Zen Content Award

Today Buddha Torrents received the Best Blog Award for Zen Content. And I wasn't even trying. It was also runner up in the Excellence of Emptiness category.

Act Normal (2006)

Act Normal (2006)
Robert T. Edison was born and raised in Nottingham, England. When he was fourteen years old he began to practice Buddhism. At eighteen he became a monk and went to Thailand where, for a decade, he spent his time in monasteries. He became the first Buddhist monk in Iceland when he moved there in 1994 and founded a Buddhist sect. Five years later Robert decided to “disrobe” and get married. After sixteen years of celibacy Robert had to deal with being “normal” – getting employment, paying his bills and dealing with the needs of his partner. After four years in “the real world” Robert travelled back to Thailand to become a monk again. Act Normal was filmed from 1994 to 2006 and is a unique exploration of one man’s twelve-year search for some kind of love.

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Zen Koto - Michael Vetter

Zen Koto - Michael Vetter
Michael Vetter was born in 1943 in Oberstdorf Allgäu. He studied theology and between 1970 and 1982 spent most of his time in Japan as a Zen monk.

A self taught musician and painter he became known as a performer and composer of experimental music for recorder.
He was discovered by Karlheinz Stockausen in 1969 and was invited to participate in his then current "intuitive music".
Although Vetter dedicated himself in the 1970s to a systemmatic framework of musical concepts he was increasingly engaged in developing the expressive possibilities of the voice.

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Angels' Waltz - Sada Sat Kaur

Angels' Waltz - Sada Sat Kaur
Journey to the heart of peace and feel the gentle flow of healing energy. On this exquisitely relaxing release, Shajan uses beautiful melodies and sensual, serene harmonies of piano, guitar, flute, and keyboards to create a calming and soothing atmosphere which is ideal for Reiki, Yoga, meditation and massage. Shajan used his knowledge as a Reiki master and designed the music on this recording to help people let go of stress and slip into a receptive, peaceful state. Experience the quiet ecstasy of relaxation through his blissful waves of healing energy and music. This music makes it easy to relax!

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Ram Dass interviews Thich Nhat Hanh

Ram Dass interviews Thich Nhat Hanh
Perhaps the most calming interview ever given.
Ram Dass interviews Thich Nhat Hanh at the State of the World forum, September 1995

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Sun Rising East

Sun Rising East: Zen Master Seung Sahn Gives Transmission
Record of the 1992 Dharma Transmission and 20th anniversary celebrations, plus interviews with four zen masters.

Seung Sahn Haeng Won Dae Soen-sa (Korean: 숭산행원대선사, Hanja: 崇山行願大禪師) (c. 1927—November 30, 2004), born Dok-In Lee, was a Korean Jogye Seon master and founder of the international Kwan Um School of Zen—the largest school of Zen present in the Western world. He was the seventy-eighth teacher in his lineage. As one of the first Korean Zen masters to settle in the United States, he opened many temples and practice groups across the globe. He was known for his charismatic style and direct presentation of Zen, which was well tailored for the Western audience. Known by students for his many correspondences with them through letters, his utilization of Dharma combat, and expressions such as "only don't know" or "only go straight" in teachings, he was conferred the honorific title of Dae Soen Sa Nim in June 2004 by the Jogye order for a lifetime of achievements. Considered the highest honor to have bestowed upon one in the order, the title translates to mean Great honored Zen master. He died in November that year at Hwa Gae Sah in Seoul, South Korea, at age 77.

Gassho to Martin for the link.

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A Zen Life - D.T. Suzuki - Michael Goldberg

A Zen Life - D.T. Suzuki - Michael Goldberg

"A ZEN LIFE - D.T. Suzuki" is a 77-minute documentary about Daisetz Teitaro Suzuki (1870-1966), credited with introducing Zen Buddhism to the West.

D.T. Suzuki had an excellent grasp of written and spoken English, combined with an exhaustive knowledge of Eastern and Western religions and philosophies. He was highly successful at getting Westerners to appreciate the Japanese mentality, and Japanese to understand Western logic. The effect he had on Western psychoanalysis, philosophy, religious thinking, and the arts was profound. His numerous writings in English and Japanese serve as an inspiration even today.

Dr. Suzuki first lived in the United States from 1897 to 1908. In 1911 he married an American, Beatrice Lane, who helped him with his work until her death in 1939. After the War he traveled and taught extensively in the United States and Europe. Of note is a series of very popular open lectures he gave at Columbia University. Many renowned Western philosophers, artists, and psychologists were affected by his writings and friendship, including Carl Jung and Erich Fromm, Christmas Humphries, Father Thomas Merton, Martin Heidegger, Karl Jaspers, Dr. Albert Stunkard, Alan Watts, Richard De Martino, Robert Aitken, John Cage, Alan Ginsberg, and Gary Snyder.

Gary Snyder calls D.T. Suzuki "probably the most culturally significant Japanese person in international terms, in all of history."

Along with Gary Snyder, there are exclusive interviews of many people respected in their own right who knew D.T. Suzuki in person, including his secretary Mihoko Okamura, and rare footage of Thomas Merton, John Cage, Erich Fromm, and Suzuki himself.

There have been few people capable of bridging the logic of Americans and Europeans and the Eastern approach to life as well as he. Indeed, one of the goals of Zen is to transcend dichotomies. The main purpose of this documentary is to "bring D.T. Suzuki alive," and serve to motivate people in the West and Japan to know themselves better while respecting one another. Daisetz Suzuki's message is all the more important now, in light of contemporary conflicts stemming from divergent ways of thinking.

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These are links to a documentary Leaf mentioned in a previous blog entry. Thanks to Alexander for the share and links.

