For centuries Tibet has been known as the last home of mystery, the hidden, sealed land, where ancient mysteries still survive that have perished in the rest of the Orient. Many men have written about Tibet and its secret lore, but few have actually penetrated it to learn its ancient wisdom. Among those few was Madame Alexandra David-Neel, a French orientalist. A practicing Buddhist, a profound historian of religion, and linguist, she actually lived...
I have just stumble on to the writings of Ms Neel. First, this book provides a view into the old traditions in Tibet that are not buddhist in nature but rather part of the old culture of Tibet. It provides a perspective on the old traditions versus the true practice of buddhism. The author takes a very knowledgeable approach to the pactice of magic and devination which is sometimes confused with the main line practice of...
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This book present an excellent overview of Tibetan spirituality and the various practices that occur within that spirituality. Perhaps what I liked the best was that the author seemed to avoid incorporating Western cultural biases into her description. Indeed she seemed very intent on describing the practices in an accurate manner. I was able to take her description of tumo and actually incorporate it into my daily practice...
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While many books about Buddhism and other historically eastern religions focus on high theology, the book describes Tibetan Buddhism as it was practiced in the early 20th century. It is fascinating. I first read this book in college and have just read it again after many years. It was better the second time around. The first time, I was entranced by the accounts of exotic magic and mystery. This time I searched...
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Intelligent, witty and insightful. Alexandra David-Neel was, to put it bluntly, "one hell of a woman." Her frank and colourful descriptions of Tibet make one yearn for the past. For example, the Lama with a plat of hair down to his feet, who wears golden earings and is dressed like some Chinese geni. I found her cutting and frank humour delightful, her scheptical comments forthright even when faced with inexplicable incidents...
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I have enjoyed this book for many years. It gives a colorful description of the more unusual aspects of Tibetan and Bon religious practice. One chapter, for example, interestingly called "Psychic Sports", describes the lung-gom-pas runners who run incredible distances while in a trance, warming oneself in the snow through psychic heat, telepathy, etc. The author was a hardy traveler and a practicing Buddhist -- and a no-nonsense...
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