Hundred Thousand Songs of Milarepa (Garma C. C. Chang)

Full Title: Hundred Thousand Songs of Milarepa: The Life Story and Teaching of the Greatest Poet-Saint Ever to Appear in the History of Buddhism
Major Topic: Milarepa’s challenges and teachings
Level: all levels
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For those familiar with Tibetan Buddhism concepts, Milarepa’s songs are an inexhaustible treasury of teaching and instruction. Two [...]

Cultivating the Empty Field (Taigen Dan Leighton)

Full Title: Cultivating the Empty Field: The Silent Illumination of Zen Master Hongzhi
Major Topic: Presence, stability, clarity
Level: All levels
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A 12th century ancestor of Dogen gives sparkling descriptions of presence, where stability and clarity are integrated and phenomena are unrestricted. Translated by Taigen Daniel Leighton and Yi Wu.

The Jewel Ornament of Liberation (Gampopa & Herbert Guenther)

Full Title: The Jewel Ornament of Liberation: The Wish-Fulfilling Gem of the Noble Teachings
Major Topic: Tibetan mahayana Buddhism
Level: all levels
A classical description of the path of spiritual awakening according to the Tibetan Mahayana Buddhist tradition. Gampopa blends the classical Indian scholastic tradition he received in his Kadampa training with the training in practice and mahamudra [...]

Treasury of Precious Qualities (Longchen Yeshe Dorje)

Full Title: Treasury of Precious Qualities: A Commentary on the Root Text of Jigme Lingpa
Major Topic: Tibetan form of Mahayana Buddhism
Level: all levels
Thorough exposition of the concepts and teachings at the base of all Tibetan Buddhist practice. A reference book that provides classical presentations of the path as practiced in Tibetan Buddhism.

Heart Sutra (Red Pine)

Full Title: Heart Sutra
Major Topic: perfection of wisdom
Level: all levels
Probably the most famous sutra in the Buddhist canon. In one page it demolishes conceptual knowing and points to a path to freedom. Memorize it, say it daily, read good commentaries (like this one) and let it soak you.

Verses from the Center (Stephen Batchelor)

Full Title: Verses from the Center: A Buddhist Vision of the Sublime
Major Topic: Direct awareness, experience without conception or projection.
Level: middle, experienced and advanced
Batchelor’s commentary and translation of Nagarjuna transforms a treatise on logic into precise instructions to bring the reader into non-conceptual knowing. Use this book as a practice. Take each section and bring [...]

Diamond Sutra (Red Pine)

Full Title: Diamond Sutra: The Perfection of Wisdom
Major Topic: Direct awareness, experience without conception or projection.
Level: experienced and advanced
Sutra in the Perfection of Wisdom genre. Provides the basis for the practice of the Great Middle Way. To get the most out of this book, read each exchange between Buddha and Subhuti, and feel the [...]

How to Cook Your Life (Dogen & Uchiyama Roshi)

Full Title: How to Cook Your Life: From the Zen Kitchen to Enlightenment
Major Topic: how to live in awareness
Level: middle, experienced and advanced
Probably the best book describing what living in awareness is actually like. Previously published as From the Zen Kitchen to Enlightenment: Refining Your Life. On the first read, go straight to the [...]

Great Path of Awakening (Jamgon Kongtrul & Ken McLeod)

Full Title: Great Path of Awakening: The Classic Guide to Lojong, a Tibetan Buddhist Practice for Cultivating the Heart of Compassion
Major Topic: mind training, taking and sending, lojong, tonglen
Level: middle and experienced
Mind training in the seven points is probably the most widely known mind training instruction. Kongtrul provides clear, authoritative commentary for the [...]

Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind (Shunryu Suzuki)

Full Title: Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind
Major Topic: meditation and how to live
Level: all levels
Provides insight and understanding at every stage of your practice; keep a copy on your bedside table. A classic book, keep it by your bed, read it whenever you need inspiration, guidance, encouragement, or a reminder..