Must read books?

[Nicholas2727]

What are some of the must read books in your opinion? I am open to suggestions from any lineage! Preferably looking for intermediate level books. I have read a few of the beginner books and have been studying Buddhism for a few years but would not call myself an advanced practitioner.

[lelopa]

I would recommend a book that explains that there is no "must read book" because it depends...

but I do not know any

[FiveSkandhas]

I would recommend a book that explains that there is no "must read book" because it depends...

but I do not know any

It does depend.

Personally, I see the three foundational pillars of my own path as practice, study/wisdom, and morality/compassion.

Your own way may deemphasize study and books. But Sutra study has really helped me, as have other classic works by historical masters. I'm not much of a fan of "Buddhism-lite" modern digests and the like, but for some they have their place.

[PeterC]

There's so much to read, I'm not sure anyone could come up with a list of 'essential' books. But if you ask your teacher, they will be able to tell you what is most helpful for you to study right now.

[Losal Samten]

Taranatha's Essence of Ambrosia is the best introductory/foundational book on Buddhism imo; in how it lays out the path by setting up a series of contemplations, from the start of generating a virtuous worldy mind, to the progression of the Hinayana renunciation of samsara, and then finally to the Mahayana mindset of achieving buddhahood for the benefit of oneself and others.

www.amazon.com/Essence-Ambrosia-Guide-B ... 8186470379

e.g.

I need to attain buddhahood. I therefore need to cultivate bodhicitta since it is the cause of buddhahood. The cause of bodhicitta is compassion. The cause of compassion is love. The cause of love is appreciation and gratefulness. The cause of appreciation is recognising all sentient beings have been my parents. I should meditate on developing these qualities in stages.

[FiveSkandhas]

I'm rather partial to the Navagrantha...

The Navagrantha are the nine most sacred texts of Mahāyāna Buddhism. As a whole, they form the Dharma Maṇḍala. This site connects to resources that can be used to learn and study the Navagrantha, and is based upon handouts designed for reading groups wherein the Navagrantha are studied.
https://sites.google.com/site/learningthenavagrantha/

[Nicholas2727]

Thank you for the suggestions. I should correct myself, I did not mean literal "must" read books. What I meant was what is the book you have learned the most from or what books had the biggest impact on your practice. Any books you highly suggest would fall into this category.

[kirtu]

What are some of the must read books in your opinion? I am open to suggestions from any lineage! Preferably looking for intermediate level books. I have read a few of the beginner books and have been studying Buddhism for a few years but would not call myself an advanced practitioner.

It's difficult to say because this is dependent upon what the individual needs.

There is a lot of really excellent basic teaching that is difficult to understand because of how it is presented.
Then as the person matures, as they accumulate merit and their inner wisdom begins to dawn, they will begin to understand things more, like the sun slowly rising from total darkness to the slightest hint of dawn. People are already at different levels and with different mixtures of delusion and a kind of active wisdom.

Probably something like this:
1. An exposition of Buddha Shakyamuni's life
2. The facts of life: we and everyone we love and hate are going to die and will get blown around in samsara due to their karma. The karma aspect can take a long, long time to understand other than intellectually.
3. How to tame our minds though practice but especially meditation. Meditation can also be used to deepen delusion. We are experts in deepening delusion.
4. Pathways to Buddhahood or Arhanthood

