If The Buddha Married

Zen and the art of falling in love . . . At once practical, playful, and spiritually sound, this book is about creating a new love story in your life. Drawing from Christian, Buddhist, Sufi and other spiritual traditions, If the Buddha Dated shows how to find a partner without losing yourself. Kasl, a practicing psychotherapist, workshop leader, and Reiki healer for thirty years, offers practical wisdom on using the path to love as a means of awakening. If the Buddha Dated teaches that when you stay loyal to your spiritual journey, you will bring curiosity, fascination, and a light heart to the dating process.

Zen and the art of lasting relationships . . . Filled with the same lighthearted, highly practical, spiritually sound guidance that resonated with readers of If the Buddha Dated, this book is a fresh and inspiring guide for anyone who wants to strengthen, deepen, or revitalize a relationship or marriage. Charlotte Kasl, PhD, renowned for her ability to speak with depth, wisdom, and humor on important matters of the heart, empowers us to create fulfilling and vibrant relationships throuhg a commitment to awareness, truth, and compassion. If the Buddha Married explores how a "beginner's mind" can help us see our partners and ourselves afresh each day as we learn to nurture our commitment to each other. Marriage is truly a journey. Combining key teachings of Buddhism, Christianity, and other spiritual traditions with elements of psychology, this book is a wise and trusted guide through the joys and challenges of relationships that last and grow.

Zen and the art of raising children to make peace in the world . . . In this wise and insightful volume, Charlotte Kasl applies her signature blend of spiritual guidelines, exercises, and practical advice to a stage of life that leaves many of us searching for answers. If the Buddha Had Kids draws from Buddhist, Quaker, and other spiritual traditions to help parents raise children who value cooperation, compassion, and understanding, emphasizing that finding peace within a family is the first step toward creating a peaceful world. Beginning with creating a healthy bond with your child and moving through all stages of life, encouraging empathy, respect, fascination, and curiosity, Kasl explores the spiritual journey of parenting. She also draws on her decades of experience as a healer and practicing psychotherapist to tackle very practical concerns such as the roles of electronics, money, sexuality, and education, and what it means to find one’s voice. This lively book promises to bring inspiration, humor, and wisdom to the joys and struggles of raising children in our contemporary world, and will serve as an enlightening companion for all moms and dads.

"Susan Piver consistently offers what so many of us seek: A generous, caring, loving teacher, someone with an open heart and a clear mind, eager to help us find our own way forward." —Seth Godin, author of Linchpin Broken hearts, resentment, affairs, divorce. Why is it so hard to make relationships work? New York Times bestselling author and mindfulness expert Susan Piver applies classic Buddhist wisdom to modern romance, including her own long-term relationship, to show that ancient philosophies have timeless—and unexpected—wisdom on how to love. The Four Noble Truths of Love will challenge the expectations you have about dating, sex, and romance, liberating you from the habits, traumas, and expectations that have been holding back your relationships. This mindful approach toward love will help you open your heart fearlessly, deepen communications with your partner, increase your compassion and resilience, and lead you toward a path of true happiness. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain: expansive, real love for yourself and others.

Zen and the art of getting unstuck . . . Perennial favorites, Charlotte Kasl’s If the Buddha Dated, If the Buddha Married and If the Buddha Had Kids have inspired readers with their empowering balance of spiritual and psychological wisdom. This wise yet lighthearted book extends on Dr. Kasl's trademark insight to speak to anyone who's ever experienced being stuck in life. With her signature clarity, wisdom, and wit, she presents seven simple yet profound steps on the path to change: Notice Where You're Stuck; Show Up; Pay Attention; Live in Reality; Connect with Others, Connect with Life; Move from Thought to Action; and Let Go. Full of insight from Buddhist and other teachings that emphasize the joy that comes with letting go of fears and attachments, If the Buddha Got Stuck is an inspirational and practical roadmap to a happier, more peaceful, and more fulfilling life.

As the category of women’s spirituality continues to grow, The Buddha’s Wife offers to a broad audience for the first time the intimate and profound story of Princess Yasodhara, the wife Buddha left behind, and her alternative journey to spiritual enlightenment. What do we know of the wife and child the Buddha abandoned when he went off to seek his enlightenment? The Buddha’s Wife brings this rarely told story to the forefront, offering a nuanced portrait of this compelling and compassionate figure while also examining the practical applications her teachings have on our modern lives. Princess Yasodhara’s journey is one full of loss, grief, and suffering. But through it, she discovered her own enlightenment within the deep bonds of community and “ordinary” relationships. While traditional Buddhism emphasizes solitary meditation, Yasodhara’s experience speaks of “The Path of Right Relation,” of achieving awareness not alone but together with others. The Buddha’s Wife is comprised of two parts: the first part is a historical narrative of Yasodhara’s fascinating story, and the second part is a “how-to” reader’s companion filled with life lessons, practices, and reflections for the modern seeker. Her story provides a relational path, one which speaks directly to our everyday lives and offers a doorway to profound spiritual maturation, awakening, and wisdom beyond the solitary, heroic journey.

A breathtaking reimagining of ancient India through the extraordinary life of Yasodhara, the woman who married the Buddha—from the bestselling, award-winning author of Funny Boy and The Hungry Ghosts. In this sweeping tale, at once epic and intimate, Shyam Selvadurai introduces us to Siddhartha Gautama—who will later become “the enlightened one,” or the Buddha—an unusually bright and politically astute young man settling into his upper-caste life as a newlywed to Yasodhara, a woman of great intelligence and spirit. Mansions of the Moon traces the couple’s early love and life together, and then the anguished turmoil that descends upon them both as Siddhartha’s spiritual calling takes over and the marriage partnership slowly, inexorably crumbles. Eventually, Yasodhara is forced to ask what kind of life a woman can lead in ancient India if her husband abandons her—even a well-born woman such as herself. And is there a path she, too, might take towards enlightenment? Award-winning writer Shyam Selvadurai examines these questions with empathy and insight, creating a vivid portrait of a fascinating time and place, the intricate web of power, family and relationships that surround a singular marriage, and the remarkable woman who, until now, has remained a little-understood shadow in the historical record. Mansions of the Moon is an immersive, lively and thrilling feat of literary imagination.

What about Buddha's wife? We all know that Prince Siddhartha left his wife and infant son to begin his journey to enlightenment. The Pali canon does not mention the woman he left behind. Yasodharā enters the commentarial tradition around the first century CE and lives on in the folk tradition, growing from a shadowy figure to a nun and arahat (an Enlightened One), even gaining magical powers. In this book, Ranjini Obeyesekere offers a translation of two works from Sri Lanka on this intriguing figure. The Yasodharāvata (The Story of Yasodharā) is a folk poem, whose best-known verses are Yasodharā's lament over the departure of her husband. The Yasodharāpadānaya (The Sacred Biography of Yasodharā) is an account of Yasodharā as a nun capable of miracles, who has traveled through saṃsāra with the Bodhisattva, and who is praised by him. Obeyesekere places these works within their historical and literary context and provides a glossary of Buddhist terms.