Stephen Batchelor Documentary

Stephen Batchelor Documentary
This thirty minute documentary on Stephen’s work was broadcast on national television in Holland on 20 April, 2008 as "Boeddhisme Zonder Geloof" ("Buddhism Without Beliefs"). It is in English with Dutch subtitles. It was made by Jurgen Gude and Jaap Verhoeven for the Boeddhistische Omroep Stichtung (BOS), "the first independent Buddhist Broadcasting Foundation in the West to produce and broadcast Buddhist programmes within a country’s Public Broadcasting System".

Link

Thanks to Jeff at Full Thangka for the link.

Altai Sayau Tandy-Uula - Huun Huur Tu

Altai Sayau Tandy-Uula - Huun Huur Tu
Overtone singing, also known as throat singing, overtone chanting, or harmonic singing, is a type of singing in which the singer manipulates the resonances (or formants) created as air travels from the lungs, past the vocal folds, and out the lips to produce a melody.
Throat singing is both a generic and a specific term. Generally, the term is applied to any singing style which entails the application of a harsh voice or some other constriction. Specifically, the term refers to a type of Central Asian and Siberian overtone singing.

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Zen Garden - Steve Millington

Zen Garden - Steve Millington
This mesmeric album features Steve Millington’s most imaginative and soothing music accentuated with the sounds of nature. The Zen Garden, with its flowing stream and beautiful birdsong is the ideal place to escape the stresses of everyday life.

tracklist:
01. First Light
02. Bamboo Flower
03. Winter Sunshine
04. Lotus Blossom
05. Spirit Paths
06. The Serenity Stream
07. Of Wind and Water
08. Reflections
09. Heaven and Earth
10. Twilight

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Master of Shakuhachi - Tajima Tadashi

Master of Shakuhachi - Tajima Tadashi
The shakuhachi has been much abused in the later half of the 20th century, by non-Japanese artists seeking to capitalize on its sensitive sound and hip Eastern origin to make incoherent mood music for health food stores. The reality of the instrument is one of quiet strength. The traditional version of this bamboo flute is large, over a foot and a half long with a large outside circumference. It achieves its unique sound from the musician's ability to balance the force needed to fill such a tool with air and the control to make it not only melodious, but contemplative. Tajima Tadashi performs a series of solo songs, all from the meditative tradition, created not for performance or ritual, but as a tool for the musician to achieve a state of meditation and to challenge himself in his art. These pieces show an accomplished artist pushing himself to the limit, not with wild virtuoso flights but with considered and complex melodies that are as ephemeral as snow and as strong as wind.

tracklist:
01 - Hon Shirabe.flac
02 - Shika no Tone.flac
03 - Shingetsu Cho.flac
04 - San An.flac
05 - Tsuru no Sugomori.flac
06 - Yamagoe.flac
07 - Ukigumo.flac
08 - Koku.flac

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Meditation[Zen] - F.A.B.

Meditation[Zen] - F.A.B.

It is said that the chanting of the Buddhist sutras can open the chakras (energy centers) of the human body. Continue on your path to enlightenment with "Meditation [Zen]," Pacific Moon’s companion album to "Meditation [Satori]" and "Meditation [Rinne]." Like its predecessors, "Meditation [Zen]" is perfect for meditation, relaxation, yoga, bodywork and massage.
tracklist:
1.Hannya Shingyo
2.Miyama
3.Shiori
4.Somabito No Mura
5.Nagamichi
6.Konoma Yori
7.Yumeji

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Chinese Buddhist Music (Zen Mantra) - Various Artists

Chinese Buddhist Music (Zen Mantra) - Various Artists
In the Indian religions, a mantra (Devanāgarī मन्त्र) is a sound, syllable, word, or group of words that are considered capable of "creating transformation" (cf. spiritual transformation). Their use and type varies according to the school and philosophy associated with the mantra. Other purposes have included religious ceremonies to accumulate wealth, avoid danger, or eliminate enemies. Mantras originated in the Vedic tradition of India, later becoming an essential part of the Hindu tradition and a customary practice within Buddhism, Sikhism and Jainism. The use of mantras is now widespread throughout various spiritual movements which are based on, or off-shoots of, the practices in the earlier Eastern traditions and religions.


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OK baytong (2003)

OK baytong (2003)
On hearing the news of the death of his sister, a Buddhist monk leaves the temple where he has lived since childhood and struggles to adjust to life on the outside as an uncle to a young niece and as a businessman running a hair salon in a small Thai town in a southern province. He even must learn to ride a bicycle and zip up his trousers without injuring himself. He is confronted by a flood of feelings - sexual, for a woman and family friend across the street; as well as fear and hatred for the Muslims, who he believes is responsible for his sister's death and other sorrows in his life.

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The Journey from the Center to the Page

The Journey from the Center to the Page - Jeff Davis
At once inspirational and instructional, The Journey from the Center to the Page artfully illustrates how yoga philosophies and practices can be an invaluable ally to the writing life.

With wisdom for writers of any level and in any genre, nationally known yoga and writing instructor Jeff Davis shows you how yoga’s principles and practical tools can deepen your writing process and increase your versatility as a writer. A grounded guide to the body-mind-imagination connection, this book shows ways to:
Re-connect with your deeper intention for writing
Sustain concentration and confidence when writing
Make time to write what matters most to you
Write with an authentic voice
Draft, re-vision, and revise with an embodied writing process
Write with a more visceral style replete with fresh imagery, intimate detail, metaphor, and rhythm
Convert fear and anger into powerful stories and satire
Cultivate compassion for complex characters—whether real or fictional
Create an authentic writers community

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THE STUDY AND PRACTICE OF YOGA Volume 2

