Chogyam Trungpa (1939–1987)

Good. At times I hungered for the author to have more command over language, and the examples and descriptions more personal and direct. However, this book is stuffed with some profound insight--ideas and notions that really invite us to sit down and understand who we are. It's a religious tract that is nearly devoid of religion, or where the dogma is beside the point.

Freedom is generally thought of as the ability to achieve goals and satisfy desires. But what are the sources of these goals and desires? If they arise from ignorance, habitual patterns, and negative emotions, is the freedom to pursue these goals true freedom—or is it just a myth?

In this book, Chögyam Trungpa explores the meaning of freedom in the profound context of Tibetan Buddhism. He shows how our attitudes, preconceptions, and even our spiritual practices can become chains that bind show more us to repetitive patterns of frustration and despair. He also explains how meditation can bring into focus the causes of frustration, and how these negative forces can aid us in advancing toward true freedom.

Trungpa's unique ability to express the essence of Buddhist teachings in the language and imagery of contemporary American culture makes this book one of the best sources of the Buddhist doctrine ever written. show less

Trungpa's Shambhala did not offer the discussion I'd looked to it for, but proved a rewarding read for other reasons.

I had hopes for an insightful discussion and perhaps even deep analysis of cultural organisation and its implications for prescriptive theory: an abiding interest, specifically with respect to non-coercive politics. There wasn't much there, though partly it appears to be a result of Trungpa's selected emphasis upon personal ethics over social ethics.

And that was the rewarding show more bit, a different look at meditation practices. Notable is Trungpa's tendency to use familiar words in unfamiliar ways as a means of understanding self and habit. Doubtlessness, renunciation, fearlessness: these and other terms have specific meanings for Trungpa, and not those typically assumed when used in context of becoming a warrior.

Worth revisiting for the meditation. I hope to find another examination of the Shambhala tradition which gets into its insight for social theory. In doing so, must keep in mind that Buddhism as likely to be associated with violence as Christianity, despite its Western reputation for pacifism. show less

some rly excellent chapters that contain famous, essential trungpa-isms on the shambhala approach to mahamudra/dzogchen. but on its own or as a whole the collection lacks any coherence