Recommended Reading List

PHILOSOPHY, HISTORY, AND CULTURE

Walpola Rahula, What the Buddha Taught
Thich Nhat Hanh, The Heart of the Buddha’s Teaching
Houston Smith and Philip Novak, Buddhism: A Concise Introduction
Samuel Bercholz, Entering the Stream
Karma Lekshe Tsomo, Buddhism Through American Women’s Eyes
Don Morreale, The Complete Guide to Buddhist America
Tsultrim Allione, Women of Wisdom
Sumi Loundon, Blue Jean Buddha

VIPASSANA PRACTICE

Joseph Goldstein, The Experience of Insight
Jack Kornfield, A Path With Heart
William Heart, Vipassana Meditation, as Taught by S. N. Goenka
Stephen Levine, A Gradual Awakening
Sharon Salzberg, Loving Kindness
Henepola Gunaratana, Mindfulness in Plain English

ZEN PRACTICE

Shunryu Suzuki, Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind
Diane Rizzetto, Waking Up To What You Do
Robert Aitken, Taking The Path of Zen
Thich Nhat Hanh, The Heart of Understanding
John Tarrant, Bring Me the Rhinoceros
Charlotte Joko Beck, Everyday Zen

TIBETAN PRACTICE

Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche, Indisputable Truth
Tsoknyi Rinpoche, Carefree Dignity
Pema Chodron, Start Where You Are
H.H. The Dalai Lama, The World of Tibetan Buddhism
Sogyal Rinpoche, The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying
Namkhai Norbu Rinpoche, The Crystal and the Way of Light

ENGAGED BUDDHISM

Thich Nhat Hanh, Being Peace
H.H. The Dalai Lama, Ethics for a New Millennium
Arnold Kotler, The Engaged Buddhist Reader
Stephanie Kaza & Kenneth Kraft, Dharma Rain
Christopher Queen, Engaged Buddhism in the West
Stephanie Kaza, Hooked

These books are especially recommended for those starting to study and/or practice Buddhism.

Revised: May 2007