Customer Reviews

Light Comes Through: Buddhist Teachings on Awakening to Our Natural Intelligence

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is a very well written book. It broken into five sections:

1) The problem with Self-Centered emotions:
o the problem with the 5 poisons & what to do about them
o how to be less self-centered and relax with our world as it is
2) Working with others:
o putting others first without creating unhealthy love
o humbleness and working with a teacher
3) Teachings on Emptiness:
o this clear explanation of emptiness is inspiring

Although this book covers big themes it is a delightful, easy read.
This book makes all these topics inspiring and very workable.
Often these topics can feel complicated and difficult to work with.

I strongly recommend this book.

Kongtrul packs a lot into this slender book(all 121 pages), taking on anger( anger provides us only with the illusion of clarity), attachment(makes us dependent upon objects for fullfillment), and attributes(we do not own them, they come from many sources). The book is gracefully written and comes from his heart. A book to read, highlight, and read again.

The philosophies and tenants of Buddhism are continuing to gain wide acceptance and increasing interest among westerners as an alternative to the Abrahamic religions and their dogmas. Shambhala Publications is a premier publisher of books on Buddhism and one of their newest titles is "Light Comes Through: Buddhist Teachings On Awakening To Our Natural Intelligence" by Dzigar Kongtrul, a Tibetan lama who has been teaching Buddhism in the United States for the better part of the last twenty years. Kongtrul maintains that 'Buddhahood' is essentially acquiring an unobstructed experience of the true nature of the human mind as being "boundlessly spacious and limitlessly compassionate". In "Light Comes Through" this master teacher shows the reader how to use his or her natural intelligence as a tool to "awaken to the joyous nature of mind" and thereby achieve emancipation from suffering through life-changing insights. A superbly written and thoroughly 'reader friendly' treatise, "Light Comes Through" is inspired and inspiring -- and an essential, core addition to personal, academic, and community library Buddhist Studies reference collections and supplemental reading lists.

Light Comes Through offers just that...light! It answers all those questions that never seem to have direct answers concerning jealousy, relationships, insecurity, and where buddhas come from. After reading this book, I took a step forward on my path. :O) Thank you Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche. You have served well. I wish you never ending happiness and a long life.

I was a little skeptical at first when buying this book, as I mostly identify with the Thai Forest Tradition and I've never read anything published by Shambhala. However, after the first chapter I was convinced- Kongtrul gets right to business with the important things about right action and livelihood. This book is not for someone completely unfamiliar with Buddhist terminology, and should definitely be read after an introductory book or retreat.

The are many, many good insights to take from this book. I especially enjoyed the chapter on the relationship dynamic of Lenchak, and I have never read a better illustration of such.

There seems to be an unwillingness to apply the same standards of critical analysis and critical thinking to so-called Rinpoches as we might to other teachers or writers or thinkers.
* The writing in this book is banal and insipid, and plays on all the platitudes that marginalize true Buddhist teachings and attempt to hypnotize us into thinking something is `great' because a few people say that somebody is an incarnation of this or that famous person.
o Quite frankly Pema, you run circles around this guy. He should be calling you his teacher, not vice versa.
o Having sat with Dzigar: E for effort; zero transmission/sub-zero energy... you can't make this stuff up!
o Look to real action and deeds - not just somebody with the name Kongtrul or Rinpoche.