In this classic scripture of Tibetan Buddhism - traditionally read aloud to the dying to help them attain liberation - death and rebirth are seen as a process that provides an opportunity to recognize the true nature of mind. This translation of The Tibetan Book of the Dead emphasizes the practical advice that the book offers to the living. The insightful commentary by Chogyam Trungpa, written in clear, concise language, explains what the text teaches us about human psychology.


The Tibetan Book of the Dead, Francesca Fremantle & Chogyam Trungpa, Shambhala Publications, Pocket edition, 178 pages, $12.95

Trungpa was born in Eastern Tibet and recognized as an incarnation of the Trungpa line at an early date. He studied with, among others, one of the reincarnations of the Jamgyon Kongtrul who wrote the most famous commentary on the Seven Points. In 1959 he fled to India in the wake of the Communist takeover in Tibet, courageously leading many of his people to safety (this period is described in his book Born in Tibet.) He came to England in the mid-sixties to study at Oxford, learned English, started to teach, and started one of the first Tibetan Buddhist centers in the West. He later dropped his monastic vows, married, and moved to America where he continued his teaching. He founded the Naropa Institute in Boulder, Colorado, a large and highly respected Buddhist university. Francesca Freemantle received er doctorate form the Scool of Asian and African Studies at London University. She is a scholar and translator of Sanskrit and Tibetan works, and was a student of Chogyam Trungpa for many years.