Samatha and Vipasyana: An Anthology of Pith Instructions (hardcover)

Invaluable instructions on core meditations designed to bring about irreversible spiritual transformation.

For those who aspire to the total enlightenment of a buddha, the contemplative practices of śamatha and vipaśyanā play a crucial role from the beginning of the path to its culmination. Designed to free one first from the five obscurations that hinder the natural clarity and balance of the mind—and eventually from the ignorance that is the root of suffering—these practices, when imbued with bodhicitta, enable one to reach a pivotal stage within the Mahāyāna path of accumulation. This is the stage at which one gains irreversible, gold-like bodhicitta, after which one is assured of being a bodhisattva in all one’s future lifetimes until enlightenment.

The instructions gathered here are like a string of pearls spanning from the eleventh century to the present day. They include teachings from great Indian masters as well as renowned lamas of the past and present from the four major orders of Tibetan Buddhism, and many of the texts translated here stem from visionary teachings revealed by Mañjuśrī, Vajrapāṇi, Avalokiteśvara, and Padmasambhava. Introductions rich in biographical detail accompany each group of translated entries, providing historical context and drawing connections between complementary lineages. The concluding pith instructions from Lama Alan Wallace bring the anthology directly into the domain of contemporary practice, and a collection of links to a rich array of recorded oral teachings by eminent lamas, including His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s first teachings in the West, make this volume a treasure trove for the practitioner and scholar alike.

• Hardcover
• 392 pages, 6 x 9 inches
• Wisdom Publications 2025
  
• ISBN 9781614299691