Author: Mark Kacik
Publisher: Red Wheel/Weiser
ISBN: 1618521004
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 300
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Book Description
When the anxiety of materialistic excess overcomes your soul, and you hear a cry from deep within, what do you do? Author Mark Kacik traveled the remote back roads of Asia in search of a peaceful mind, a deep understanding of self, and an alternative to his hectic and materialistic American lifestyle. Probing remote footpaths and following the breeze of his soul, Kacik serendipitously encounters Buddhist masters in out-of-the-way temples and monasteries, where he is given deep meditative exercises and lessons in awareness, consciousness, and mindful living. Follow Kacik's spiritual odyssey as he travels through the timeless deserts of India, the frigid Himalayas of Nepal, scorching Vietnamese jungles, and the culturally rich Korean mountains and has surprising and sometimes terrifying adventures. Meet the incredible people he comes face-to-face with who lead lives so amazingly different from his own. Caves, Huts, and Monasteries is more than a travelogue: The vibrant descriptions of faraway jungles, mountains, and deserts, along with jewels of advice gifted from masters of various Buddhist traditions, speak to the heart of spiritual seekers of any faith tradition. Kacik shares the teachings that affected him most deeply; those that helped evolve his perception of self, and taught him that peace can settle in the wailing soul that remains open and still. Because all of us get stuck; all of us sometimes want to scream; all of us have heard our deeper self crying for more substance in our lives.
Author: Stephen J. Davis
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0191027340
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 169
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Book Description
Monasticism is a social and religious phenomenon which originated in antiquity and which still remains relevant in the twenty-first century. But what, exactly, is it, and how is it distinguished from other kinds of religious and non-religious practice? In this Very Short Introduction Stephen J. Davis discusses the history of monasticism, from our earliest evidence for it, and the different types which have developed from antiquity to the present day. He considers where monasteries are located, from East Asia to North America, and everywhere in between, and how their settings impact the everyday life and worldview of the monks and nuns who dwell there. Exploring how monastic communities are organized, he also looks at how aspects of life like food, sleep, sex, work, and prayer are regimented. Finally, Davis discusses what the stories about saints communicate about monastic identity and ethics, and considers what place there is for monasticism in the modern world. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.
Author: Kazi K. Ashraf
Publisher: University of Hawaii Press
ISBN: 0824839137
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 242
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Book Description
The Hermit’s Hut offers an original insight into the profound relationship between architecture and asceticism. Although architecture continually responds to ascetic compulsions, as in its frequent encounter with the question of excess and less, it is typically considered separate from asceticism. In contrast, this innovative book explores the rich and mutual ways in which asceticism and architecture are played out in each other’s practices. The question of asceticism is also considered—as neither a religious discourse nor a specific cultural tradition but as a perennial issue in the practice of culture. The work convincingly traces the influences from early Indian asceticism to Zen Buddhism to the Japanese teahouse—the latter opening the door to modern minimalism. As the book’s title suggests, the protagonist of the narrative is the nondescript hermit’s hut. Relying primarily on Buddhist materials, the author provides a complex narrative that stems from this simple structure, showing how the significance of the hut resonates widely and how the question of dwelling is central to ascetic imagination. In exploring the conjunctions of architecture and asceticism, he breaks new ground by presenting ascetic practice as fundamentally an architectural project, namely the fabrication of a “last” hut. Through the conception of the last hut, he looks at the ascetic challenge of arriving at the edge of civilization and its echoes in the architectural quest for minimalism. The most vivid example comes from a well-known Buddhist text where the Buddha describes the ultimate ascetic moment, or nirvana, in cataclysmic terms using architectural metaphors: “The roof-rafters will be shattered,” the Buddha declares, and the architect will “no longer build the house again.” As the book compellingly shows, the physiological and spiritual transformation of the body is deeply intertwined with the art of building. The Hermit’s Hut weaves together the fields of architecture, anthropology, religion, and philosophy to offer multidisciplinary and historical insights. Written in an engaging and accessible manner, it will appeal to readers with diverse interests and in a variety of disciplines—whether one is interested in the history of ascetic architecture in India, the concept of “home” in ancient India, or the theme of the body as building.
Author: Alice-Mary Talbot
Publisher: University of Notre Dame Pess
ISBN: 0268105634
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 341
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Book Description
In this unprecedented introduction to Byzantine monasticism, based on the Conway Lectures she delivered at the University of Notre Dame in 2014, Alice-Mary Talbot surveys the various forms of monastic life in the Byzantine Empire between the ninth and fifteenth centuries. It includes chapters on male monastic communities (mostly cenobitic, but some idiorrhythmic in late Byzantium), nuns and nunneries, hermits and holy mountains, and a final chapter on alternative forms of monasticism, including recluses, stylites, wandering monks, holy fools, nuns disguised as monks, and unaffiliated monks and nuns. This original monograph does not attempt to be a history of Byzantine monasticism but rather emphasizes the multiplicity of ways in which Byzantine men and women could devote their lives to service to God, with an emphasis on the tension between the two basic modes of monastic life, cenobitic and eremitic. It stresses the individual character of each Byzantine monastic community in contrast to the monastic orders of the Western medieval world, and yet at the same time demonstrates that there were more connections between certain groups of monasteries than previously realized. The most original sections include an in-depth analysis of the challenges facing hermits in the wilderness, and special attention to enclosed monks (recluses) and urban monks and nuns who lived independently outside of monastic complexes. Throughout, Talbot highlights some of the distinctions between the monastic life of men and women, and makes comparisons of Byzantine monasticism with its Western medieval counterpart.
Author: Katie Haseltine
Publisher: Morgan James Publishing
ISBN: 1631954105
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 211
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Book Description
“A winsome invitation to grow your soul through a deeper exploration of Ignatian spirituality [and] contemplative living” (Hunter Mobley, author of Forty Days on Being a Two). In All the Things: A 30 Day Guide to Experiencing God’s Presence in the Prayer of Examen, Katie reveals what happened when she opened herself up to an ancient prayer practice popularized by a sixteenth-century warrior turned priest named St. Ignatius. She found in the Ignatian Examen that she already possessed everything she needed to know and love God. It was all right there in the everyday stuff of her ordinary and messy life. All the Things includes thirty readings that show you the numerous ways the prayer of Examen can impact and transform your life one day at a time. If you long for a deeper awareness of God’s presence, a sense of companionship with Jesus, and a felt experience of the love of God—without wearing yourself out trying to find it—join Katie to learn more about this life-changing and life-giving prayer.
Author: Julia Bonnheim
Publisher: Macmillan
ISBN: 9780312348854
Category : Travel
Languages : en
Pages : 666
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Book Description
Lets Go seamlessly guides you from the depths of history in Athens to the aquamarine shallows in the Dodecanese, without breaking the bank.
Author: Peter Harvey
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 0521859425
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 551
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Book Description
Extensively revised and updated, this book provides a comprehensive overview of the development of Buddhism in Asia and the West.
Author: Ormonde Maddock Dalton
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Art, Byzantine
Languages : en
Pages : 558
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Book Description
Author: Alfred Wesley Wishart
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Monasteries
Languages : en
Pages : 476
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Book Description
Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Christian union
Languages : en
Pages : 464
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Book Description