THE STUDY AND PRACTICE OF YOGA Volume 2 - Swami Krishnananda
Patanjali's Yoga Sutras are aphoristic prescriptions in the form of pithy one-liners for leading the mind into deeper states of absorption in the state of Samadhi,where the individual merges with the Absolute.A tranquil mind is a pre-requisite for attaining the higher states of awareness and the Yoga Sutras are a graduated manual for the achievement of this goal. The aphorisms in their original form can not be undestood easily.Swami Krishnananda's commentary is easy to decipher and reader friendly,lucid style probes into the aphorisms and lays before seekers the approach to understanding the mind and it s machinations,and how the hurdles that make meditation difficult can be overcome.The rendition and style in which this has been made possible is a tribute to Swamiji s love for truth. This series of two volumes is an all encompassing spirtual guide.The teachings are progressive in content and begin where most seekers find themselves when spiritual aspiration dawns and the need for higher understanding is felt.Ther reader is led gradually through the different aspects of practice and mind management. Volume I,which covers the Samadhi Pada,the first of the four sections of the Yoga Sutras,and provides a good introduction and in-depth understanding of the philosophy and practice of yoga including the levels of consciousness that are attained,has been printed first. Volume II covers the Sadhana Pada and Kaivalya Pada which go into further detail about the practice of yoga using the aphoristic rungs of Patanjali Yoga sutras as a veritable stairway on the path of the ascent of the spirit.Nothing is left unsaid as Swamiji brings the teachings together in two volumes as a complete treatise on this spiritual path.

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Yoga Practice for Energy

Yoga Practice for Energy
"Yoga Practice for Energy" is a different kind of workout. Filmed at the beach on Maui, the sessions Awakening, Centering, Creativity, Reflection, and Surrender offer movements that follow the cycle of the sun through the course of a day. Viewers are encouraged to first try the entire tape several times, and then use the sessions that correspond to their needs at any particular time. For example, if you've just trudged in the door from a hectic day, you may want to use the Reflection session, in which "a cooling, tranquil series of forward bends and hip openers let all activities of the day seep in like watercolors setting into paper." Almost no narrative accompanies the five practice sessions, and if you are a beginner you may feel lost at first viewing.

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Synthesis of Yoga - Sri Aurobindo

Synthesis of Yoga - Sri Aurobindo
"Truth of philosophy is of a merely theoretical value unless it can be lived, and we have therefore tried in The Synthesis of Yoga to arrive at a synthetical view of the principles and methods of the various lines of spiritual self-discipline and the way in which they can lead to an integral divine life in the human existence". Index.

The Synthesis of Yoga first appeared serially in the monthly review Arya between August 1914 and January 1921. Each instalment was written immediately before its publication. The work was left incomplete when the Arya was discontinued. Sri Aurobindo never attempted to complete the Synthesis; he did, however, lightly revise the Introduction, thoroughly revise all of Part I, “The Yoga of Divine Works”, and significantly revise several chapters of Part II, “The Yoga of Integral Knowledge”. More than thirty years elapsed between the first appearance of the Synthesis in the Arya and the final stages of its incomplete revision. As a result, there are some differences of terminology between the revised and unrevised portions of the book.

In 1948 the chapters making up “The Yoga of Divine Works” were published as a book by the Sri Aurobindo Library, Madras. No other part of The Synthesis of Yoga appeared in
book-form during Sri Aurobindo’s lifetime. In 1955 an edition comprising the Introduction and four Parts was brought out by the Sri Aurobindo International University Centre. The present edition, which has been checked against all manuscripts and printed texts, includes for the first time the author’s revisions to the Introduction and Chapters XV– XVII of Part II, and an incomplete continuation of Part IV entitled “The Supramental
Time Consciousness”.

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Music For Reiki And Meditation - Shajan

Music For Reiki And Meditation - Shajan
Journey to the heart of peace and feel the gentle flow of healing energy. On this exquisitely relaxing release, Shajan uses beautiful melodies and sensual, serene harmonies of piano, guitar, flute, and keyboards to create a calming and soothing atmosphere which is ideal for Reiki, Yoga, meditation and massage. Shajan used his knowledge as a Reiki master and designed the music on this recording to help people let go of stress and slip into a receptive, peaceful state. Experience the quiet ecstasy of relaxation through his blissful waves of healing energy and music. This music makes it easy to relax!

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Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda

Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda

Swami Vivekananda is regarded in India as a patriot and saint. He came to the United States and spoke at the World's Parliament of Religion in Chicago.After the Parliament, the Swami traveled throughout the United States and England lecturing and giving the Western world his best teachings on Vedanta, teachings that seemed customized for the particular needs of the western mind. His first book on the yoga of meditation was assembled and published as Raja Yoga. Later came out a collection of his talks on the intellectually demanding approach Jnana Yoga, and finally, talks on the yoga approaches that suit most people Karma and Bhakti Yoga. A series of private talks to his most serious students at Thousand Islands Park in New York was later published as Inspired Talks.

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Masters of Zen: Yamamoto & Mitterer

Masters of Zen: Yamamoto & Mitterer
Although listed as being a CD of Shakuhachi (flute) and Organ (an unusal combination for this type of music which is what prompted me to purchase it), their are other musicians and instruments on here as well. Some nice, subdued hand percussion at times, some voice, and also some bass Koto (a stringed instrument) which is used here sometimes to replace the organ.

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The White Buddhist: The Asian Odyssey of Henry Steel Olcott

The White Buddhist: The Asian Odyssey of Henry Steel Olcott
Largely forgotten in his own country, the first American convert to Buddhism, Henry Steel Olcott, is still revered as a religious hero in Sri Lanka. Having played a key role in the revival of Buddhism there, he also championed Hinduism, Islam, and Zoroastrianism in India and was co-founder of the influential Theosophical Society. In an insightful portrait of the man and his mission, religion scholar Stephen Prothero proposes the concept of religious "creolization" in regard to Olcott's unconscious merging of Indian spirituality with American Protestant methodology.

