The Jewel Tree of Tibet: The Enlightenment Engine of Tibetan Buddhism [Hardcover]

Robert Thurman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1, 2005

Few teachers in the West possess both the spiritual training and the scholarship to lead us along the path to enlightenment. Robert Thurman is one such teacher. Now, in his first experiential course on the essentials of Tibetan Buddhism, adapted and expanded from a popular retreat he led, Thurman -- the first Westerner ordained by His Holiness the Dalai Lama himself -- shares the centuries-old wisdom of a highly valued method used by the great Tibetan masters. Using a revered, once-secret text of a seventeenth-century Tibetan master, along with a thorough explanation for contemporary Westerners, The Jewel Tree of Tibet immerses you fully in the mysteries of Tibetan spiritual wisdom. A retreat in book form as well as a spiritual and philosophical teaching, it offers a practical system of understanding yourself and the world, of developing your learning and thought processes, and of gaining deep, transforming insight.

Tibetans think of their cherished tradition of Buddhism as a "wish-fulfilling jewel tree" for its power to generate bliss and enlightenment within all who absorb its teachings. Happiness, in fact, is the true goal of Tibetan spirituality, and the wish-fulfilling jewel tree will put you on the road to that reachable goal. This beautiful jewel-tree imagery, which acts like a mandala or a yoga pose to focus your attention on truths larger than yourself, will help you break through worn-out ideas and habits, strengthen positive abilities, develop more energy and creativity, and change your life -- and future -- for the better. As Thurman writes, "Readers learn to cultivate the sensitivity and appreciation to love more fully, feel compassion more intensely, and become a fountain of cheerfulness for all they meet and know."

Because the path to enlightenment requires more than sitting in meditation, The Jewel Tree of Tibet offers a rich, intellectually riveting course with many specific spiritual practices, including: eleven steps to create the spirit of enlightenment, here and now; the truths and stories of the ancient Indian and Tibetan sages; and guided meditations to experience the blessings of the wish-fulfilling jewel tree. You can do these practices with others or on your own, while living your daily life. And as you travel this road to deeper self-realization, self-understanding, and infectious happiness, you will also learn how the principles of Tibetan Tantra can open the doors to "infinite compassion and continuity," and how to discover states of consciousness that transcend even death.

One of the most explicit teachings of the steps to the path of enlightenment available, explained by a skilled Western teacher, The Jewel Tree of Tibet will enable you to honor the full subtlety and hidden depths of the Tibetan Buddhist path and realize at last its deeper mysteries and rewards -- for yourself and others.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Robert Thurman is probably best know for his translation of the sacred text The Tibetan Book of the Dead, although he has published many works of both translation and exploration of Tibetan Buddhism. The Jewel Tree of Tibet is a significant addition to Thurman’s contribution to this field of spiritual scholarship. His deep knowledge and devotion are in evidence on every page. His style is straightforward and inviting. He also provides a short introduction to the history of Buddhism which is as clear and straightforward as possible for what can be an exceptionally complex and entangled topic.

In short, Thurman writes for real people with an interest in (perhaps longing for) a deeper understanding of themselves and their place in the world. In addition to a clear and inviting style and providing the reader with an accessible understanding of important spiritual matters, this book is exceptionally openhanded and openhearted. While Thurman wants us to share the dharma of the Jewel Tree he also wants the reader to know that they are already on their path- no matter what their faith or non-faith, political beliefs, no matter what manner of thinking may appear to divide, separate, or individualize us: Thurman presents a view of the self in which we can see that it is possible to overcome these limitations and alienations and to see ourselves as inhabiting common ground with the suffering, the joy, and the seeking of others. His bias is ecumenical in the best and most generous sense of the word.

This is an excellent book for the person just awakening to their spiritual path and for the seeker of many years.--Julian Riepe

From Publishers Weekly

Based on Thurman's six-lesson retreat on Tibetan Buddhism, this accessible book guides readers through the process of enlightenment. Throughout, Thurman (Inner Revolutions) draws from the Fourth Panchen Lama's text Mentor Devotion to ground his teachings, a surprising choice given that it's an advanced dharma that he concedes is "semiesoteric." Thurman successfully spins the text's interpretation so that it becomes more transparent to a Western audience. He describes Buddhist karma, for example, as "Darwinian evolution with an individual twist," and also cautions readers not to adopt some blissed-out, mind-emptying idea of Buddhism just because they imagine that it's Eastern and therefore superior. "When we seek to enter the path of enlightenment, we have to engage with society." On the other hand, he notes, we also need to embrace ascetics like monks and nuns, and invest generously in their work toward liberation. The book has some truly beautiful moments, as when Thurman encourages readers to meditate on the loving-kindness of their mothers (even the bad mothers, he says, made sacrifices to keep their children alive and fed), or when he offers 11 steps to compassion, love and happiness. Although there are a few hiccups - moments when it becomes obvious that the "root text" of Mentor Devotion is a tricky one indeed - this is a fine tool on the road to enlightenment.
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Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Free Press (February 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0743257626
• ISBN-13: 978-0743257626
• Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 5.8 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #821,827 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

