Awakening to the Sacred :

Creating a Spiritual Life from Scratch
by Lama Surya Das

Hardcover - 288 pages (May 11, 1999)
Broadway Books; ISBN: 0767902742

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Synopsis:

A beautifully written, simple guide to creating a spiritual life from scratch and connecting with the sacred in everyday life.

All of us long to connect with something greater than ourselves, to experience the sacred in our daily lives, and to enhance our sense of spiritual enlightenment--yet often we don't know where to begin. Awakening to the Sacred is an extraordinary new book that provides seekers of all faiths with the tools and practices they need to build a spiritual life from the ground up and to cultivate a divine presence in everyday life.

In this elegant, inspiring book, Lama Surya Das--the most highly trained American lama in the Tibetan tradition and author of the bestselling Awakening the Buddha Within--integrates essential Buddhist practices with a variety of other spiritual philosophies and wisdom traditions to show you how to create a personalized spiritual practice based on your own individual beliefs, aspirations, and needs. Through reflections on his own life quest, thoughtful essays, and entertaining stories, Surya Das examines the common themes at the heart of any spiritual path, including faith, doubt, love, compassion, creativity, self-inquiry, and transformation. He then explores prayer, yoga, chanting, guided meditations, breathing exercises, and myriad other rituals, providing practical examples of each that we can use day-to-day to nurture our inner spirit.

Surya Das's unique and accessible approach emphasizes that we are all, by nature, spiritual beings and that our lives are naturally filled with sacred moments. Awakening to the Sacred illuminates the natural meditations already present in daily life and shows how we can use them to awaken our hearts and minds and progress toward inner peace, happiness, and enlightenment.

Reviews:

Donald Altman from Los Angeles , August 3, 1999 Highly Recommended Insightful and Inspiring Journey
I couldn't put this book down. Its artful combination of wit and wisdom are a pure joy. Surya Das offers a taste of spiritual-real life through amusing and powerful anecdotes, traditional Tibetan Buddhist (and also less traditional-bound) fundamentals and practices to use each day. How do we lead the right kind of life now, today? Awakening to the Sacred shines a very bright laser-like light in my direction...and maybe yours, too. A very special book.

Jim Fox from Detroit, Michigan , May 23, 1999 A warm, concise, humorous road map.
Lama Surya Das is such a wonderful communicator of the Dharma as it applies to all of us in this life. If you are just beginning the quest, donít look to Awakening The Sacred for your answers. But find in this book a friend along the spiritual path, a guide to the answers already inside you. If you are a Buddhist practitioner, a Jewish practitioner, a Christian practitioner...find in this book a friend who walks beside you. As we strive in the West to adapt spirituality to our lives, we have a gift in Lama Das. Read and re-read and re-read his books, then strive to apply, apply, apply. Weíll all be better for your effort.

A reader from California , May 13, 1999 A wonderful guide for developing a personal spirituality...
Lama Surya Das has written a wonderful sequel to his last book, "Awakening the Buddha Within." This effort connects buddhist and eastern practices with daily western life. It will help us in the West develop our own spiritual life and practices without the baggage of eastern cultural traditions. Humerous and very personal stories of his own spiritual development sets a wonderful example of western spiritual awakening. Numerous meditations, chants, practices, etc. present many meaningful contributions to a daily practice. I know my personal spiritual practice will bloom as a result of reading this book.

Stacy Brice from Baltimore, MD , April 27, 1999 Graciously Magical :)
For as long as I can remember, I've been hungry for a book that would answer many of the questions in my seeker's heart, and gently,graciously, and *practically* show me a way to deepen my spiritual practice without preaching to me about any particular creed or belief. Awakening To The Sacred is that book for me.

In his incredibly clear, wise, and humorous style, Lama Surya Das' has written a book that seems to speak directly to me about bringing the sacred into everything I do.... indeed, embracing it in every moment of my life. I've read the book twice now, and know that I am forever changed by what it's taught me.

About the Author
Lama Surya Das has spent thirty years studying with the great spiritual masters of Asia, including the Dalai Lama, and is a leading spokesperson for the emerging American Buddhism and contemporary spirituality. He is a poet, translator, and full-time spiritual teacher who leads lectures, workshops, and meditation retreats worldwide. He is the author of three books, including the national bestseller Awakening the Buddha Within, is active in interfaith dialogue, and has been featured in numerous publications including New Age Journal, the Boston Globe, the Los Angeles Times, and Tricycle. He lives outside Boston, Massachusetts.