IMS Book Club

A Bigger Sky
Awakening a Fierce Feminine Buddhism
By Pamela Weiss

A Bigger Sky explores what it means to traverse the gaps of a Buddhism created by and for men, navigate the seemingly contradictory domains of secular and spiritual life, and walk a path through the heart of the world. Blending memoir, Buddhist practice, and cultural observation, Weiss reorients Buddhism through a wider and more inclusive feminine lens. Her personal and spiritual journey speaks to the bits of brokenness in us all, shining a light on the different pathways we can walk to become whole.

Through beautifully crafted prose, Weiss shares what it means to be an ordinary Bodhisattva, describing how the Buddha’s profound vision of freedom can be lived outside of institutions and rule-bound practice to support us in deepening our connection with ourselves, each other, and the planet. A Bigger Sky illuminates how integrating a more feminine approach to Buddhist teachings can be applied in spiritual practice, community, relationships, and day-to-day life.

 “We are always enriched by genuine stories of the spiritual journey. Here is strength in Zen, dedication in emergency, awakening in business— all roads to the empowerment of women.” —Jack Kornfield

“A Bigger Sky takes the reader on a profound, groundbreaking, and totally engaging journey of awakening and healing. Pamela Weiss teaches us that nothing is outside of our spiritual practice and lays out the secret of how alchemy happens and true transformation takes root.” —Kittisaro & Thanissara

Date: Thursday, September 21, 7-8:15 PM

Finding Your Way
Meditations, Thoughts, and Wisdom for Living an Authentic Life
By Sharon Salzberg

Finding Your Way is the newest book from one of the most beloved and bestselling meditation teachers. In dozens of clear and inspiring entries, readers will be reminded that there are many ways to stay calm and move forward. From choosing to simply “do the good that is in front of you,” to reading a meaningful piece from an interview with a kind leader, to quotes from people Sharon admires, and reminders of how to practice meditation, Finding Your Way will show readers that they are always on the right path, because it is their own. Each thought, whether a single quote or a short essay, is presented in a visually calm manner, with dozens of four color illustrations to enhance and inspire the experience throughout the book.

Date: Tuesday, October 10, 7-8:15 PM

The Experience of Samadhi
An In-depth Exploration of Buddhist Meditation
By Richard Shankman

In this clear and accessible exploration, Richard Shankman unravels the mix of differing, sometimes conflicting, views and traditional teachings on how samadhi (concentration) is understood and taught. In part one, Richard Shankman explores the range of teachings and views about samadhi in the Theravada Pali tradition, examines different approaches, and considers how they can inform and enrich our meditation practice. Part two consists of a series of interviews with prominent contemporary Theravada and Vipassana (Insight) Buddhist teachers including Pa Auk Sayadaw, Sharon Salzberg, Jack Kornfield, and Christina Feldman. These discussions focus on the practical experience of samadhi, bringing the theoretical to life and offering a range of applications of the different meditation techniques.

“The Experience of Samadhi provides a wonderfully broad overview of the role of concentration in Buddhist meditation as well as in-depth exploration of meditative experience. This book is a valuable and inspiring resource.” —Joseph Goldstein

“A balanced, intelligent, and indispensable guide to the range of Buddhist teachings on samadhi. Written by an accomplished meditator.” —Gil Fronsdal

Date: Thursday, October 19, 7-8:30 PM

Home is Here
Practicing Antiracism with the Engaged Eightfold Path
By Liên Shutt

Home is Here builds on foundational Buddhist teachings–the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path–offering an intersectional frame to help practitioners embody antiracist practices and tend to their own healing under racism and oppression.

Grounded in practice, memoir, and mindful self-help skill-building, Rev. Liên Shutt’s Engaged Four Noble Truths illuminate a path toward healing and liberation. While written mainly for Asian American Buddhists and other BIPOC practitioners, Home is Here moves us all from knowing and contemplation to a place of action and wholeness. In the doing is the realization, and in practicing antiracism, we build a home for all beings.

“Having known Reverend Shutt for more than twenty years, it gives me an inspired joy that she has offered a path… a journey… a practice, in the broadest sense of the word, through the suffering of oppression and supremacy that is endemic in our world. In that way, she has shown that the suffering, the way through the suffering, and the teachings are universal—and how to use our specific social locations for the benefit of the greater whole, without being used by them.”—Larry Yang

“This book will benefit everyone! Presenting a powerful and fresh look at core Buddhist teachings, it offers innovative and effective ways to free ourselves from the bondage and illusions of white supremacy culture and a compassionate, accessible path to experiencing that we are already whole.”—Kaira Jewel Lingo

Date: Thursday, November 2, 7-8:15 PM

Noble Truths, Noble Path
The Heart Essence of the Buddha’s Original Teachings
By Bhikkhu Bodhi

Brilliantly translated by Bhikkhu Bodhi, this anthology of suttas from the Samyutta Nikaya takes us straight to the heart of the Buddha’s teaching on liberation through the four noble truths and the noble eightfold path—the two mainstays of Buddhist doctrine that illuminate the nature of things by generating direct insight into the teachings. These suttas all pertain to the ultimate good, the attainment of nibbana, or liberation. They illuminate the Buddha’s radical diagnosis of the human condition—and more broadly, the condition of all sentient existence—in light of the four noble truths. They underscore the pervasive flaws inherent in the round of rebirths, trace our existential predicament to its deepest roots, and lay out the path to unraveling our bondage and winning irreversible release.

Ven. Bodhi arranged the chapters, each with its own introduction, to provide an overview of the Dhamma that mirrors the four noble truths, thus enabling students of Early Buddhism to see into the heart of the Buddha’s teachings as directly and clearly as possible.

“With his intimate knowledge of the suttas and a heartfelt wish for the welfare of beings, Bhikkhu Bodhi has crafted an anthology that takes us straight to the heart of the Buddha’s teachings, then leads us with great skill into their depths.”—Anandabodhi Bhikkhuni

“This humble volume maps the terrain that forms the context for the entire Buddhadhamma. It is thus a precious and reliable guide to a vast spiritual domain, and I cannot recommend it too highly.”—Ven. Ajahn Amaro, Abbot, Amaravati Buddhi

Date: Wednesday, November 8, 7-8 PM