Customer Reviews

Journey to Enlightenment: The Life and World of Khyentse Rinpoche, Spiritual Teacher From Tibet

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Whether you are Buddhist or not, this book will be a rare gem. Here are some reasons I would own this book :

1) Rare and beautiful pictures on the most sacred place in the world

2) Learn something about the mysterious Tibetan Buddhism

3) Words of Wisdom (I mean real Wisdom, in condensed form) throughout the pages would awake you and set you contemplating

This is a great memoir on one of the greatest spiritual teacher that takes the reader on the journey of history and geography, culture and tradition, religion and philosophy. With or without realising it, you are learning the most important lesson in life, with enjoyment.

If there was a book that kept you awake till 3.00am in the morning (of course it depends on what time you started reading), this is it!

An astonishingly beautiful photographic essay of the life of one of Tibet's greatest lamas of this century. Khyentse Rinpoche was a teacher of the present Dalai Lama and of many other high lamas whose sparkling wisdom and warm compassion shine through even in photos. The author Matthieu Ricard is an ordained monk in the Tibetan tradition. He recently accompanied Khyentse Rinpoche on a trip to Tibet. The photographs in this book document the trip in a most vivid portrayal of a living Tibetan culture. It is amazing to see how glorious was the greeting given to this renowned lama upon his return to Tibet. We are treated to a pictorial feast of rites, costumes and throngs of devoted welcomers. The accompanying text tells not only the story of this wonderful trip but also of the life and teachings of Khyentse Rinpoche, the profound influence of which can be felt just by browsing the pages.

I admit that much of the time since I've owned this book, when I go thru it, it is just to look at the photographs. Ricard has captured "Shangri-la": I don't know of any more evocative photographic collection. The faces, the costumes, the landscapes: all the mystic of Tibet and its Buddhism. A good reason to want to visit Tibet.

If you can disengage yourself from the photographs (which I find hard to do) then there are many teachings from Khyentse Rinphoche that point to the benefits of naked awareness.

The combination of amazing photos and amazing teaching may be just what we need to begin to eschew distractions and meet reality head-on. It soon overwhelms me each time I try that, but, as I get older, I wonder how often I can put off the challenge that teachers like Khyense Rinpoche present. Is it trickery or the deepest insight?