they mislead. The lively exercises and inspiring real-world examples Cayton provides can help you transform intractable problems and neutralize suffering by cultivating a radically liberating self-understanding.

Editor's Notes:

This is a wonderful book from the Tibetan Buddhist point of view (sort of). What I like about it is that it is written for the rest of us non Buddhists and gives great information on moving out of our personal chaos into a way of living an empowered life. I like that it is an updated version of the Four NOble Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path of Buddha without being preachy or "religious." 

Is it possible to live in this world and be a bodhisattva (an "awakened being”)? How do we remain calm and still in a world where the speed of our lives accelerates and the challenges continue to mount? According to Pema Chödrön, one of the most important practices is to work with our minds. Here is an excerpt from her latest audio learning program Bodhisattva Mind, based on Shantideva's classic Buddhist teachings.

A good teacher is one who combines understanding and practice and has no lingering delusions...of good and bad, right and wrong.”  Tozan said, “...there are three kinds of lingering delusions--opinion, emotion, and speech.

“All the Buddhas of the past were simply ordinary people who understood their minds.  Likewise, all the masters of the present have simply cultivated their own minds.  And all future practitioners will have to depend upon cultivation of mind.  So if you wish to follow the Way, do not seek for it outside yourself.”

A Buddhist System for Uncovering Your Strengths and Letting Them Shine

Publisher's Description:

Understanding yourself is the key to dealing with—and even enjoying—the inevitable complexity of life. Irini Rockwell presents us with a powerful system for the kind of self-understanding that leads to just that kind of satisfying relationship with life. It’s a Buddhist model for identifying your unique mix of personality traits that make up your innate intelligence. All five qualities—presence, clarity, richness, passion, and action—are your rich resource. By cultivating them you begin to see how you can use this remarkable system to enhance your relationships, your work, and your creativity. Ultimately, this system introduces us to a larger world: the totality and interconnectedness of everyone and everything.