Buddhist Reading List

The Discourses of the Buddha

• * In the Buddha's Words, edited and introduced by Bhikkhu Bodhi, Wisdom Publications, 2005, ISBN: 0861714911
  • This is the book to get when you are ready to start reading suttas. Bhikkhu Bodhi has done an excellent job of selecting suttas, grouping them by topics and providing a very helpful introduction for each topic -

  recommended

  .
• * Digha Nikaya, translated by Maurice Walshe, Wisdom Publications, 1995, ISBN: 0861711033
  recommend numbers: 2, 9, 11, 15, 16, 22
• * Majjhima Nikaya, translated by Bhikkhu Ñanamoli & Bhikkhu Bodhi, Wisdom Publications, 1995, ISBN: 0-86171-072-X
  recommend numbers: 2, 22, 26, 36, 38, 86, 118
• * Samyutta Nikaya, translated by Bhikkhu Bodhi, Wisdom Publications, 2003, ISBN: 0861713311
  recommended sections: 12, 22, 35
• * Anguttara Nikaya, translated by Bhikkhu Bodhi, Wisdom Publications, 2012, ISBN: 1614290407
  recommended sections: 3, 4, 5
• The Suttanipata: An Ancient Collection of the Buddha’s Discourses, trans by Bhikkhu Bodhi, Wisdom 2017, ISBN: 1614294291
• The Rhinoceros Horn - And Other Early Buddhist Poems: Sutta Nipata, translated by K. R. Norman, ISBN: 0860131548
  Books 4 & 5 are particularly important. Bhikkhu Bodhi's is easier reading, Norman's is more literal.
• The Buddha before Buddhism translated by Gil Fronsdal, Jaico Publishing House, 2017, ISBN 9789386867292
  Excellent translation and commentary on Book 4 of the Sutta Nipata.
• Udana and the Itivuttaka translated by John D. Ireland
  Two beautiful classics from the Pali Canon.
• The Life of the Buddha, Bhikkhu Ñanamoli, Buddhist Publication Society, Kandy, Sri Lanka
  • The biography of the Buddha extracted from the Discourses -

  recommended

  .

Books that quote extensively from the discourses

• Buddhessence ~ Darryl Bailey extracts the core teachings from the Discourses
  • This booklet may be small (60 pages) but it is

  highly recommended

  . ISBN: 0-9738970-0-7
• * A Swift Pair of Messengers: Calm with Insight from The Buddha's Lips ~ Bhikkhu Sujato,
  Inward Path Publications, P.O. Box 1034, Penang, Malaysia
  Tel/FAX: 04-659-6696, [email protected] or [email protected]
  Excellent discussion of the importance of the Jhanas in the Buddha's discourses
• The Island  ~ Ajahn Pasanno & Ajahn Amaro, Abhayagiri Monastic Foundation, 2009
  • An anthology of the Buddha's teachings on Nibbana with many sutta excerpts as well as informative writings by various modern teachers such as Ajahn Chah, Ajan Mun, Ajahn Buddhadasa, H.H. the Dali Lama, etc -

  recommended

  Many discourses can also be found in the Sutta Database and at SuttaCentral & Access to Insight.

Commentaries for some of the discourses are listed on the Sutta Commentary page.

Book by Leigh Brasington

• * Right Concentration: A Practical Guide to the Jhānas ~ Leigh Brasington, Shambhala, 13 October, 2015, ISBN: 1611802695
  Other Formats:
  auf Deutsch: (German) Das Glück der Meditation (Hier bestellen)
  Magyarul: (Hungarian) A helyes összpontosítás
  Nederlands: (Dutch) Juiste concentratie
  eBook: Kindle (scroll down for link) and Nook
• Dependent Origination and Emptiness: Streams Of Dependently Arising Processes Interacting ~ Leigh Brasington, 29 October, 2021, ISBN-13: 978-0578314303
  Formats:
  eBook: PDF, EPUB, Nook, Kindle, Kobo (all free to download)
  Paperback: print-on-demand
• The Gradual Training: The Buddha's Step-by-Step Guide for Awakening ~ Leigh Brasington, 15 March, 2024, ISBN-13: 979-8-218-39293-2
  Formats:
  eBook: PDF, EPUB, Nook, Kindle, Kobo (all free to download)
  Paperback: print-on-demand

