Publisher's Synopsis
How does dharma wisdom show up in our lives every day? This collection of teachings by the beloved Insight Meditation teacher Larry Rosenberg offers clear, down-to-earth guidance on learning how to live a life informed by Buddhism-through questioning, reflective observation, and self-understanding. Rosenberg is known for presenting the essence of the Buddhism in a way that is unvarnished, utterly accessible, and that resonates with a wide audience. In this book he unpacks--with his signature engaging and iconoclastic style--such topics as meditation; silence; use of the breath; self-knowing; working with strong emotions; intimacy; illness and grief; among others. There are few teachers who so epitomize the idea of "spiritual friend" in the way that Larry Rosenberg does. His teachings give a clear sense that dharma is very much a part of everyday life. This book is also informed by what Rosenberg considers his deeper and more immediate understanding of dharma that has come in recent years-a period marked in his own life by illness and disability-and in the life of the planet by a deadly pandemic, war, an existential climate crisis, and pervasive technological distraction. He speaks directly to readers about how to carry on a life of authenticity and spiritual integrity in the face of personal and global challenges. An introductory essay, written by journalist and author Madeline Drexler, serves as a spiritual biography of Rosenberg, presenting his reflections on more than half a century of dedicated dharma practice and instruction. This essay illuminates what, for Rosenberg, were profound turning points and moments of realization--his long apprenticeships with foundational figures in 20th-century Buddhism, including Ajahn Chah, Thich Nhat Hanh, Seung Sahn, and Ajahn Buddhadasa, as well as Indian philosopher Jiddu Krishnamurti.