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Buddhism in World Cultures: Comparative Perspectives

Buddhism in World Cultures: Comparative Perspectives
Joining others in the 'Religion in Contemporary Cultures' set is a survey of Buddhist belief in cultures around the world, offering fascinating comparisons in how Buddhism is perceived and recognized differently around the world. Both high school and college-level readers will enjoy a discussion that surveys how local cultures change religion, with different stages of adaptation and practice contrasted throughout. Buddhism in World Cultures: Comparative Perspectives is very highly recommended as a welcome and informative addition to academic and community library Buddhist Studies reference collections.

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Buddhism for Mothers of Young Children: Becoming a Mindful Parent

Buddhism for Mothers of Young Children: Becoming a Mindful Parent
A combination of personal narrative and stories gathered from mothers, this guide shows how spiritual and mindful parenting can help all mothers—Buddhists and nonBuddhists—be more open, attentive, and content. By guiding mothers on a spiritual path, this evocation also helps them cultivate wisdom, open-heartedness, and a better understanding of themselves and their children. The Buddhist teachings and principles help answer questions that all mothers face, especially those with young children: Who are my children? Who am I? How can I do my best by my children and myself? What to do about all that housework? and Is this all? Written in a clear and engaging style, this warm and simple meditation facilitates parenting with awareness, purpose, and love.

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Buddha Torrents just got listed on an up and coming site called torrents.to
There's a lot of great search tools and links to many of the more popular torrent sites. You can also vote for your favorite sites and make nice comments.

Link

The Eternal Om - Robert Slap

The Eternal Om - Robert Slap

The OM is all sound and silence throughout time, the roar of eternity and the essence of pure being. It invokes the ALL that is otherwise inexpressible and it is the highest spiritual sound on earth. Using the lates in electronic technology, New Age musicain Robert Slap has synthesized various pitches from human voices, all intoning this OM together at the prescribed vibrations. In the background is an almost subliminal-sounding choir. Soothing, uplifting and spiritually inspiring: ideal for meditation, massage, or as a background sound to deepen concentration.

This album unmasks the absolute purity of the human spirit, filling a room with total peace. The Eternal Om is a gift, perfect to play first thing in the morning to help awaken the soul and bring in the morning light.

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The Life Divine (Volumes 1 & 2) - Sri Aurobindo

The Life Divine (Volumes 1 & 2) - Sri Aurobindo

The Life Divine is Sri Aurobindo's major philosophical opus. It combines a synthesis of western thought and eastern spirituality with Sri Aurobindo's own original insights, covering topics such as the nature of the Divine (the Absolute, Brahman), how the creation came about, the evolution of consciousness and the cosmos, the spiritual path, and human evolutionary-spiritual destiny.

The book explores for the modern mind the great streams of Indian metaphysical thought, reconciling the truths behind each and from this synthesis extends in terms of consciousness the concept of evolution. The unfolding of Earth's and man's spiritual destiny is illuminated pointing the way to a Divine life on Earth.

About the Author
Educated from the childhood in England Ari Aurobindo was fluent in several languages and avoided appearing for his Indian Civil Service Test and joined the mainstream Independence Movement. In the year 1910 he decided to retire from active politics and withdrew to Pondichery for exclusive concentration his spiritual practice.

In 1914, after four years of intense Yoga he launched a monthly philosophic review, Arya, in which most of his major works were serialized. These works embodied much of the inner knowledge that had come to him in his practice of Yoga. Having gathered all the essential truths of past spiritual experiences, he worked for a more complete method of Yoga that would transform human nature and divinize life. To this purpose he devoted the rest of his life.

Sri Aurobindo left his body on 5 December 1950.

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Ancestors and Anxiety: Daoism and the Birth of Rebirth in China

Ancestors and Anxiety: Daoism and the Birth of Rebirth in China
This innovative work on Chinese concepts of the afterlife is the result of Stephen Bokenkamp's groundbreaking study of Chinese scripture and the incorporation of Indic concepts into the Chinese worldview. Here, he explores how Chinese authors, including Daoists and non-Buddhists, received and deployed ideas about rebirth from the third to the sixth centuries C.E. In tracing the antecedents of these scriptures, Bokenkamp uncovers a stunning array of non-Buddhist accounts that provide detail on the realms of the dead, their denizens, and human interactions with them. Bokenkamp demonstrates that the motive for the Daoist acceptance of Buddhist notions of rebirth lay not so much in the power of these ideas as in the work they could be made to do.

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The Hsin Hsin Ming

The Hsin Hsin Ming - Seng-ts’an
This is an interpretation of the Hsin Hsin Ming. The Hsin Hsin Ming (Shinjinmei in Japanese) is a verse attributed to the Third Chinese Chan (Zen) Patriarch Seng-ts’an (known as Sosan in Japan). Written in the 6th century, it is considered the first clear and comprehensive statement of Zen. The Hsin Hsin Ming has been much beloved by Zen practitioners for over a thousand years. It is still studied today in Western Zen circles. Its core is nonduality and I find it is as relevant today as it was then.

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Ugetsufu: Masters of Zen - Kuniyoshi Sugawara

Ugetsufu: Masters of Zen - Kuniyoshi Sugawara
Kuniyoshi Sugawara was born in Hokkaido in 1955. He began playing the shakuhachi at the age of 12 and studied under several of the finest shakuhachi masters. He has received numerous awards, including first prize in the Hokkaido and all Japan Sankyoku Music Concours and 2nd place in the Pan Music Contemporary Music for Traditional Instruments Concours-solo division. Under the auspices of the Japanese Ministry of Cultural Affairs and the Japan Foundation Sugawara has toured the United States, Portugal, Italy, the former Yugoslavia, and China. He performs all types of music, from classics to contemporary, jazz to folk, and is also active as a composer and a radio and television performer.

