The Illustrated Tibetan Book of the Dead: A New Translation with Commentary

by Stephen Hodge and Martin Boord

Book Overview

A new and gorgeously illustrated translation of the ancient Tibetan masterpiece. What happens to us when we die? Where, if anywhere, do we go? Does reincarnation exist? Uniquely blending poetry and prose, this modern version of the Buddhist reference manual to the soul offers spiritual teachings -- plus additional commentary -- in crystal-clear language. Yet it is not actually a book about death; the original title might best be translated as Liberation...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0806970774
• ISBN13: 9780806970776
• Release Date: January 1999
• Publisher: Sterling Publishing (NY)
• Length: 144 Pages
• Weight: 1.64 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 8.3" x 10.5"

Customer Reviews

Tibetan book of the Dead

I am very happy with the book I received, "The Illustrated Tibetan book of the Dead". It arrived in excellent condition and in a timely manner.

Accessible first step for Westerners

I found this right after I'd finished another translator-commentator, Francesca Fremantle's, own advanced study of the so-called "TBoD," titled "Luminous Emptiness." (It's also reviewed by me.) I understood much more of Hodge & Boord's briefer, simpler, and more ecumenically accessible short text packaged with down-to-earth explanations. Well, as earthy as a guide to the afterlife's visions of self-projected terrors and wonders can be. While I did the reverse, I'd recommend beginning here, and then perhaps going on to Fremantle & Chogyam Trunpa Rinpoche's version (get the full edition, not the pocket-sized one), or Robert Thurman's scholarly version. The authors, as Westerners trained in the East, can pinpoint such difficult notions as the illusory self or the patterns of literal enlightenment that form in the bardo realms clearly. Our ego's "our so-called self," only "a parasitical illusion without any substantial existence, something that has been constructed as a defense mechanism to deal with the experience of impermanence. It is this illusory self that suffers the full onslaught of our emotional turmoil. As it strives to create itself out of empty space and become solid, the ego-self always feels paranoid that it will be discovered for what it is-- a hollow illusion." (47) Hodge & Boord manage to make this philosophy no less rarified, yet they do so in a manner that's compact, terse, yet directly relevant to our understanding. The authors also caution that this text may not be all accessible to those who in this life have not attained the proper levels of meditative preparation to perceive its impacts, but they also suggest that we can learn from its teachings to apply on a less daunting, everyday level in becoming kinder, more patient, and more calm. Hodge & Boord also urge us to withdraw more from the hubbub, and focus on what's truly meaningful. They show how we can adopt the more familiar panoply of what religious figures or symbols from our own tradition, and how the Tibetan renderings stand ultimately as any do-- for nothing at all. The illustrations do often seem, as others here remarked, taken from a gallery of images, but they are credited at the back from a variety of photographers. They may be subtle, but a close reading of the text and comments, matched with the pictures, often shows a more careful pairing than a quick skimmer might expect. And, this is not a text to race through. It's not lengthy, in the concise, handsomely produced layout here, but it does reward reflection. Frequently during my reading of it, I'd pause and look out the windows of the train or bus, lost in thought without realizing it. This is the state that the blend of illustrations, text, and explanations invite you to share. Hodge and Boord provide a less forbidding introduction, and stress that the complex mandalas and intricately arranged references to hosts of deities ultimately rest in our own encounter with our primordial truth, our grou

good for beginers in eastren philosophies

i got this book as a present to a freind who's very into eastren philosophies, he already read parts of the tibetian book of the dead, and i thought that having that followed with photos of tibet might ad another level of understanding to his studing.first of all this book doesn't contain all the texts from the original book, and so, it gives a good over all look to this approach to life, and a nice introdaction t the subject, but not too much information on top of that, it's lacking a lot of the major asppects of this approach. the photos are very predictable and sort of westernly matched to the texts - like a photo of a dark sky with light peeking through in a paragraph about higher power, which to me knowladge doesn't really match the concept of higher powen in the tibetian approach. the photos themself are very nice and very turistic, nothing you can't find in a postcard rack in some tibetian gift shop, if such thing exsist.my recoomentation - if you are looking to get familier with this text - get the non illustrated full book of the dead, and if you are looking to see nice photos of tibet, there are quite a lot photo albums which are better in both quality of phtography and printing, and choice of subject.it's a pretty nice intrudaction to the country and phylosophy, but i haven't find anything too exciting about this book.

Beautifully Illustrated

A more accessible version for Westerners of the ancient Tibetan Buddhist philosophy, 'The Great Liberation Through Hearing'. The teaching takes you through each day of the bardo of death with a comprehensive commentary. For anyone with prior Buddhist understanding, the transition between life & death detailed in this book will not come as a shock. However, for those with no prior knowledge of Tibetan Buddhism it would probably be wise to start somewhere else like the 'Tibetan Book of Living & Dying' by Sogyal Rinpoche.Do not be put off by thinking that this is a book just about dying. Although it is essentially a guide for the dead, it is also a guide for the living.

The Illustrated Tibetan Book of the Dead

Many people engaged in serious spiritual practice have suceeded in indefinitely putting off a "confrontation" with the Tibetan Book of the Dead. After all it is very complex, loaded with esoteric Tibetan Buddhist teachings, and the subject is so -- well, shall we say not a light entertainment accompanied by an immediate warm glow of satisfaction.Now there is no reason to put it off any longer! The beautifully produced new Illustrated Tibetan Book of the Dead(a new translation with commentary) by Stephen Hodge with Martin Boord fills a void with great success.First the book is physically beautiful with absolutely splendid color photographs of the Tibetan people, colorful religious celebrations and ceremonies and the awesome scenery of this spectacular country.Reading, absorbing and responding to this book is very much like participating in a several day retreat. The retreat is conducted by someone who really understands his topic. The text of the book is reduced in size from the original, eliminating much of the more obscure material and examples, but the central, essential elements are all here.Those central elements, very well introduced, are presented in a fine new translation and accompanied by very helpful explanatory material by Stephen Hodge. The first time visitor to this esoteric spiritual classic can therefore come away from a several day "retreat" of reading feeling well satisfied that the book has been opened for him/her and explicated by a master. As our life is truly for the sake of dying into an eternity of awareness and bliss, and since we can in fact become familiar with the process of dying through meditative reading and understanding of this book -- and since a major point of the book is to show how easy it is to be so unfamilar with the open doors to eternal bliss that we can move right past them out of ignorance, why not stop now and take the time to study and learn the lesson of lessons.Whether a reader of this book will wish to follow it up by going to a complete text of the Tibetan Book of the Dead is of course an individual decision based on how satisfied one is with the book discussed here. Certainly, this superlatively planned, written and produced book is l00% more helpful and satisfying than never bothering with the Book Of The Dead at all. And it is probably equal to the task of satisfying most readers completely.