W. Y. Evans-Wentz (1878–1965)

The Tibetan Book of the Dead as translated by W.Y. Evans-Wentz is a less than complete and less than faithful translation but is the only version known in the West for a long time. As such, it is, at the least, an important historical document even when it might not be a particularly useful one for those interested in Buddhism.

My case is one example. I became familiar with the book when I first picked up a copy of The Psychedelic Experience back in the late 60s. It is the version that not show more only influenced those experiments but served as an introduction to Eastern thought for me. It is also the version that Jung referenced in his work. So having this copy for these purposes make perfect sense.

If you want to sidestep Evans-Wentz' theosophy influence and get a better, more comprehensive translation as part of studying Buddhism, I would recommend a different translation. This Ixia Press edition is a wonderful copy of Evans-Wentz version and I would highly recommend it for those who want or need this version.

Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley. show less

This book made Buddhism real and personal to me as a teen, hooking me into the practice & eventually to spend 9 months in Nepal. Maybe I never really left or even arrived, but I'm slogging along, singing his songs.

If you read John Reynold's Self-Liberation: Seeing with Naked Awareness, you'll find out just how much misconception happened due to Evans-Wentz. It followed that Carl Jung misinterpreted many things as the result of this book, which led to further removal from the truth.

Wentz was not a scholar of Tibetan Buddhism, didn't study under lamas, and did not speak the language. Nor was he a practitioner of Dzogchen, the topic of the text he was interpreting. The main point is that due to show more Evans-Wentz, Jung and many others followed by believing that Tibetan Buddhism in general and Dzogchen in particular are equated with a Neo-Platonic and subsequently Metaphysical Christianity wherein is is postulated that there is a One Mind, One God, One Creator. Buddhism purports no such thing.

Read Reynolds and Namkhai Norbu, then decide for yourself. show less

A voluminous cataloging of oral Celtic folklore at the turn of the century. Contains information on the fairy/deva evolution to some extent but is mainly about beings that would belong to the Elana/Faery race, and in some cases, darker beings from lower planes. Folklore, superstition and spiritual truths are often blended together in mysterious ways and the reader of books such as this one should not take the accounts literally. It can be like detective work. Looking at the clues to find the show more spiritual truths. What are the allusions and metaphysical meanings? In a sense, it is similar to ferreting out the spiritual truths in fairy tales and religions. show less