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Wabi-Sabi: for Artists, Designers, Poets & Philosophers

Wabi-Sabi: for Artists, Designers, Poets & Philosophers
This is an updated version of the enduring classic that first introduced the concept of “imperfect beauty” to the West. Text, images, and book design seamlessly meld into a wabi-sabi-like experience

Wabi-sabi is a beauty of things imperfect, impermanent, and incomplete . . .
. . . wabi-sabi could even be called the “Zen of things,” as it exemplifies many of Zen’s core spiritual-philosophical tenets . . .
Wabi-sabi is the most conspicuous and characteristic feature of what we think of as traditional Japanese beauty. It occupies roughly the same position in the Japanese pantheon of aesthetic values as do the Greek ideals of beauty and perfection in the West . . .
Wabi-sabi, in its purest, most idealized form, is precisely about the delicate traces, the faint evidence, at the borders of nothingness.

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Tibetan Grand Canyon - Various Artists

Tibetan Grand Canyon - Various Artists
The Tibetan Yarlu Zangbo Canyon is supposedly the deepest and longest canyon in the world. To see the ancient forest, the rich wild life, the spectrum of climate, you will understand how this part of the world has been called "a heaven for all to treasure". This is also the world of the Tibetas, the Luobas and the Menbas. This CD is their music.

tracklist:
1. On The Way to The Rainbow Waterfall
2. Luobas of The Forest
3. Song of The Highway Men
4. Religious Flags
5. The Glacier
6. The Ancient Forest
7. Rafts on The Zangbo
8. A Realm of Paradise

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Touch of Silence: Tibetan Singing Bowls for Meditation - Klaus Wiese

Touch of Silence - Klaus Wiese

Klaus Wiese creates an outstanding atmosphere opening you to healing exercises and deep meditation.

The Tibetans say: "Listen to the sound of the Singing Bowls and when the sound is gone keep on listening".

This describes a nearly homeopathic approach in music therapy.

The frequencies of the singing bowls have a healing impact on our body, especially while these frequencies cannot be found in (today's) ordinary music productions.

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Plunder
(part 1) http://tinyurl.com/ljykk5
(part 2) http://tinyurl.com/nek53l
(part 3) http://tinyurl.com/n9gff8
(part 4) http://tinyurl.com/ltfcho
(part 5) http://tinyurl.com/nojajn

Celebrate Peace - Snatam Kaur

Celebrate Peace - Snatam Kaur
Snatam Kaur's heart-opening new release is a musical celebration of the spirit of peace featuring 3 beautiful new songs as well as transcendent mantras and musical invocations of peace from her previous albums.
This CD is part of the Celebrate Peace program, which spreads a hopeful message and cultivates the practice of peace. We believe in the power of peace and we witness peace everyday, all around us. Peace begins with a choice, develops through practice, and spreads by example.
We present Celebrate Peace to spread a hopeful message and to cultivate the practice of peace in daily life, through a national series of workshops and other educational programs, musical celebrations, and internet-based community. By celebrating peace, we acknowledge that it exists, call attention to it, unite around it, and inspire others to embrace it.

part 1
part 2 ~ part 3 ~ part 4

password: neosacred

Unbounded Wholeness: Dzogchen, Bon, and the Logic of the Nonconceptual

Unbounded Wholeness: Dzogchen, Bon, and the Logic of the Nonconceptual
"Unbounded Wholeness offers an original and compelling study of the Dzogchen contemplative traditions of Bon, the indigenous Tibetan religion. In this well-researched and beautifully written book, Anne Carolyn Klein and Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche chart new terrain, revealing in Bon a dynamic way of spiritual self-cultivation and thought. This is an outstanding contribution to our knowledge of Asian religions and philosophies." --Matthew Kapstein, author of The Tibetan Assimilation of Buddhism: Conversion, Contestation and Memory
"This volume is a major contribution to our understanding of the Tibetan philosophical and religious tradition. The study opens this difficult literature to the Western reader and the translation is lucid and accessible. This is a fine example of the fruits of close collaboration between an eminent Tibetan scholar and an eminent Western Tibetologist." --Jay L. Garfield, co-translator of Ocean of Reasoning: A Great Commentary on Nagarjuna's Mulamadhyamakakarika.

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The Biographies of Rechung-pa

The Biographies of Rechung-pa: The Evolution of a Tibetan Hagiography
This book traces the lifestory of Rechungpa (1084-1161) - the student of the famous teacher Milarepa - using rare and little-known manuscripts, and discovers how the image of both Milarepa and Rechungpa underwent fundamental transformations over a period of over three centuries.

Peter Alan Roberts compares significant episodes in the life of Rechungpa as portrayed in a succession of texts, and thus demonstrates the evolution of Rechungpa's biography. This is the first survey of the surviving literature which includes a detailed analysis of their dates, authorship and interrelationships. It shows how Rechungpa was increasingly portrayed as a rebellious, volatile and difficult pupil, as a lineage from a fellow-pupil prospered to become dominant in Tibet.

Written in a style that makes it accessible to broad readership, Roberts' book will be of great value to anyone with an interest in the fields of Tibetan literature, history or religion.

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Maitreya's Uttaratantra: A Treatise on Buddha-Essence - Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche

Maitreya's Uttaratantra: A Treatise on Buddha-Essence - Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche

A commentary by Thrangu Rinpoche on the Uttara Tantra Shastra of Maitreya. The Uttaratantra elucidates the teachings from the Buddha's Third Turning of the Wheel of Dharma. The first turning was the Four Noble Truths, the second the Prajnaparamita and the third was on the subject of Buddha nature - the essential qualities and potential for enlightenment present in all beings. As the root verses of the text are in prose they require an oral transmission and commentary to explain their vast and profound meaning.