Books by Ayya Khema

• The Path to Peace: A Buddhist Guide to Cultivating Loving-Kindness ~ Ayya Khema, Edited by Leigh Brasington, Shambhala Publications, 19 July, 2022, ISBN: 9781611809503   [Book Review]   [Excerpt]   [Audible]
• * Who Is My Self?: A Guide to Buddhist Meditation ~ Ayya Khema, Wisdom Publications 1997
• * When the Iron Eagle Flies ~ Ayya Khema, Arkana (a division Penguin Books) 1991
  * republished as Know Where You're Going ~ Ayya Khema, Wisdom Publications, 2014
• * Visible Here and Now ~ Ayya Khema, Shambhala Publications, 2001, ISBN: 1-57062-492-5
• Be an Island : The Buddhist Practice of Inner Peace ~ Ayya Khema, Wisdom Publications(?) 1999
• Come and See for Yourself : The Buddhist Path to Happiness ~ Ayya Khema, Windhorse Books, 2002
• I Give You My Life : The Autobiography of a Western Buddhist Nun ~ Ayya Khema, Shambhala 1998, ISBN: 1-57062-415-1
  A "good read" with nuggets of spiritual wisdom woven into an engrossing adventure
• Being Nobody, Going Nowhere ~ Ayya Khema, Wisdom Publications 1988
  Excellent for beginners

   

Books by Matara Sri Ñanarama Mahathera

• The Seven Stages of Purification and the Insight Knowledges ~ Matara Sri Ñanarama Mahathera, Buddhist Publication Society -- 955-24-0059-7
• Seven Contemplations of Insight ~ Matara Sri Ñanarama Mahathera, Buddhist Publication Society -- 955-24-0124-0
  • These detailed descriptions of the path of insight are available from

  Vipassana Publications

Books by Thanissaro Bhikkhu (Geoffrey DeGraff)

• * The Wings to Awakening ~ Thanissaro Bhikkhu, Dhamma Dana Publications, c/o Barre Center for Buddhist Studies, 149 Lockwood Road, Barre, MA 01005
• The Mind Like Fire Unbound ~ Thanissaro Bhikkhu, Dhamma Dana Publications, c/o Barre Center for Buddhist Studies, 149 Lockwood Road, Barre, MA 01005
• * The Paradox of Becoming ~ by Thanissaro Bhikkhu, Dhamma Dana Publications, c/o Barre Center for Buddhist Studies, 149 Lockwood Road, Barre, MA 01005

Other Books on the Jhanas

• * The Experience of Samadhi: An In-depth Exploration of Buddhist Meditation ~ Richard Shankman, Shambala Press, Boston, 2008
• * Tranquility and Insight ~ Amadeo Sole-Leris, Shambala Publications
• * Buddhist Meditation in Theory and Practice ~ Mahathera Vajiranana, Buddhist Missionary Society
• * For more books on the Jhanas, see my Interpretations of the Jhanas page.

Books by Buddhadasa Bhikkhu

• Heartwood of the Bodhi Tree, Buddhadasa Bhikkhu; Wisdom Publications, ISBN: 0-86171-035-5
• Under the Bodhi Tree: Original Vision of Dependent Co-arising, Buddhadasa Bhikkhu; Wisdom, 2017, ISBN: 1614292191
• Paticcasamuppada: Practical Dependent Origination, Buddhadasa Bhikkhu; c/o Suan Mokkhabalarama, Chaiya, Suratthani 84110, Thailand (send a nice donation to cover the cost of the book plus shipping - occasionally this shows up online, search for it)
• Mindfulness with Breathing - A Manual for Serious Beginners, Buddhadasa Bhikkhu; Wisdom Publications, 1996

Books on the Satipatthana Sutta

• * Satipatthana - The Direct Path to Realization ~ Analayo, Windhorse Books, 2003, ISBN: 1899579540
  • A thorough and insightful guide to the deceptively simple yet profound teaching found in the

  Satipatthana Sutta

• Perspectives on Satipatthana ~ Analayo, Windhorse Publications, 2013, ISBN: 978-1-909314-03-0
  • A very scholarly follow-up to his previous book above that looks at the

  Satipatthana

   teachings via the parallel versions of this sutta found in Chinese, Tibetan & Sanskrit.
• Mindfulness - A Practical Guide To Awakening ~ Joseph Goldstein, Sounds True, 2013, ISBN 978-1-62203-063-7
  • A very accessible look at the

  Satipatthana Sutta

   from a practice perspective.
• A History Of Mindfulness  ~ Bhikkhu Sujato
  • A scholarly look at the history of the composition of the Pali Suttas in general and of the

  Satipatthana Sutta

   in great detail.

