The Discourses of the Buddha

• * In the Buddha's Words, edited and introduced by Bhikkhu Bodhi, Wisdom Publications, 2005, ISBN: 0861714911
  This is the book to get when you are ready to start reading suttas. Bhikkhu Bodhi has done an excellent job of selecting suttas, grouping them by topics and providing a very helpful introduction for each topic - recommended.
• * Digha Nikaya, translated by Maurice Walshe, Wisdom Publications
  recommend numbers 2, 9, 15, 16, 22
• * Majjhima Nikaya, translated by Bhikkhu Nanamoli & Bhikkhu Bodhi, Wisdom Publications
  recommend numbers 2, 9, 22, 38, 86, 118
• * Samyutta Nikaya, translated by Bhikkhu Bodhi, Wisdom Publications
  recommended sections are 12, 22, 35
• * Numerical Discourses of the Buddha, An Anthology of Suttas from the Anguttara Nikaya,
  translated by Nyanaponika Thera and Bhikkhu Bodhi, AltaMira Press, 1999, ISBN : 0742504050
• The Sutta-Nipata, translated by Hammalawa Saddhatissa
  One of the oldest collections of Buddhist discourses in the Pali Canon
• The Life of the Buddha, Bhikkhu Nanamoli, Buddhist Publication Society, Kandy, Sri Lanka
  The biography of the Buddha extracted from the Discourses - recommended

• Buddhessence ~ Darryl Bailey extracts the core teachings from the Discourses
  This booklet may be small (60 pages) but it is highly recommended. ISBN 0-9738970-0-7
  
  
• * A Swift Pair of Messengers: Calm with Insight from The Buddha's Lips ~ Bhikkhu Kinnara,
  Inward Path Publications, P.O. Box 1034, Penang, Malaysia
  Tel/FAX: 04-659-6696, sunanda@pc.jaring.my or InwardPath@hotmail.com
  Excellent discussion of the importance of the Jhanas in the Buddha's discourses

Books by Ayya Khema

• * Who Is My Self? : A Guide to Buddhist Meditation ~ Ayya Khema, Wisdom Publications 1997
• * When the Iron Eagle Flies ~ Ayya Khema, Arkana (a division Penguin Books) 1991
• * Visible Here and Now ~ Ayya Khema, Shambhala Publications, 2001
• Be an Island : The Buddhist Practice of Inner Peace ~ Ayya Khema, Wisdom Publications(?) 1999
• Come and See for Yourself : The Buddhist Path to Happiness ~ Ayya Khema, Windhorse Books, 2002
• I Give You My Life : The Autobiography of a Western Buddhist Nun ~ Ayya Khema, Shambala 1998
  A "good read" with nuggets of spiritual wisdom woven into an engrossing adventure
• Being Nobody, Going Nowhere ~ Ayya Khema, Wisdom Publications 1988
  Excellent for beginners

Books by Matara Sri Nañarama Mahathera

• The Seven Stages of Purification and the Insight Knowledges ~ Matara Sri Nañarama Mahathera, Buddhist Publication Society -- 955-24-0059-7
• Seven Contemplations of Insight ~ Matara Sri Nañarama Mahathera, Buddhist Publication Society -- 955-24-0124-0
  These detailed descriptions of the path of insight are available from Vipassana Publications.

Books by Thanissaro Bhikkhu (Geoffrey DeGraff)

• * The Wings to Awakening, Thanissaro Bhikkhu, Dhamma Dana Publications, c/o Barre Center for Buddhist Studies, 149 Lockwood Road, Barre, MA 01005
• The Mind Like Fire Unbound, by Thanissaro Bhikkhu, Dhamma Dana Publications, c/o Barre Center for Buddhist Studies, 149 Lockwood Road, Barre, MA 01005

Other Books on the Jhanas

• * The Jhanas in Theravada Buddhist Meditation, Mahathera Henepola Gunaratana, Buddhist Publication Society
• * Tranquility and Insight, Amadeo Sole-Leris, Shambala Publications
• * Buddhist Meditation in Theory and Practice, Mahathera Vajiranana, Buddhist Missionary Society

Books by Buddhadasa Bhikkhu

• Heartwood of the Bodhi Tree, Buddhadasa Bhikkhu; Wisdom Publications, ISBN: 0-86171-035-5
• Paticcasamuppada: Practical Dependent Origination, Buddhadasa Bhikkhu; c/o Suan Mokkhabalarama, Chaiya, Suratthani 84110, Thailand (send a nice donation to cover the cost of the book plus shipping)
• Mindfulness with Breathing - A Manual for Serious Beginners ~ Ajahn Buddhadasa Bhikkhu, Wisdom Publications, 1996

More Theravadan Books

• Mutual Causality in Buddhism and General System Theory ~ Joanna Macy, SUNY Press, 1991, ISBN: 0791406377
  The commonality of Dependent Origination and Systems Theory is explored in this advanced book full of deep insight into the non-linear nature of the Universe.
• * Satipatthana ~ Analayo, Windhorse Books, 2003, ISBN: 1899579540
  A thorough and insightful guide to the deceptively simple yet profound teaching found in the Satipatthana Sutta.
• How Buddhism Began ~ Richard Gombrich, Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers Pvt. Ltd., 1997
  A look at the suttas of the Pali Canon focusing on how we cannot understand the Buddha's teachings without understanding that he is debating other religious traditions of his time plus focusing on the Buddha's use of metaphor & allegory (and examining the resulting literalism of later interpretations).