"The elucidation of this potential, emptinesss and luminosity inseperable, is the bridge between the sutra and tantra paths, the view of vajrayana and the ground of mahamudra, thus it is an essential text for all practitioners of the Buddhadharma. In addition to the theoretical transmission is the meditative approach to this text, the lineage of which continued through the Kagyu tradition, received first by the Third Karmapa and continuing unbroken to the present day. This is what is transmitted here through the great wisdom and compassion of Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche." Lama Karma Shedrup

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It's Up to You: The Practice of Self-Reflection on the Buddhist Path - Dzigar Kongtrul

It's Up to You: The Practice of Self-Reflection on the Buddhist Path - Dzigar Kongtrul (read by Pema Chodron)

Audio edition of the first book by the teacher of Pema Chodron, Dzigar Kongtrul is steeped in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition but also deeply familiar with Western culture.

Fixation on oneself, lack of self-awareness, unreasonable attachment to objects of pleasure, fear of change - these are all obstacles encountered by many meditators. Dzigar Kongtrul presents the contemplative practice of self-reflection as the best way to bring the Buddhist teachings into one's own experience. By examining their own subtle tendencies toward self-centredness and other unskillful habits, meditators learn to take responsibility for their behaviour and their state of mind and well-being.

"An enthralling and practical book that speaks to us all with an exceptional clarity about confusion, uncertainty, and fear, about fearlessness and courage, and about awareness, joy, sanity, and freedom. A book which I cannot recommend highly enough." Sogyal Rinpoche.

"Like Dzigar Kongtrul himself, this book is warm, direct, and potent. Its intimacy is transformative." Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche.

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Gaya Of Wisdom

Gaya Of Wisdom - Guy Sweens
Guy was born in the South-East of the Netherlands. As a child, Guy showed much interest in music and was spending time listening to pop and classical music. His grandparents, who had an excellent sounding piano, inspired Guy to play. It was at this time he discovered how he enjoyed composing music by himself, and although Guy could not read music, he managed to compose simple musical pieces by himself. Guy's music can best be defined as vibrant, passionate, spiritual, and saturated with melodic warmth and gentle rhythm. A fusion of western and exotic styles is present with a clear Indian influence. In order to create these textures, Guy uses many different instruments from all over the world, combined with modern synthesis and technology.

Telling the story of Buddha through musical expression creates a beautifully descriptive album for the senses. Exotic flutes, vocal textures, and the sounds of India guide the listener to spiritual enlightenment.

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Dear Twitts...

Hey all you Twitters or Twitts! This is a special message for everyone who follows me on Twitter: DON'T BOTHER!
I only set up a Twitter account to figure out what the hell it was all about and now I see its just another colossal waste of time to break down our computer lives in to smaller increments. Please take those precious seconds you waste on Twitter and smell a flower or Meditate.

Respectfully, Leaf

Okuribito (2008)

Okuribito (2008)
Daigo Kobayashi (Masahiro Motoki) is a devoted cellist in an orchestra that has just been dissolved and now finds himself without a job. Daigo decides to move back to his old hometown with his wife to look for work and start over. He answers a classified ad entitled "Departures" thinking it is an advertisement for a travel agency only to discover that the job is actually for a "Nokanshi" or "encoffineer," a funeral professional who prepares deceased bodies for burial and entry into the next life. While his wife and others despise the job, Daigo takes a certain pride in his work and begins to perfect the art of "Nokanshi," acting as a gentle gatekeeper between life and death, between the departed and the family of the departed. The film follows his profound and sometimes comical journey with death as he uncovers the wonder, joy and meaning of life and living.

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Living Buddha - 17th Gyalwa Karmapa

Lately I've been posting more and more links to films on Youtube. Mostly because there's been a dry spell of Torrents and I'm getting lazy. This film has some really bad audio but is still watchable.

Living Buddha - 17th Gyalwa Karmapa
"Living Buddha" by Clemens Kuby is the real life story of the reincarnation of one of Tibet's greatest and most revered spiritual teachers, the Gyalwa Karmapa. The Karmapa is the traditional head of the Kagyu Lineage of Tibetan Buddhism. Gyalwa Karmapa died in 1981 in Chicago and was born again 1985 in Tibet. Each successive Karmapa left details of their future rebirth, prophesying such things as the date and circumstances of their birth, even the names of their future parents.

When the previous Gyalwa Karmapa died, he had already entrusted his prediction letter and it was on this basis that a successful search was made to find his reincarnation. Kuby follows the search party and documents each successive stage up to the time of the 17th Karmapa's first public blessing at the age of eight. He was identified as Ogyen Trinley Dorje, the long awaited second son in a poor nomadic family in a remote area of eastern Tibet.
An exploration of Tibet as seen through the eyes of historian/documentarian Clemens Kuby. Central to the film is the consecration of the 17th Karmapa, who according to Tibetan belief, is the reincarnation of Buddha and plays a supremely important.

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What happened to the boy on the oprah show that was reincarnated as a monk?

What happened to the boy on the oprah show that was reincarnated as a monk?
Every once and again google links to this blog with some crazy searches. This one just came in and it rang a temple bell in my head with something I saw over on The Worst Horse a couple of days ago. I'm guessing the film will be making the rounds at film fests in North America, but other than the Vancouver date I dont have any further info. Still looks like a good film.

Tulku - The Movie
TULKU is a documentary film by Gesar Mukpo produced by the NFB.

In 14th century Tibet a tradition originated whereupon the passing away of an enlightened Buddhist master a young child would be recognized as their reincarnation. This child would assume leadership of their predecessors' monastery as well as the surrounding villages. They called these children "tulkus."

For hundreds of years this tradition remained unchanged.

In the 1970s something interesting started happening, tulkus were being discovered in the west. I know because I was one of them.

Alright after much work I have completed my first documentary film. This trailer is a peek at the film which will premier in Vancouver at the DOXA film festival in May 2009.

