Lama Surya Das is the founder and spiritual director of the Dzogchen Foundation in Massachusetts and California. He has written many books and is also a poet, translator, and social activist. He is profiled as one of the Living Spiritual Teachers on this website. This paperback is a collection of his dharma talks on the essentials of Buddhist thought and practice. The book is divided into sections on:
• Sustaining the Essence
• The Facts of Life from a Buddhist Perspective
• Practice Is Perfect
• Contemporary Spiritual Expression
Surya Das writes in the introduction that the purpose of Buddhism is spiritual enlightenment, self-realization, inner freedom, and serenity and liberation from delusion. "This timeless legacy transcends distance and time, offering us effective instruction and guidance, encouragement, inspiration, and interior illumination." In a talk in the first section, he states that the miracle of total awareness and our innate goodness is "the Buddha in the palm of our hand." How we use this potential is up to each one of us. He calls Buddhism "an inside job" as we seek to do our inner work on ourselves and for the benefit of all. Whether writing about the Three Trainings, the Eightfold Path to Enlightenment, or the Six Principles of Enlightened Living, he shows how the dharma brings out the best in us.
In the section on Practice, Surya Das talks about Buddhist community, chanting, altar practice, retreats, Tibetan energy Yoga, and dream assessment. His late Tibetan master had a handwritten book of mantras to be used for every activity and every single step of the way along the path of daily life.
In the final section of The Mind Is Mightier than the Sword, the author shares way he has found to integrate dharma into daily life. Here he covers spiritual intelligence, creativity and spirituality, self-inquiry, the art of true listening, being peace, opening the book of nature, and dancing with life.
