Just flipping through it, powerful spiritual energy. Wouldn't dive in unless you dive in deep, deep, deep...

The most prominent expert on Tibetan Buddhism in the West offers a translation of this essential book of Tibetan philosophy that captures the true spirit and poetry of the original work--a profound book that reveals the nature of the mind and its manifestations and offers pure enlightenment.

Indeholder "Foreword by His Holiness the Dalai Lama", "Preface", "Part one - Preparations for the Journey", " Chapter 1 - Background", " An Outline of Tibetan History", " Tibet: A Spiritual Civilization", " Tibet's Present Plight", " Buddhism in Summary", " Tibetan Ideas About Death", " Chapter 2 - The Tibetan Science of DeatH", " What Is Death?", " The Six Realms", " The Three Buddha Bodies", " The Body-Mind Complex", " Stages of Death", " The Reality of Liberation", " Chapter 3 - The Tibetan Art of Dying", " Introduction", " Ordinary Preparations for Death", " Extraordinary Preparations", " The Preliminary Stage", " Mentor and Initiation", " The Creation Stage", " The Perfection Stage", " Chapter 4 - The Natural Liberation Literature", " The History of the Texts", " The Sections of the Book", "Part Two - The Guidebook For the Journey", " The Great Book of Natural Liberation Through Understanding in the Between", " Chapter 5 - The Between Prayers", " The Prayer of the Three Body Mentor Yoga", " The Prayer for Help from the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas", " The Prayer for Deliverance from the Straits of the Between", " The Prayer for Refuge from All Terrors of the Between", " The Root Verses of the Six Betweens", " Chapter 6 - The Guidebook to the Betweens", " The Prayer of the Reality Between", " Preliminaries", " Using The Book of Natural Liberation", " Recognition of the Clear Light in the Death-point Between", " The Central Channel Reality Clear Light", " The Out-of-Body Reality Clear Light", " The Mild Deity Reality Between", " The First Day", " The Second Day", " The Third Day", " The Fourth Day", " The Fifth Day", " The Sixth Day", " The Seventh Day", " The Fierce Deity Reality Between", " The Eighth Day", " The Ninth Day", " The Tenth Day", " The Eleventh Day", " The Twelfth Day", " Orientation to the Existence Between", " Basic Introduction", " Powers and Problems of a Between-Being", " Encountering the Lord of Death", " Detachment from the Previous Life", " Avoiding the Dull Lights to Block Rebirth", " Blocking the Door of the Womb", " Choosing a Good Womb", " Taking Refuge in the Three Jewels", "Part Three - Supplementary Translations", " Chapter 7 - The Dharma Practice, Natural Liberation of the Instincts", " The Ten Branches of Accumulating Merit", " Enlightening, Protecting, and Purifying", " Vajrasattva Purification", " The Actual Visualization", " Self-Creation", " The Mild Deity Interior Mandala", " The Scientist Deity Interior Mandala", " The Fierce Deity Interior Mandala", " Chapter 8 - The Natural Liberation through Naked Vision, Identifying the Intelligence", " The Quintessence", " The Need for This Identification", " The Detailed Identification", " The Three-Point Entrance", " The Forceful Method", " The Four Inerrancies and Four Nails", " The Oneness of Times", " Views, Meditations, Ethics, Fruitions", " This Knowing", " Mind Is All", "Glossary", "Essential Bibliography".

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One of the treasures of human literature - the book; And one of the treasures of American (world) intellectuals - Robert Thurman. ( )

The so-called Tibetan Book of the Dead is my true Penelope. Thurman's translation is my least favorite of the translations of the Bardo Thodol (except for the W. Y. Evans-Wentz/Lama Kazi Dawa-Samdup version, which I don't even count as a translation) because of his experimental coinages which, to my mind, make it difficult to follow the terminology outward from this text to other works, including but not limited to Shi Tro practice.

All that means is that I don't think the coinages work. Otherwise, as usual, Khenpo Thurman is fantastic and deliriously wonderful. (He doesn't actually have the Khenpo degree, but I'll explain why I call him that if you're curious). And the pictures are lovely.

If you're interested in the Tibetan Book of the Dead, I suggest reading multiple translations. Include this among them. Oh oh, mixed messages!

This review applies to the Robert Thurman translation of the Bardo Thodol. ( )

Amazing. I have read it through twice now and will read it through again many times. I find spirituality impossible to rate so know that my rating means simply that if you are a seeker of enlightenment, this is a stone you must turn over many times to look under. ( )