Meeting the Buddhas: A Guide to Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, and Tantric Deities [Paperback]

Vessantara (Tony McMahon) (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 2004

A vivid and inspiring journey to the heart of the rich and magical realm of Buddhist visualisation and devotional practices. In this informed account we are introduced to the main Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, and Tantric deities we are likely to meet in that miraculous realm. A unique resource.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Who are the Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, and protectors, the 'angry demons' and 'benign deities' of the Buddhist Tantric tradition? Are they products of an alien, even disturbed, imagination? Or are they, perhaps, real? What have they got to do with Buddhism? And what have they got to do with us? Meeting the Buddhas: A Guide to Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, and Tantric Deities is a vivid and informed account by an experienced Western Buddhist guiding us into the heart of this magical realm and introduces us to the miraculous beings who dwell there. Meeting the Buddhas is an exploration of the main figures we are likely to meet. The introduction is concerned with a correct understanding of visualization and devotional practices. Then we enter the mandala and encounter the five Buddhas. We discover the Bodhisattva Ideal and meet ten important Bodhisattva forms. Lastly, we are launched into the world of Tantric Buddhism. Although Meeting the Buddhas can be used as a work of reference, it offers much more than a relaxed museum visit. These awesome figures are alive and have a message for us - a message with the power to change our lives. -- Midwest Book Review

About the Author

A much published and well-respected Buddhist author, meditator and teacher, Vessantara is a senior member of the Western Buddhist Order. He holds a particular love for Tibetan Buddhism and his known particularly as an effective storyteller.

Product Details

• Paperback: 376 pages
• Publisher: Windhorse Publications (August 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0904766535
• ISBN-13: 978-0904766530
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #167,662 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Meeting the Buddhas: a guide to Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, etc., June 9, 2000

By 

Linda M. Esler - See all my reviews

This review is from: Meeting the Buddhas: A Guide to Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, and Tantric Deities (Paperback)

This book was intended to provide a pathway for the outsider or newcomer to Tibetan Buddhism through the bewildering maze of Tibetan Buddhist iconography. Vessantara is a Westerner who understands the puzzlement of other Westerners. He asks and attempts to answer several questions: Who are these strange-looking creatures? Are they really Buddhist? Why do they seem to switch names, forms, and genders? How does one deal with them in terms of visualization practice, mantras, and symbols. As an outsider, I cannot evaluate the accuracy of the material in this book, but it certainly seems to be complete! After reading it, I have a much clearer sense of the meaning and purpose of Tibetan Buddhist deities and if I encounter an unfamiliar image in another book, I will know where to look for clarification. The author also deserves credit for making it clear that some of the practices described should only be undertaken with the aid of a qualified teacher. He has, happily, resisted the temptation to set himself up as a guru for the uninitiated. This is not an easy book to read, but it is the only one of it's kind that I have ever encountered, and I plan to keep my copy as an invaluable reference tool. It could be recommended to students of Buddhism or even to those planning a visit to a museum of Tibetan art.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must Have, May 10, 2006

By 

Thinking "Independent Reader" (United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Meeting the Buddhas: A Guide to Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, and Tantric Deities (Paperback)

Any serious student of Tibetan Buddhism will want this book in their library for reference and instruction. The color plates alone are worth more than the price of the book -- the beauty and fine details are wonderful meditation tools.
I have a copy of the first edition and am ordering two more: one because the first one has seen heavy usage and I want to protect it; and another for the library of my dharma center.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Accessible introduction to the principles and practices of tantric Buddhism, October 3, 2007

By 

Daiho - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Meeting the Buddhas: A Guide to Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, and Tantric Deities (Paperback)

Meeting the Buddhas is an accessible introduction to the principles and practices of tantric Buddhism through an exploration of the visual depictions of its many deities. It is not an introduction or guide to thangka, the iconographic paintings used in tantric visualization practices, though there are plenty of examples of such to be found in this volume.

Those new to the philosophy may not realize that the Buddhist cosmos is populated by hundreds of spiritual super beings, many of which take on different guises - male and female, peaceful and wrathful - in their eternal quest to aid mortals in their search for enlightenment. Subtitled "A Guide to Buddhas, Bodhisattvas and Tantric Deities" this books introduces you to some of most common and best known deities and saints, those you are likely to encounter in exploring the art, architecture, and sacred relics of Himalayan Buddhism.

Author Tony McMahon is a member of one of the UK's oldest Buddhist groups, the Western Buddhist Order, and has obviously had plenty of experience explicating these iconic figures and the principles of tantric Buddhism for westerners. Writing under his Buddhist name, Vessantara, he introduces his subjects through the use of personal anecdote or through vignettes from western history and culture, stories that bring these god-like figures down-to-life and show how their experience is our experience. The writing is breezy and conversation-like but peppered with quite a lot of Pali, Sanskrit and Tibetan. A 7-page glossary contains 157 entries. The level of detail is challenging, even for those with some knowledge of the subject, particularly in his chapters on the five Buddhas. What many readers will appreciate, though, are the examples of visualizations, textual descriptions of what the mediator visualizes to affect his awareness of reality. 27 color plates reproducing thangka, as well as 36 line drawings are included. Unfortunately the color reproductions are often washed out and lacking in detail, and on many occasions the author writes at length on a deity in a particular aspect for which no visual is provided.

Despite its imperfections, Meet the Buddhas is still a fine addition to any Buddhist library and a fine reference work on the more common deities, including the Five Buddhas, the Taras, Manjushri, Avalokiteshvara, Vajrapani, Vajrasattva, Padmasambhava, Heruka Charkrasamvara, Vajrayogini, and Mahakala.

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