Cutting through spiritual materialism

Edited by John Baker and Marvin Casper. Illustrated by Glen Eddy.

Introduction. Spiritual materialism. Surrendering. The guru. Initiation. Self-deception. The hard way. The open way. Sense of humor. The development of ego. The six realms. The four noble truths. The Bodhisattva path. Shunyata. Prajna and Compassion. Tantra

'In this modern spiritual classic, the Tibetan meditation master Ch�gyam Trungpa highlights the commonest pitfall to which every aspirant on the spiritual path falls prey: what he calls spiritual materialism. The universal tendency, he shows, is to see spirituality as a process of self-improvement�the impulse to develop and refine the ego when the ego is, by nature, essentially empty. "The problem is that ego can convert anything to its own use," he said, "even spirituality." His incisive, compassionate teachings serve to wake us up from this trick we all play on ourselves, and to offer us a far brighter reality: the true and joyous liberation that inevitably involves letting go of the self rather than working to improve it. It is a message that has resonated with students for nearly thirty years, and remains fresh as ever today.'

Hardcover