YouTube Trailer

Flute Traveller - Ron Korb

Flute Traveller - Ron Korb
This musical journey across 5 continents is an extraordinary masterpiece of solo improvisations. Featuring fifteen flutes from around the globe, it is MUST for any collector. For pictures and descriptions of the instruments used on this CD, view our instrument collection.

This CD works as a beautiful companion for Tai Chi, Yoga, Reiki, Shiatsu massage, guided imagery, visualization and accelerated learning programmes.

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Yoga at Dawn - Dan Gibson's Solitudes

Yoga at Dawn - Dan Gibson's Solitudes
Like the practice of yoga, these original melodies and the awakening sounds of nature breathe life into each new day. Instrumentation includes guitar, Indian violin, sitar, tanpura, veena, bamboo flutes, piano, bass & midi-programming.

Tracks.
01 - In The Rising
02 - Saffron Morning
03 - The Lotus Blooms
04 - Beyond The Mountain
05 - The River Flows
06 - Sunrise Sutras

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This Is That - Wu Wu

This Is That - Wu Wu

"That is That by Wu Wu takes a walk through philosophy, Eastern Thought and many elements of the spiritual path.

The book aims to remove ideas of philosophy, religion and so on to expose the bliss that sits behind the ideas. Encouraging the spiritual seeker to see not look.


"It is enough to accept that all is bliss and that anything else is a misinterpretation"

The book has to do precisely what it says you should not so that it can reach this point and covers everything from love, death, rebirth, via ideas in the Vedanta, Tao, Dharma and more and concludes:

"Now just simplify your mind and self,
that's all there is so just sit;
Be balance and unknowing flow,
Natures truth is here that's it."

taowow.blogspot.com

Link

Unmasking Buddhism

Unmasking Buddhism - Bernard Faure
A controversial study of Buddhism that looks to debunk Oriental stereotypes by highlighting the complexity and diversity of Buddhism in all its forms. This book challenges us to strip away existing preconceptions we may have about Buddhism. It considers questions such as: Can we talk about Buddhism as a unified religion or are there many Buddhisms? Is Buddhism a religion of tolerance and pacifism as many people think? And is Buddhism a religion without gods, or is it more of a philosophy than a religion? It also investigates questions such as whether the belief in karma leads to fatalism, whether Buddhism denies the existence of a self, whether Buddhism teaches reincarnation, whether it is compatible with science, whether it advocates vegetarianism, whether it is a religion of monks etc.

"Many people know something about Buddhism, but, for interesting historical reasons, much of what they know is wrong. In Unmasking Buddhism, Bernard Faure offers a clear catalogue of these misconceptions and then compassionately dispels the darkness of ignorance.

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Zen Master Seung Sahn's "Wake up! On the Road with a Zen Master"

Zen Master Seung Sahn's "Wake up! On the Road with a Zen Master"
Zen Master Seung Sahn's teaching documentary "Wake up! On the Road with a Zen Master". A professional and entertaining documentary that captures Zen Master Seung Sahn's energy while presenting the core of his teaching. Wake Up! is not only a rare portrait of an unusual and provocative teacher, but also an introduction to Zen Buddhism today. Wake Up! was shot on location during a teaching trip in Europe by award-winning independent filmmaker Brad Anderson from Boston.

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Live in Concert - Snatam Kaur

Live in Concert - Snatam Kaur
This album fulfills years of requests for Snatam Kaur to capture the experience and almost mystical essence of her live performances on CD. Recorded at concert halls, churches and yoga studios as Snatam and her ensemble traveled across North America, you’ll hear performances from her which soar to the heights of these sacred spaces and find a home in the hearts of their audiences. Join in the magical experience of Snatam Kaur Live in Concert.. The album opens with Azure Salver, a prayer translated in the book Peace Lagoon. This song has been a favorite at her concerts, but has never been recorded before. This song is hilighted by the clarity of Snatam's voice, the poetry of the lyrics, and the expert instrumental accompaniment. The live version of Snatam's Ong Namo takes the recorded version into the ethers. Sometimes when Snatam is on stage, she goes into a deep meditative space and spontaneously weaves improvisational poetry into the songs. Ong Namo has a beautiful example of this. On Ong Sohung, Gobinda Hari and Adi Shakti, the dynamic interplay of the entire band is highlighted to perfection with incredible musical conversations between Snatam Kaur, Manish Vyas and GuruGanesha Singh, fantastic solos on guitar, violin, tabla and clarinet, and the lively experience of a slowly building rhythm that is unique to the live kirtan experience. Shivohum is a track composed by Manish, and you will be singing this track for years to come. A beautiful duet between Snatam and Manish, this track has an an addictive energy and purity of sound that you will want to listen to again and again.

password: neosacred

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Opening the Lotus: A Woman's Guide to Buddhism

Opening the Lotus: A Woman's Guide to Buddhism
While the juxtaposition of feminism and Buddhism might seem peculiar, this book is delightfully free of cant. The author offers examples of her experiences as a lesbian spiritual seeker who at the age of 60 has arrived at a good balance of goals. Since nearly all religions suffer from patriarchal bias, Boucher's search has not been easy, and any reader can relate to it. Because of her maturity and sincerity, the usual feminist outrage has faded into Buddhist calm detachment and Boucher's determined focus on her practice. Boucher offers mediation techniques, with attention to such goddesses as Kwan Yin and Tara to coincide with timeless Buddhist principles. There is a helpful annotated and international directory of women's Buddhist centers and teachers, as well as a brief bibliography.

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Change your Mind Change your Brain: The Inner Conditions

Change your Mind Change your Brain: The Inner Conditions - Matthieu Ricard
If happiness is an inner state, influenced by external conditions but not dependent on them, how can we achieve it? Ricard will examine the inner and outer factors that increase or diminish our sense of well-being, dissect the underlying mechanisms of happiness, and lead us to a way of looking at the mind itself based on his book, Happiness: A Guide to Life's Most Important Skill and from the research in neuroscience on the effect of mind-training on the brain.