Mayahana Books

• Verses from the Center : A Buddhist Vision of the Sublime, by Nagarjuna, translated by Stephen Batchelor; Riverhead Books, ISBN: 1573221627
  Includes a very helpful and wonderful 80 page introduction.
• The Fundamental Wisdom of the Middle Way by Nagarjuna, translated by Jay L. Garfield; Oxford University Press; (November 1995) ISBN: 0195093364
  After you have digested Batchelor's poetic translation, check out Garfield's scholarly translation which has a very good commentary as well.
• Passionate Enlightenment: Women in Tantric Buddhism, Miranda Shaw, Princeton University Press, ISBN: 0-691-01090-0

Books for Teens

• Wide Awake: A Buddhist Guide for Teens, by Diana Winston; Perigee Books (A division of PenguinPutnam Group); 5 August 2003, ISBN: 0399528970

History

• The Buddhist Religion: A Historical Introduction (Third Edition) by Richard H. Robinson and Willard L. Johnson; Wadsworth Publishing Company, 1982, ISBN: 0-534-01027-X

• The Awakening of the West: The Encounter of Buddhism and Western Culture by Stephen Batchelor; London: Aquarian Press/ Berkeley: Parallax Press, 1994, ISBN: 0938077694

Non-Buddhist books & articles of interest to students of Buddhism

• No Boundary ~ Ken Wilber, New Science Library 1979, ISBN: 0-394-74881-6
  This map of human consciousness is a comprehensive guide to the types of psychologies and therapies available from Eastern & Western sources and clearly answers the question "Why do I need a healthy self if Buddhism teaches not-self?"

• The Meme Machine ~ Susan Blackmore Oxford University Press 1999, ISBN 0-19-286212-X
  The theory of Memetics provides a scientific explanation for the Buddha's teaching of not-self (anatta). Dr. Blackmore's book explains Meme and Memetics. Highly Recommended!

• The Perceptual Form of Life ~ Christine A. Skarda [Abstract and Article ] - originally published in the Journal of Consciousness Studies, Vol 6 (November/December) 1999 and reprinted in the book Reclaiming Cognition - The Primacy of Action, Intention and Emotion, Edited by Rafael Núñez and Walter Freeman, ISBN 0 907845 06 1
  The 3rd Khanda (Perception) explained - completely!

• A Universe of Consciousness ~ Gerald M. Edelman and Giulio Tononi, Basic Books 2000, ISBN: 0-465-01377-5
  Superb explanation of consciousness from a scientific perspective - but not an easy read. This book gives real insight into not only consciousness but also into how perception (sañña) and concepts (sankharas) evolved first and the role they play in generating consciousness.

• Destructive Emotions ~ Daniel Goldman, Bantam Books 2003, ISBN: 0-553-38105-9
  Daniel Goldman narrates a dialogue between the Dali Lama and Western scientists - brain science, teaching emotions, Buddhist & Western psychology - totally interesting.

• Why God Won't Go Away - Brain Science and the Biology of Belief ~ Andrew Newberg, Eugene D'Aquili, and Vince Rause, Ballantine Books, ISBN: 0-345-44033-1
  Extremely interesting brain science, very readable; questionable philosophical conclusions, somewhat controversial. See Abstract from 29 Jan '01 Newsweek magazine.

• My Stroke of Insight: A Brain Scientist's Personal Journey ~ Jill Bolte Taylor, PhD, Penguin Group 2008, ISBN-13: 9780670020744
  Dr. Taylor relates what it was like to have her left brain shut down as the result of a stroke - and the insights that brings into the nature of consciousness. She also tells of her 8 year recovery from this very serious stroke. Remarkable!

Other books of interest

• Bury The Chains: Prophets and Rebels in the Fight to Free an Empire's Slaves ~ Adam Hochschild, Houghton Mifflin, ISBN: 0618104690
  This history of the ending of slavery in the British Empire reads like a page-turning adventure novel. This movement was the grandaddy of all social action. Highly Recommended!

The Buddha and His Teachings by Narada Ma - an excellent Buddhist reading list
What the Buddha Taught Web Site - an extensive listing of downloads for Theravada subjects

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Leigh Brasington / / Revised 12 July 09