Just yesterday I downloaded an audiobook by Jack Kornfield,
http://www.mininova.org/tor/557075Description:
Keywords: Buddhism, psychology, philosophy, wisdom, meditation, audiobook, lectures.
If you have not listen to Jack Kornfield before you really should. This stuff is absolutely great. In my collection of spiritual/philosophical media i got many 100 gigabytes of data and i can honestly say that Jack Kornfields stuff is kind of the crown jewels of it all. The first time i initially heard Kornfield i kind of wondered which kind of sedative medication he was on, but after a very short while his personality really makes more than perfect sense. Intelligent, interesting, wise, and a lot of humour. He often illustrates stuff with some tales or legends or with stories from real life which is great because he is a absolutely wonderful storyteller.
Kornfield has been trained as buddhist monk in Burma, Thailand and India for many years and later got a Ph.D in psychology. You do not at all have to be into buddhism to find this material highly interesting and valuable.
THIS TORRENT CONTAINS:
o The audiobook "A Path with Heart" read by Kornfield
o The lecture/speech "The 10 Perfections", "Dharma Talks- Compassion",and "Working With The Heart in Troubled Times"
o The ebook "Eightfold Path For The Householder" and a really good ebook by Kornfields teacher Ajahn Chah
o A short 3 minute video with Jack Kornfield.
For more stuff by Kornfield:
http://thepiratebay.org/tor/3408201/%5BAudioBook%5D_Kornfield__Jack_--_Roots_of_Buddhist_Psychology_(Sou
http://thepiratebay.org/tor/3495688/Jack_Kornfield-Your_Buddha_Nature
http://thepiratebay.org/tor/3532806/Jack_Kornfield_-_The_Inner_Art_of_Meditation
I think it's very good and would recommend those who are interested in Buddhist practise.
Some reviews of 'A Path with Heart':
This is an excellent and sensitively written book by a former Buddhist monk and clinical psychologist. Jack Kornfield uses stories and lyrical language to weave a portrait of an authentic spiritual life characterized by insight, compassion and wisdom. He makes Buddhism accessible to modern people and shows us how it is relevant to modern life. This is no small task and Kornfield pulls it off brilliantly, with warmth and an entertaining style. I highly recommend this book for anyone who is looking for deeper meaning in their lives whatever their specific beliefs. It is also an important book that connects Western psychological thought to Eastern worldviews.---
I arrived at this 1993 book after reading Jack Kornfield's more recent book, AFTER THE ECSTASY, THE LAUNDRY (2000). I enthusiastically recommend both books.
We must be a lamp unto ourselves, the Buddha said. We must find our own true way. This is really the point of Kornfield's book. As a former Buddhist monk, a psychologist, and a seasoned meditation teacher, Kornfield has the qualifications to help us on our journey through life. "What matters is simple," he writes. "We must make certain that our path is connected with our heart" (p. 11). To live a genuine spiritual life in this confusing world, and a society all too often "addicted to alcohol, drugs, gambling, food, sexuality, unhealthy relationships, or the speed and busyness of work" (p.23), we must bring our full attention to life. "To open deeply, as a genuine spiritual life requires," Kornfield says, "we need tremendous courage and strength, a kind of warrior spirit . . . We need a warrior's heart that lets us face our lives directly, our pains and limitations, our joys and possibilities" (p.
.
Although written from a Buddhist perspective, this book will appeal to anyone interested in living an authentic life. It is filled with insightful passages. In Chapter Two, Kornfield encourages his reader to stop the war with oneself and make peace. He teaches his reader in Chapter Seven to name one's demons, e.g., greed, fear, doubt, judgment, confusion, anger, boredom, sleepiness, and restlessness, in order to gain power over them. "A genuine spiritual path does not avoid difficulties or mistakes," Kornfield observes in Chapter Six, entitled "Turning Straw into Gold," "but leads us to the art of making mistakes wakefully" (p. 72). (Facing the difficulties of one's spiritual life becomes the theme of Kornfield's current book, AFTER THE ECSTASY, THE LAUNDRY.) Learn to be a lamp unto yourself, he writes in Chapter Eleven, "our liberation and happiness arise from our own deep knowing" (p. 159). In Chapter Twenty--one of my favorite passages in this book--Kornfield writes: "Everything we do in life is a chance to awaken" (p. 291). He asks: "Can we bring the Buddha into the voting booth where we live; can we act as the Buddha, writing letters to our congressmen and congresswomen; can we share in feeding the hungry; can we walk like the Buddha to demonstrate for peace or justice or care for our environment? The greatest gift we can bring to the challenges of these areas is our wisdom and greatness of heart" (p. 293).
If you liked AFTER THE ECSTASY, you will like this book. Read it. It will become a well-travelled "Path" on your bookshelf.
G. Merritt----
A Path with Heart, by Jack Kornfield: an masterwork. A must have. Vast, accessible, rich and deep. Buy this and read it twice, at least. A great place for both beginners and advanced meditators to start and finish. Only major problem is that is it so nicely written and gentle you might not realize how hard hitting it is. Assume it is very hard hitting and technical despite its friendly tone and you will get more out of it. (
http://www.interactivebuddha.com/booklist.html)
You need a torrent software to download this, such as
uTorrent.
Some other books useful for beginners:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0743427084/cleverjsmusicias
How To Practice: The Way to a Meaningful Life
by The Dalai Lama
Editorial Review: As a primer on living the good life, few books compete with How to Practice, another profound offering from the exiled Tibetan Buddhist leader His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Westerners may be confused by the book's title, assuming that it focuses solely on Buddhist meditation and prayer techniques. Though it does address meditation and prayer, at its core this is a book that demonstrates how day-to-day living can be a spiritual practice.
* There are two ways to create happiness: The first is external. By obtaining better clothes, better shelter, and better friends we can find a certain measure of happiness and satisfaction.
* The second is through mental development, which yields inner happiness. However, these two approaches are not equally viable. External happiness cannot last long without its counterpart.... However, if you have peace of mind you can find happiness even under the most difficult circumstances.
As he has in previous books (An Open Heart, The Art of Happiness), the Dalai Lama reminds us that developing peace of mind means paying attention to our daily attitudes and choices as well as taking the time to meditate and be prayerful. The six-part book covers Buddhist meditation techniques and visualization exercises as well as daily thoughts and actions that foster morality and wisdom.