Living Yogacara: An Introduction to Consciousness-Only Buddhism Paperback – June 9, 2009

So often a presentation of a Buddhist viewpoint is done from the perspective of someone comparing and contrasting it to an other school as if making an argument for one or the other.This book tries to make the argument for a Buddhist yogic viewpoint by giving you a first-person experience of carrying this perspective in your day-to-day life. It is described from the inside not from the outside. The only reason I don't give it 5 stars is that in introductory chapter or appendix explaining some of the issues about the denigration of the yogcara in the very important Tibetan tradition as well as a little background on the reason that lapsed in Asia as well of its relevance to modern thinking that is turning more and more to yogcara ideas would have been really helpful. I would suggest going from this wonderful direct introduction to the school of Buddhism to Thomas Cleary's "Buddhist Yoga" and exposition of the Sutra with which this tradition began.Together "Living Yogacara" and "Buddhist Yoga" would make a great way to enter into the realm of reality as understood by the yogcara school. I append a list of 3 books to build on. If you could check out the book "Buddhist phenomenology" and read just the 2nd and 3rd and 4th chapters you'll have an excellent background to the deeper materials in that book and the others.Dan Lusthaus, Buddhist Phenomenology: A Philosophical Investigation of Yogacara Buddhism and the Ch'eng Wei-shih Lun (RoutledgeCurzon, 2003).The Scripture on the Explication of Underlying Meaning (Numata Center for Buddhist Translation & Rese, 2000).Three Texts on Consciousness Only (Bdk English Tripitaka Translation Series)

Yogacara Buddhism is an oft-neglected field of study in Western Buddhism it seems due to the difficult terminology, and abstract concepts. However, while little remains of the once-widespread school (now only limited to Japan), Yogacara thought had a strong influence in Tibetan, Zen and Pure Land Buddhism among others. I did not realize how true this was until I read this book.The book is written by the head of the Japanese Hosso sect (Yogacara in Japan), and covers the basics of Yogacara thinking. It delves into theories of the mind the 8 concsciousness, the discriminating mind, and notion of Buddha-nature. It's coverage of the Alaya store conscious is a term I've heard in brief in other Buddhist books, but never understood nor appreciated until now.Rev. Tagawa strives to provide real-life context to difficult abstract concepts, and I feel he strikes a good balance between discussions of practice in real-life and its challenges, with what the Yogacara teaches as a scholarly, philosophical school. He writes from a realistic standpoint about the difficulty of following through on Buddhist practices in real-life, but also encourages and inspires people as well.In Zen for example, one is taught that people apply labels and the discriminating mind to reality itself, but when I studied Yogacara Buddhism, I never appreciated how or why this is done. Yogacara, being the "Consciousness-only school" teaches that reality is dependent on our interpretation of it, but then carefully explains why we interpret things a certain way, and so on. In other words, it takes familiar topics covered elsewhere in Buddhism, and gets to the root theories about why this is so.So, I think many Buddhists would benefit from this book, as a way of giving more of a theoretical/philosophical backbone to their own practices and teachings, given Yogacara's widespread influence. While short, the book is well-written (and translated), and a good investment of time.

I became fascinated with Yogacara when I read about it in a Buddhist publication. It is an in-depth theory about consciousness and the mind from a Buddhist perspective. The problem is that the teachings are very complex and hard to understand. (It is very deep in other words.) The author-- a scholar on Yogacara--knew this and decided to write a book for the average lay person that would make it easier to understand. I must say he did an excellent job. The teachings are very profound once you begin to understand them and I have to thank the author for that. Read this book if you really want to understand how the mind works.

no one mentions that this book is great AND extremely dense and hard too read. i absolutely love it, it is exactly what i wanted. a very in depth explanation of yogacara. however there are points where my brain shuts off after having six sanskrit words thrown at it, followed by three five word phrases that are identical except one word, etc. i have had too read many pages twice.definitely five stars! really amazing book, absolutely perfect in every way. i just wanted too write this so others will know what they are getting into. none of the other reviewers really mentioned this. and it's not me! yogacara is a dense, difficult, and complex system, that's a generally agreed upon point.however if you want too know yogacara, this book is THE book.

It's a great book for those students that want to go deeper into Buddhist psychology.

Very well written and understandable introduction to Yogacara. I would recommend this book for anyone with an interest in Yogacara.

The book arrived damaged

good !

Yogacara Buddhism has played a similarly important role in the development of Mahayana Buddhism as the Prajnaparamita and Madhayamika, but there is much less material available than for these other two schools. This book provides a simple yet thorough introduction to such central Yogacara concepts as the alayavijnana (store-consciousness) the "seeds" that are stored there and the process of seeds conditioning manifest activity and manifest activity conditioning seeds.It also discusses, in accessible language, the three subjective transformations that take place in our cognition of objects along with the various mental factors accompanying that cognition.Recommended for those who wish to deepen their understanding of the Mahayana and of some schools, such as the Pure Land, that may seem un-Buddhist to Westerners.

Overall a good translation, very clear, of an original Japanese publication on the difficult subject of the Yogacara school of Buddhism. The teachings of this school of thought are particularly subtle and need a lot of chewing over before they become digestible, let alone assimilated. Worth the effort, though. It will open a whole new perspective on life for anybody who engages seriously with it. The approach could be simpler in places but, that said, it will certainly make you think!

This book contains a deceptively simple explosion of a very complex subject. After reading each chapter, you have to stop and ponder its implications. I found it to be a lucid and informative read. It changed the way I saw myself and others - and also the way I interact with them. One of the more rewarding books I have ever read.

Simple, accesible yet profound. Gives an introduction to yogacara and goes over some basic Buddhist princeples as well. Reading this book has (i think) made me understand some of the more complex Buddhist Sutras I had read before it more clearly. I wish I had had this book a few years ago..

I am impressed by the ease with which the author tackles such deep philosophical material. The translation is clearly explained and deviations for the western culture are minimal. While I am currently seeking meaning, I am by no means a Buddhist, however this book gave me a clear insight into the beginnings of this fascinating ideology. An excellent read!