So
1. "Old Path, White Clouds" or some retelling of the The Lalitavistara Sūtra also called The Play in Full or The Extensive Play (some retelling of the life of the Buddha). "What the Buddha Taught" by Walpola Rahula or a similar intro to Buddhism can also fit here.
2. "Words of My Perfect Teacher" by Patrul Rinpoche or "The Jewel Ornament of Liberation" by Gampopa or "The Three Principal Aspects of the Path" by Tsongkhapa or "The Opening of the Lotus" by Lama Sherab Gyaltsen Ampia or "The Three Visions" by Ngorchen Khonchog Lhundrup or "The Meaning of Life from a Buddhist Perspective" by HH Dalai Lama or something like the basic teachings on Milarepa, HH Dalai Lama, Dogen or Nichiren's life or another great master (because they had to face the facts of life directly and usually dramatically). There's a lot of excellent stuff here. But it's easy to gloss over and miss. The 59 Slogans of the Lojong are like that (they can look like a cultural Tibetan Buddhist exposition but they give you the facts of life directly but it can take a while to "get" them). Or perhaps "What the Buddha Taught" by Walpola Rahula. There are a lot of other text's as well but often you have to have some understanding before you can get anything out of them.
3. This is learning attention, concentration, and meditation. This doesn't have to be seated practice. Also anything of basic practice fits here (recitation of the life of the Buddha, sutra recitation [the Heart Sutra of chapters of other sutras or suttas]). Practicing a kind heart and lovingkindness. Refuge prayer and the practice of the Four Immeasurables (May all beings have happiness and the cause of happiness, May all beings be free from sorrow and the causes of sorrow, May no being ever be separated from sorrowless bliss, May all beings live in equanimity, free from attachment and aversion).
4. The second half of most of the books in #2 show this as do many, many other texts and teachings.

Kirt

[kirtu]

What are some of the must read books in your opinion? I am open to suggestions from any lineage! Preferably looking for intermediate level books. I have read a few of the beginner books and have been studying Buddhism for a few years but would not call myself an advanced practitioner.

And then I saw that you were looking for "intermediate" books.
It depends on your practice and experiences.

But fundamentally taming your mind. Whatever arises, whatever happens, good or bad, is fuel for taming or purifying your mind.

Everything is just an exposition on Dharmapada 14:183
"Not to do evil, to cultivate merit, to purify one's mind - this is the Teaching of the Buddhas."

This is essentially an endless spiral set against the backdrop of the Four Noble Truths which is set against the backdrop of our minds already being innate, sleeping Buddhas.

If you are coming from a Tibetan Buddhist background then Jamgon Kongtrul's ten volume "Treasury of Knowledge" as well as the Uttaratantra.
Then everything by Tsele Natsok Rangdröl.

Kirt

[lelopa]

I would recommend a book that explains that there is no "must read book" because it depends...

but I do not know any

It does depend.

Personally, I see the three foundational pillars of my own path as practice, study/wisdom, and morality/compassion.

Your own way may deemphasize study and books. But Sutra study has really helped me, as have other classic works by historical masters. I'm not much of a fan of "Buddhism-lite" modern digests and the like, but for some they have their place.

Yes, you're right.
I like reading very much.
But there is not a single book among mine that anyone must read...
The "must" is very, very personal, I think

[SilenceMonkey]

Bodhisattvacaryavatara by Shantideva
The Nectar of Manjushri's Speech by Kunzang Palden (commentary of Bodhisattvacaryavatara)

Maybe you'd enjoy books by the Dalai Lama.

[Aryjna]

Bodhisattvacaryavatara by Shantideva
The Nectar of Manjushri's Speech by Kunzang Palden (commentary of Bodhisattvacaryavatara)

I agree, it is considered essential, and possibly the most important Mahayana text, by many.

[confusedlayman]

Nagarjuna middle way

Or visudhimagga

[Aryjna]

These three short texts are also very important, and there are many different teachings on them that one can find online, in video or books.

https://www.lotsawahouse.org/tibetan-ma ... -of-advice

http://unfetteredmind.org/37-practices- ... dhisattva/

https://wahiduddin.net/budh/hundred_verses.htm

[Aryjna]

Taranatha's Essence of Ambrosia is the best introductory/foundational book on Buddhism imo; in how it lays out the path by setting up a series of contemplations, from the start of generating a virtuous worldy mind, to the progression of the Hinayana renunciation of samsara, and then finally to the Mahayana mindset of achieving buddhahood for the benefit of oneself and others.

www.amazon.com/Essence-Ambrosia-Guide-B ... 8186470379

e.g.

I need to attain buddhahood. I therefore need to cultivate bodhicitta since it is the cause of buddhahood. The cause of bodhicitta is compassion. The cause of compassion is love. The cause of love is appreciation and gratefulness. The cause of appreciation is recognising all sentient beings have been my parents. I should meditate on developing these qualities in stages.

It looks interesting but unfortunately, it doesn't seem to exist in digital form.