Radiant Mind

Filled with excerpts from both ancient Buddhist texts and contemporary teachings, this enlightening book provides a solid introduction for novices and a "best of" collection for those more familiar with Buddhist practice. It is a collection of starting points: essential teachings and texts of Buddha's discourses, filled with insightful commentaries and interpretations by such teachers as the Dalai Lama, Vietnamese monk Thich Nhat Hanh, and modern thinker Jack Kornfield.

Buddhist sutras appear in anthologies, and there are collections of recent writings on Buddhism. Now Jean Smith has brought two genres together in a book that provides an outstanding look at the foundations of Buddhism. She begins sections on basic Buddhist teachings with selections from sutras or from ancient masters. She then follows them up with several commentaries on the same topic taken from the writings of present-day authorities. Across the spectrum of sects and schools, Smith draws on the collective wisdom of such respected contemporaries as Thich Nhat Hanh, Charlotte Joko Beck, Henepola Gunaratana, the Dalai Lama, and Joseph Goldstein. Buddhist teachings stress that understanding is gained by approaching single topics from a variety of viewpoints, and Radiant Mind provides a rare opportunity to do just that. --Brian Bruya