This book is for intermediate and advanced Buddhist practitioners who wish to deepen their understanding by joining practice with study of traditional ideas. It introduces the reader to contemplations that investigate a series of views of reality as they evolved in the Buddhist tradition. These views are explained in plain English, with contemporary metaphors and examples to bring out their meaning for modern Buddhists. Quotations from both historical and living meditation masters and scholars are presented as examples of key principles.

Topics include:
* Egolessness
* Appearances and reality
* Methods of investigation
* Enlightenment
* Tenets of different schools through the centuries
* The root of compassion
* The origin of thoughts

Guided exercises encourage the reader to trust in experiential understanding through deep contemplation of complex concepts. The book is structured as a guide for the reader�s journey.

Contemplating Reality: A Practitioner's Guide to the View in Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, Andy Karr, Shambhala Publications, 2007, 240 Pages, $26.95

Andy Karr is a senior techer of advanced Buddhist courses within two international practice communities in the United States and Europe. He has combined meditation, study of Buddhist philosophy, and teaching Buddhism with a career in business and finance.

	Contents: Contemplating Reality
	Foreword by Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche	ix
	Preface	xi
	Notes about Translated Materials	xvii
1.	Ropes and Snakes	3
2.	Making the Journey	16
3.	Starting to Contemplate	27
4.	Selflessness 101	32
5.	Vaibhashika: Taking Things Apart	41
6.	Sautantrika: What Really Comes to Mind?	53
	A Poetic Interlude	63
7.	Mahayana 101	67
8.	Chittamatra: There Is Only Mind	82
9.	Three Natures	97
10.	The Middle	107
	Another Interlude	116
11.	Svatantrika and Prasangika	119
12.	Great Reasonings of the Middle Way	128
13.	No Arising	136
14.	Further Reasonings	146
15.	The Analysis of the Automobile	155
16.	Shentong Madhyamaka	168
	Last Interlude	181
17.	Meditation	183
18.	Action	191
	Conclusion	199
	Acknowledgments	203
Appendix 1.	Biographical Sketches of the Early Indian Masters	207
Appendix 2.	The Stages of Meditation on Emptiness	219
	Notes	221
	Bibliography	229
	Resources	233
	Index	235