The Pocket Chögyam Trungpa

by Chögyam Trungpa

A pocket-sized treasury of short teachings on living life with courage and compassion—from one of the most influential Buddhist teachers of our time

Chögyam Trungpa (1940–1987), one of the most influential Tibetan meditation masters to practice and teach in the West, used to say that wisdom can be taught only in the form of a hint —a hint that inclines us to recognize the wisdom in us all along. Here are 108 marvelous hints from the renowned teacher so supremely skilled at dropping them. The Pocket Chögyam Trungpa will serve as a compact introduction to his teachings for those not yet familiar with him—and as a wonderful source of daily inspiration for those who are.

The Shambhala Pocket Library is a collection of short, portable teachings from notable figures across religious traditions and classic texts. The covers in this series are rendered by Colorado artist Robert Spellman. The books in this collection distill the wisdom and heart of the work Shambhala Publications has published over 50 years into a compact format that is collectible, reader-friendly, and applicable to everyday life.

Genres: Buddhism, Spirituality, Religion, Philosophy, Nonfiction

144 pages, Paperback

First published November 11, 2008

About the author

Vidyadhara Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche (Tibetan: ཆོས་ རྒྱམ་ དྲུང་པ་ Wylie: Chos rgyam Drung pa; also known as Dorje Dradul of Mukpo, Surmang Trungpa, after his monastery, or Chökyi Gyatso, of which Chögyam is an abbreviation) was a Buddhist meditation master, scholar, teacher, poet, and artist. He was the 11th descendent in the line of Trungpa tulkus of the Kagyü school of Tibetan Buddhism. He was also trained in the Nyingma tradition, the oldest of the four schools, and was an adherent of the rimay or "non-sectarian" movement within Tibetan Buddhism, which aspired to bring together and make available all the valuable teachings of the different schools, free of sectarian rivalry.

Trungpa was a significant figure in the dissemination of Tibetan Buddhism to the West, founding Naropa University and establishing the Shambhala Training method, a presentation of the Buddhadharma largely devoid of ethnic trappings. In 1963, he moved to England to study comparative religion, philosophy, and fine arts at Oxford University. During this time, he also studied Japanese flower arranging and received an instructors degree from the Sogetsu school of ikebana. In 1967, he moved to Scotland, where he founded the Samye Ling meditation centre.

Shortly thereafter, a variety of experiences—including a car accident that left him partially paralyzed on the left side of his body—led him to give up his monastic vows and work as a lay teacher. In 1969, he published Meditation in Action , the first of fourteen books on the spiritual path published during his lifetime. The following year he married Diana Pybus and moved to the United States, where he established his first North American meditation centre, Tail of the Tiger (now known as Karmê-Chöling) in Barnet, Vermont.

In 1986, he moved to Nova Scotia, Canada, where hundreds of his students had settled. That Autumn, after years of heavy alcohol use, he had a cardiac arrest, and he died of heart failure the following Spring. His legacy is carried on by his son, Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche, under the banner of Shambhala International and the Nalanda Translation Committee.

Reviews

[Vivien · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have read through this entire pocket-sized book of wisdom & now always keep it in my purse to read often. I find new insight each time.

[Avinash · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one is a really concise book which mainly talks about the teachings of Buddha. This book gives an insight about how meditation can give a broad direction your life and how it may help you to enjoy the journey of life instead of focussing on the end of life often referred by us as ‘Life’s Goal’

[Lalena · Rating 5 out of 5]

I keep this and the Pocket Pema Chodron on my phone. Whenever I need to take in some mindfulness teaching during a stressful day it's right there. No matter what page I turn to it's just what I needed to read.

[Bernie Gourley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This pocket-sized guide consists of 108 excerpts drawn from the writings of Chögyam Trungpa, a prolific -- if controversial -- teacher of Tibetan Buddhism. Chögyam Trungpa may have been most famous in the West for coining the English term “Crazy Wisdom,” and for founding Naropa University in Boulder, Colorado. [Note: while he coined the term “Crazy Wisdom,” he didn’t originate the concept, which existed already – arguably in multiple forms -- in Vajrayana Buddhism from olden times.] Beyond basic Buddhist philosophy, he wrote extensively on Buddhist Psychology, Tantric Buddhism, and the Buddhist conception of warriorship.

The book is designed to be picked up at any point. There isn’t a formal grouping of concepts, but rather the book meanders around, revisiting ideas such as Enlightenment, Emptiness, emotional intelligence in multiple locations throughout the book. The entries are between a paragraph and a page long in most cases.

I found a great deal of food-for-thought in this book and would highly recommend it for those wishing to dip a toe into the teachings of Chögyam Trungpa.

[Stevie Ada · Rating 4 out of 5]

Chögyam Trungpa is a thinker who I refer to because of his understanding in regards to the complexities of living in a modern world. He in some ways embraced our modern conveniences and obsessions more directly than other Buddhist philosophers I have encountered. Sometimes leaning toward a bit sensationalist, I admire his ability to keep one foot in his piety and the other in the human urges we might all have and struggle to contain. It has been a pleasure to keep this small reader in my backpack since 2015. Before every race or half marathon or marathon, I flip to a random passage and let that be the message I think about during the miles I run. The reader I have is now falling apart - I should probably purchase a new one.

[Aimee · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this little book. I will definitely refer to it often. Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche had insights of such depth.

[Margaret · Rating 1 out of 5]

Trungpa was a con man who formed a cult, in some ways similar to Donald Trump. Contrary to the descriptions of his sexual relations with students provided by other reviewers, he was a predator who, for example, had his cult followers violently sexually assault poets W.S. Merwin and Dana Noane while he watched and taunted them with racist insults. Trungpa's Shambhala successors carried on his hateful legacy - one of them concealed his HIV infection and infected many students, at least one of whom died, and Trungpa's son has been accused of multiple accounts of rape. I attended a tradition Tibetan temple with my family for years and we were always treated with love consistent with the teachings of the buddha and when I asked about Shambhala, I was told that it had nothing to do with buddhism. I recommend reading Andrea Winn's Buddhist Project Sunshine.

[Mike He · Rating 5 out of 5]

A little but powerful book full of sparks of wisdom. With The Pocket Chogyam Trungpa, one's journey in life will never be less meaningful and fruitful.

[Gene Bobker · Rating 5 out of 5]

perfect

[Pro Mukherjee · Rating 5 out of 5]

A real treasure - lighting up new perspectives in age old wisdom (for me anyway !)

[John Kerl · Rating 2 out of 5]

Makes confusing the very things I've seen made lucid elsewhere.

[Xander Fraum · Rating 5 out of 5]

A small little book containing Chogyam Trungpa's philosophy. Each page has something valuable to say on it. It's a very good introductory text to him, is pleasant to read and is worth reading multiple times.

[Sharon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyed the writings of Chogyam Trungpa.
Small enough book to place in my purse and carry with me and read on appointments.
Very enlightening text to know Buddha better..