More Theravadan Writings

• From Craving to Liberation  and From Grasping to Emptiness  ~ Analayo, free PDF files
  • These are

  Excursions into the Thought-world of the Pali Discourses

   with insights into the deeper meanings of words commonly used in Buddhism.
• * Absorption - Two Studies of Human Nature  ~ Johannes Bronkhorst, 2009
  1. How the human faculty of speech is inseparable from some other human particulars, most notably religion and culture. Particularly notice how the "wordless" view is the same as the "absolute" view and the "wordy" view is the "relative."
  2. A rudimentary psychological theory centered on motivation and highlighting the role of absorption in dealing with craving.

   

• Concept and Reality  in Early Buddhist Thought ~ Bhikkhu Katukurunde Ñānananda, BPS, 1971, ISBN 955-24-0136-4
  An Essay on Papañca and Papañca-Saññā-Sankhā that sheds new light on a perennial problem of philosophy, indicated in the title, Concept and Reality. Read this little book to gain an understanding of what the Buddha really meant when he talked of "unborn -- unbecome -- unmade -- unfabricated." (Note the linked PDF file has a couple of pages missing, but the jist of the book is certainly all there.)

   

• How Buddhism Began ~ Richard Gombrich, Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers Pvt. Ltd., 1997
  A look at the suttas of the Pali Canon focusing on how we cannot understand the Buddha's teachings without understanding that he is debating other religious traditions of his time plus focusing on the Buddha's use of metaphor & allegory (and examining the resulting literalism of later interpretations).
• What the Buddha Thought ~ Richard Gombrich, Equniox, 2009, ISBN: 978-1-84553-614-5
  • Continuing the in depth study found in

  How Buddhism Began

  , Gombrich points to the primacy of ethics, karma, the use of the fire metaphor and more as he show how the Buddha was one of the most brilliant and original thinkers of all time.

   

• Mutual Causality in Buddhism and General System Theory ~ Joanna Macy, SUNY Press, 1991, ISBN: 0791406377
  The commonality of Dependent Origination and Systems Theory is explored in this advanced book full of deep insight into the non-linear nature of the Universe.

   

• What factors motivate and support an 8-week mindfulness course participant to establish and maintain a mindfulness practice?  ~ Jiva Masheder, Master's Dissertation, University of Exeter, December 2013
  Jiva's dissertation is a very useful exploration of the factors that enable one to establish and maintain a daily meditation practice.

   

• A Secular Buddhist  ~ Stephen Batchelor
  • Buddhism today in the West comes in many forms - from the

  traditional 3 schools

   to Vipassana to Mindfulness Based Therapies. Since Buddhism doesn't seem to require being embedded is any religious institution, it can be practiced on a secular level. Stephen Batchelor explores this Secular Buddhism.

   

• The Craving Mind ~ Judson Brewer, Yale University Press, 2017
  What’s your addiction? Take a look at Jud Brewer’s new book that combines his scientific studies, clinical insights and personal mindfulness practice to help us overcome bad habits and foster new ones.

   

• Full Simplicity: The Art of Renunciation and Letting Go ~ Kim Allen, Uncontrived Publications, 2023
  An invaluable and practical guide to renunciation as a path for lay Buddhist practitioners.

   

• The Kosambi Intrigue; A Tale in the Time of the Buddha [Available in paperback and for the Kindle] ~ Susan Stone, 2012
  An historical novel set in the time of the Buddha, a real page-turner. I really enjoyed reading this book. It transports one back 2500 years to another time and another place - a setting that students of Buddhism will recognize but find so much richer than they ever encountered before.
• The Jealous Heart: A Hundred Hues of Green in the Time of the Buddha (The Sati Trilogy) (Volume 2) [Available in paperback and for the Kindle] ~ Susan Stone, 2016
  • Book 2 of the Sati Trilogy continues the story found in

  The Kosambi Intrigue; A Tale in the Time of the Buddha

  .
• The Yes Sayers: Affirmation in the Time of the Buddha (The Sati Trilogy) (Volume 3) [Available in paperback and for the Kindle] ~ Susan Stone, 2018
  • Book 3 of the Sati Trilogy concludes the story found in

  The Kosambi Intrigue; A Tale in the Time of the Buddha.