58 of 62 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An American Buddhist speaks from his heart, January 11, 2002

By 

Nancy MacLachlan (Upper St. Clair, PA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Jewel Tree of Tibet: A Complete Course on Essential Tibetan Buddhism (Audio Cassette)

This is a six cassette, nine hour designed-for-publication recording of a retreat conducted by renowned American Buddhist Tibet-o-phile, Robert Thurman, whose many credentials are too numerous to mention. The recurrent theme of the recording is a relatively simple visualization excercise, whereby the meditator draws inspiration and compassion from revered beings--the Buddha and his lineage descendents of enlightened teachers, for example, (although according to Thurman, a non-Buddhist might draw equivalent inspiration from the likes of Christ, Moses, etc.)--and then extends such heartfelt loving kindness to others. Thurman guides the listener through this meditation several times through the tape, making it familair and workable. However, in my estimation, the brilliance of the tape rests in everything else Thurman wraps around this meditation, which turns out to be a condensed discussion about the history of Buddhism, its contrast to much of Western scientific, materialistic, philosophical and psychological thought, and how the major tenants of Buddhism, in a very practical sense, can become believable and workable for your everyday common-man Western-raised student.

Thurman, by anyone's estimation, is a compelling speaker, who somehow blends passion, eloquence, intellectual challenge and humor in trying in discussing the most complex of subjects, and he largely succeeds on this tape. His mission, seemingly, is simply to make Buddhism more understandable by interpreting it into a more American/Western idiom, without changing the 2500 year message. Nevetheless, in accordance with the subject, much of the material discussed is mature and intellectually and emotionally challenging. These talks are almost the antithesis of typical "new-age", feel-good type Jacuzzi-Buddhism relaxation tapes, (although I believe Thurman intends these talks to be accessible to the beginning--but serious--Buddhist).

Some of this material, but not the visualization, is contained within his recent book "Inner Revolution, Life , Liberty and the Pursuit of Real Happiness", although the tapes gladly spare the listener of all the political commentary of that book. I can imagine many future listeners, much as myself, revisiting these tapes repeatedly because of their authentic message delivered through a delightful human voice.

Robert MacLachlan

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Introductory Overview of Tibetan Buddhism, March 13, 2006

By 

Christopher J. Murphy "christopher3393" (Minneapolis) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Jewel Tree of Tibet: The Enlightenment Engine of Tibetan Buddhism (Paperback)

This book is a modified retreat transcript, so it has the strengths of an experiential emphasis. But it also is intelligent and quite readable. Thurman covers the entire scope of the Buddhist path from a Tibetan perspective, and he does this in the order that one would learn and practice these teachings developmentally. The reader is invited regularly to participate in the meditations along the way and to adapt them to his or her own religious background. But the book is also a lively guided tour with a number of brief visits to important teachings.So it progressively maps and highlights a path that actually takes years to experience. This is a classic approach, called Lam-Rim in Tibetan, that Bob Thurman makes accessible, even for beginners.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Deep and profound, but a little hard to understand in places, October 1, 2009

By 

Jerome Ryan (Toronto, Canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Jewel Tree of Tibet: The Enlightenment Engine of Tibetan Buddhism (Paperback)

Based on the Fourth Panchen Lama's text Mentor Devotion, Thurman uses Tibet's beautiful wish-fulfilling jewel-tree imagery to help the reader to generate bliss and enlightenment. The core of this book are the visualization exercises where you draw inspiration and compassion from a revered being and then extend their heartfelt loving kindness to others. Thurman says it's up to you who you perceive to be such a revered being. It could be the Buddha or the Dalai Lama, or Christ, Moses, your mother, etc. Thurman also discusses the history of Buddhism, its contrast to much of Western thought, and how the major tenants of Buddhism can work for people from the West.

"Through the great bliss state, I myself become the mentor deity. From my luminous body, Light rays shine all around, Massively blessing beings and things, Making the universe pure and fabulous, Perfection in its every quality."

I found this book to be deep and profound, but a little hard to understand in places. I especially liked the section where Thurman encourages us to meditate on the loving-kindness of our mothers.