This is the story of a young man and a generation of angry youths who rebelled against their parents and the unfulfilled promise of the sixties. As with many self-destructive kids, Noah Levine's search for meaning led him first to punk rock, drugs, drinking, and dissatisfaction. But the search didn't end there. Having clearly seen the uselessness of drugs and violence, Noah looked for positive ways to channel his rebellion against what he saw as the lies of society. Fueled by his anger at so much injustice and suffering, Levine now uses that energy and the practice of Buddhism to awaken his natural wisdom and compassion.
While Levine comes to embrace the same spiritual tradition as his father, bestselling author Stephen Levine, he finds his most authentic expression in connecting the seemingly opposed worlds of punk and Buddhism. As Noah Levine delved deeper into Buddhism, he chose not to reject the punk scene, instead integrating the two worlds as a catalyst for transformation. Ultimately, this is an inspiring story about maturing, and how a hostile and lost generation is finally finding its footing. This provocative report takes us deep inside the punk scene and moves from anger, rebellion, and self-destruction, to health, service to others, and genuine spiritual growth.
Dharma Punx, Noah Levine, Harper, Paperback, 253 Pages, $15.99
Noah Levine is a Buddhist teacher in training with Jack Kornfield and the teaching collective at Spirit Rock Meditation Center in Woodacre, California. He teaches meditation retreats nationally as well as leads groups in juvenile halls and prisons around the San Francisco Bay Area. Noah is the director and co-founder of the Mind Body Awareness Project, a nonprofit organization that serves incarcerated youths. He has studied with such well-known and respected teachers as His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Thich Nhat Hanh, Ram Dass, Jack Kornfield, Joseph Goldstein, Sharon Salzberg, Norman Fischer, and Sylvia Boorstein, to name a few. He lives in San Francisco.
Preface ix
Acknowledgements xiii
1. Suicide Solution 1
2. Kids of the Black Hole 5
3. It's in My Blood 13
4. F*** Authority 21
5. Teenage Wasteland 29
6. No Remorse 43
7. Live Fast Die Young 52
8. Nailed to the X 65
9. I Need Your Shelter 76
10. Serve the Truth, Defy the Lie 85
11. My Friends Look Out for Me Like Family 89
12. No Spiritual Surrender 94
13. Who Killed Bambi? 102
14. Love Sick 116
15. The Inner Revolution 127
16. Wander Lust 132
17. Meditate and Destroy 171
18. Die, Die, My Darling 179
19. Reincarnation 213
20. Inside Out 221
21. Being Here Now 226
22. Death is Not the End My Friend 235
23. Stay Free 242
Epilogue 247
Mindfulness Meditation Instructions 249
Resources 253
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