Speaker Bio: Matthieu Ricard, a gifted scientist turned Buddhist monk, is a best selling author, translator, and photographer. He has lived and studied in the Himalayas for the last 35 years.

YouTube

Coming to Our Senses - Jon Kabat-Zinn

Coming to Our Senses - Jon Kabat-Zinn

"For any of us, perhaps our greatest potential regret may be that of not seizing the moment and honoring it for what it is when it is here," writes bestselling author Kabat-Zinn (Full Catastrophe Living; Wherever You Go, There You Are; etc.). The scientist who pioneered the use of the Buddhist technique of mindfulness (or moment-by-moment awareness) to help patients cope with the stress and pain of illness arrived at this poignant lesson after seeing the way his father, an eminent immunologist who suffered from Alzheimer's disease, lost all sense of who he was and what was happening to him. In a passionate tour de force that blends personal experience with cutting-edge science (his own and others'), poetry and insights culled from many traditions, Kabat-Zinn sets out to awaken us to the true potential and value of a gift that most of us take for granted: sentience. Our lack of awareness of our impact on the rest of the world amounts to "a kind of auto-immune disease of the earth." Borrowing an analogy made by the neuroscientist Francisco Varela, Kabat-Zinn compares the way our immune system senses the whole of our bodily self to our potential for a mindful awareness.

That is, the practice of cultivating this conscious, heightened sentience leads to the realization of our wholeness, as we begin to realize that we don't live just within the envelope of our own senses, sensations and thoughts but within the whole of all that is. Kabat-Zinn illuminates the many facets of this selfless way of being, not just with Buddhist understanding and verse but with quotes from Einstein ("A human being is a part of the whole, called by us 'Universe' "), Dickinson, Rilke and many other Western greats. Ardent, personal, frankly opinionated in places, this book seeks to wake up as individuals and as a culture. It is a treasure trove of contemporary wisdom.

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Thanks to Alexander for sharing this.

There is also this related video posted on Youtube. Renowned mindfulness meditation teacher and best-selling author Jon Kabat-Zinn speaks at UCSD Medical Center on the topic of "Coming to Our Senses", which is also the name of his new book, subtitled "Healing Ourselves and the World Through Mindfulness". A pioneer in the application of ancient Buddhist practices to healing in modern medical settings, Kabat-Zinn expounds upon the value of "resting in awareness" not only to facilitate clarity in ourselves, but also as a means of relating to and healing the "dis-ease" in politics, society and the world.

Youtube Online Video

The Head Trip: Adventures on the Wheel of Consciousness - Jeff Warren

The Head Trip: Adventures on the Wheel of Consciousness - Jeff Warren

Warren, a Canadian science journalist, combines the rigorous self-experimentation of Steven Johnson's Mind Wide Open with the wacky self-experimentation of A.J. Jacobs's The Know-It-All in this entertaining field guide to the varying levels of mental awareness. Beginning with the mild hallucinogenic state that comes just before true sleep, he tries to hone his skills at lucid dreaming, subjects himself to hypnosis and joins a Buddhist meditation retreat, among other
adventures. Along the way, he begins to realize that dreaming and waking are equivalent states, and that we can learn how to induce the subtle gradations of consciousness within ourselves. This could come off as New Age psychobabble, but Warren is well versed in the scientific literature, and he provides detailed accounts of his own research. (During one three-week period, for example, he goes to bed at sundown to recreate a period of wakefulness before returning to sleep that used to be common before electric light reconfigured our sleep schedules.) His self-mocking attitude toward his inability to achieve instant nirvana, along with a steady stream of cartoon illustrations, ensures that his ideas remain accessible. More important than the theories, though, may be the basic tools—and the visionary spirit—that Warren hands off to those interested in hacking their own minds.

From the full-immersion virtual realities of lucid dreaming to the esoteric disciplines of Eastern meditative practices that have reached outposts of consciousness far beyond the grasp of Western science, from techniques of hypnosis and neurofeedback to such exotic states of awareness as the Watch and the Pure Conscious Event, Warren takes us on an incredible journey through our own heads–a journey conducted with the adventurous spirit and intellectual curiosity of a
Darwin coupled with the sensibility of a stand-up comedian.

About the Author
Jeff Warren is a freelance producer for CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation) Radio.

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Not exactly on the topic of Buddhism per se but it is about one person's journey to learn about consciousness.

Buddhism and Deep Ecology

Buddhism and Deep Ecology
This volume involves Buddhism and Deep Ecology (the latter can be considered the spiritual dimensions of the environmental movement) on a holistic, consciousness, and value basis. It presents some basic ideas, experiences, and examples on how Buddhism and Deep Ecology relate to each other and to protecting natural forests and the environment, including public participation aspects. Much of these interrelationships are based on the essential teachings of Buddha as they relate to Deep Ecology and visa versa, especially Oneness, ecocentric, and spiritual orientations. Combined and integrated, these two areas present a unique, spiritual bridge of understanding, cross fertilization, and consciousness for ideas, values, and approaches which encompass compassion, loving-kindness, and care for all living beings for a wide spectrum of readers, both Buddhist and non-Buddhists with interests in ecological and environmental affairs.

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Cooking with the Dalai Lama

Cooking with the Dalai Lama
Join world renowned celebrity chef April Fuel and the always popular Dalai Lama in a collaborative cookbook of the Dalai Lamas favorite dishes. April Fuel shows us how to spice up plain old Dhal Bhat into a super fusion of American Fast food meets Eastern Cuisine. Included in this book are over 80 different Momo recipes including, Durian Momo, Deepfried Marsbar Momo and the always exciting Flaming Moe-mo. Researched for over 77 years this book is the quintessential cookbook on American Tibetan cooking!

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