Addiction

by The Tricycle Foundation, Trudy Walter, Joan Tollifson

The best way to understand what samsara feels like might be to reflect upon our addictions. Compulsive behavior can take many forms: eating, shopping, or cultivating thought patterns. Even going to the gym can be addictive, as we sometimes turn ordinarily healthy habits into self-destructive obsessions. This Tricycle e-book offers Buddhist wisdom and advice from over a dozen teachers on addiction and recovery.

* “Leaning into Rawness,” by Trudy Walter
* “Bare Bones Meditation,” by Joan Tollifson
* “A Glob of Tar,” by Upasika Kee Nanayon
* “Confessions of a Dharma Punk,” by Noah Levine
* “Eating and the Wheel of Life,” by Sandra Weinberg
* “Sunset Boulevard,” by Erik Hansen
* “The Dignity of Restraint,” by Thanissaro Bhikkhu
* “For a Mouthful of Grass,” by Shantideva
* “Drink and a Man,” by Joan Duncan Oliver
* “The Merry-Go-Round of Desire,” an interview with Mark Epstein
* “Feeding Your Demons,” by Tsultrim Allione
* “The Non-Use of Intoxicants,” by Nancy Baker
* “Recovery and the Fifth Precept,” by Don Lattin
* “Just Shut Up,” an interview with Robert Chodo Campbell

110 pages, ebook

First published January 1, 2012

About the author

Established in 1990 as a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) educational organization, The Tricycle Foundation is dedicated to making Buddhist teachings and practices broadly available. In 1991 the Foundation launched Tricycle: The Buddhist Review, the first magazine intended to present Buddhist perspectives to a Western readership. Tricycle soon became the leading independent journal of Buddhism in the West, where it continues to be the most inclusive and widely read vehicle for the dissemination of Buddhist views and values. Our readership includes longtime practitioners, those who are curious about Buddhism or meditation, and those who do not identify as Buddhist but value the teachings of wisdom and compassion that Buddhism has to offer.

By remaining unaffiliated with any particular teacher, sect or lineage, Tricycle provides a unique and independent public forum for exploring Buddhism, establishing a dialogue between Buddhism and the broader culture, and introducing Buddhist thinking to Western disciplines. This approach has enabled Tricycle to successfully attract readers from all walks of life, many of whom desire to enrich their lives through a deeper knowledge of Buddhist traditions.

Reviews

[Viv JM · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this thinking it would help me understand a family member's struggle with addiction. After reading, I realise that we are probably all addicted - if not to drugs or alcohol, then to other ways of numbing out. We are addicted to our stories. The teachings here contain different ways of addressing these addictive tendencies.

This collection of teachings is full of wisdom and compassion, and was worth the magazine subscription price alone (this is one of a large collection of ebooks made free to subscribers to Tricycle magazine)