Mahayana Books

• Verses from the Center : A Buddhist Vision of the Sublime, by Nagarjuna, translated by Stephen Batchelor; Riverhead Books, ISBN: 1573221627
  Includes a very helpful and wonderful 80 page introduction.
• The Fundamental Wisdom of the Middle Way by Nagarjuna, translated by Jay L. Garfield; Oxford University Press; (November 1995) ISBN: 0195093364
  After you have digested Batchelor's poetic translation, check out Garfield's scholarly translation which has a very good commentary as well.

   

• Beyond True And False by Graham Priest; Aeon Magazine (5 May 2014)
  Buddhist philosophy is full of contradictions. Now modern logic is learning why that might be a good thing. This 3700 word essay looks at the the logic of teachings of the Buddha and Nagarjuna showing that modern mathematics is now proposing very similar ideas.

   

• Passionate Enlightenment: Women in Tantric Buddhism, Miranda Shaw, Princeton University Press, ISBN: 0-691-01090-0

Books for Teens

• Wide Awake: A Buddhist Guide for Teens, by Diana Winston; Perigee Books (A division of PenguinPutnam Group); 5 August 2003, ISBN: 0399528970

History

• The Buddhist Religion: A Historical Introduction (Third Edition) by Richard H. Robinson and Willard L. Johnson; Wadsworth Publishing Company, 1982, ISBN: 0-534-01027-X
• The Awakening of the West: The Encounter of Buddhism and Western Culture by Stephen Batchelor; London: Aquarian Press/ Berkeley: Parallax Press, 1994, ISBN: 0938077694

Non-Buddhist books & articles of interest to students of Buddhism

The Giving Heart: Folktales for Exploring Generosity ~ Margo McLoughlin, Salsbury House Press, ISBN: 978-0-9916880-1-2
An anthology and a guide. Twenty-four folktales from around the world reveal the many ways that cultures teach generosity. Introductory notes decribe the process for starting a story-circle, and each story is followed by questions and prompts to spark readers' and listeners' own stories.

The Meme Machine ~ Susan Blackmore Oxford University Press 1999, ISBN: 0-19-286212-X

The theory of Memetics provides a scientific explanation for the Buddha's teaching of not-self (anatta). Dr. Blackmore's book explains Meme and Memetics Highly Recommended!

The Perceptual Form of Life ~ Christine A. Skarda [Abstract and Article ] - originally published in the Journal of Consciousness Studies, Vol 6 (November/December) 1999 and reprinted in the book Reclaiming Cognition - The Primacy of Action, Intention and Emotion, Edited by Rafael Nuñez and Walter Freeman, ISBN: 0 907845 06 1

The 3rd Khanda (Perception) explained - completely!

• A Universe of Consciousness ~ Gerald M. Edelman and Giulio Tononi, Basic Books 2000, ISBN: 0-465-01377-5Superb explanation of consciousness from a scientific perspective - but not an easy read. This book gives real insight into not only consciousness but also into how perception (sañña) and concepts (sankharas) evolved first and the role they play in generating consciousness.
• Destructive Emotions ~ Daniel Goldman, Bantam Books 2003, ISBN: 0-553-38105-9
  Daniel Goldman narrates a dialogue between the Dali Lama and Western scientists - brain science, teaching emotions, Buddhist & Western psychology - totally interesting.
• Why God Won't Go Away - Brain Science and the Biology of Belief ~ Andrew Newberg, Eugene D'Aquili, and Vince Rause, Ballantine Books, ISBN: 0-345-44033-1

Extremely interesting brain science, very readable; questionable philosophical conclusions, somewhat controversial. See Abstract from 29 Jan '01 Newsweek magazine.

• My Stroke of Insight: A Brain Scientist's Personal Journey ~ Jill Bolte Taylor, PhD, Penguin Group 2008, ISBN-13: 9780670020744
  Dr. Taylor relates what it was like to have her left brain shut down as the result of a stroke - and the insights that brings into the nature of consciousness. She also tells of her 8 year recovery from this very serious stroke. Remarkable!
• Mastering the Art of Psychotherapy ~ William Symes, Green Writers Press, 2016, ISBN: 0996135758
  The Principles Of Effective Psychological Change, Challenging The Boundaries Of Self-Expression. Altho written for practicing psychotherapists, this is a great book for anyone who wants to understand how psychological expression manifests and evolves.

Other books of interest

• Bury The Chains: Prophets and Rebels in the Fight to Free an Empire's Slaves ~ Adam Hochschild, Houghton Mifflin, ISBN: 0618104690
  • • This history of the ending of slavery in the British Empire reads like a page-turning adventure novel. This movement was the grandaddy of all social action. Highly Recommended!

* This book includes discussion of the Jhanas