RESOURCE GUIDE

Mandalas and Buddhism

Brauen, Martin. Mandala: Sacred Circle in Tibetan Buddhism. Stuttgart: Arnoldsche Art Publishers, 2009.

Bryant, Barry. The Wheel of Time Sand Mandala: Visual Scripture of Tibetan Buddhism. San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 1992.

Giebel, Rolf W. “The Adamantine Pinnacle.” In Two Esoteric Sutras. BDK English Tripiṭaka 29–II, 30–II. Berkeley: Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, 2001.

Macdonald, Alexander W. Maṇdala and Landscape. New Delhi: D.K. Printworld, 1997.

Pande, Anupa and Mandira Sharma, eds. The Art of Central Asia and the Indian Subcontinent in Cross-Cultural Perspective. New Delhi: National Museum Institute and Aryan Books International, 2009.

Tanaka, Kimiaki. An Illustrated History of the Mandala: From its Genesis to the Kālacakratantra. Somerville, MA: Wisdom Publications, 2018.

Ten Grotenhuis, Elizabeth. Japanese Mandalas: Representations of Sacred Geography. Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press, 1999.

Mandala Resources on the Web

Kālachakra Mandala in 3D View (7:30)

A visual guide to the meaning and construction of the Kalachakra Mandala produced in honor of the October 2007 visit of his Holiness the Dalai Lama to Cornell University.

Asia Society Texas Sand Mandala Time Lapse (2:37)

Tibetan Buddhist monks from the Drepung Loseling Monastery construct a White Tara (Buddha of longevity and success) mandala sand painting and perform special ceremonies at Asia Society Texas Center, August 10-13, 2017.

Himalayan Art Resources Mandala

Eric Huntington website, illustrations

Huntington, Eric. “Mandala Generations.” Eric Huntington. Accessed May 19, 2021.

Reference tools for further research

Brill's Encyclopedia of Buddhism Online: A general reference resource for topics in Buddhism, originally published in seven volumes.

The Index Buddhicus Online: Offers a searchable classified bibliography of scholarly secondary sources on Buddhism. All entries are cross-referenced to related material and linked to an elaborate index of both proper names and themes.

Oxford Bibliographies Online: Presents peer-reviewed, annotated bibliographies and expert commentary on current scholarship in selected disciplines. See especially the following entries:

• Gray, David “Buddhist Art and Architecture in Tibet.”
• Gethin, Rupert “Abhidharma/Abhidhamma Literature.”
• Park, Jin Y. , Kalmanson, Leah “Buddhist Thought and Western Philosophy.”
• Largen, Kristin “Buddhist-Christian Dialogue.”
• Wallace, Vesna “Cosmology, Astronomy and Astrology.”
• Wallace, Vesna “Kālacakra.”
• Blair, Heather “Maṇḍala.”
• Kapstein, Matthew “Tibetan Buddhist Philosophy.”

Buddhist Tantric Practice

Dalai Lama, Tsongkhapa, and Jeffrey Hopkins. The Great Exposition of Secret Mantra, Volume One : Tantra in Tibet. Boston: Snow Lion, 2016.

Dalai Lama, and Jeffrey Hopkins. Kalachakra Tantra: Rite of Initiation. Boulder, CO: Wisdom Publications, 2016.

Gray, David B. The Buddhist Tantras: A Guide. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2023.

Tibetan History and Culture

Kapstein, Matthew. The Tibetans. Malden, MA ; Oxford: Blackwell Pub., 2006.

Schaeffer, Kurtis R., Matthew Kapstein, and Gray Tuttle. Sources of Tibetan Tradition. New York: Columbia University Press, 2013.

Van Schaik, Sam. Tibet: A History. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2011.

Buddhism and Philosophy

Emmanuel, Steven M. Philosophy's Big Questions: Comparing Buddhist and Western Approaches. New York: Columbia University Press, 2021.

Garfield, Jay L. Engaging Buddhism: Why It Matters to Philosophy. New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 2015.

Siderits, Mark. Buddhism as Philosophy. Second edition. Indianapolis, IN: Hackett Publishing Company, Inc., 2021.

Buddhist and Tibetan Art

Huntington, Eric. Creating the Universe: Depictions of the Cosmos in Himalayan Buddhism. Seattle: University of Washington Press, 2018.    

Leidy, Denise Patry. The Art of Buddhism: An Introduction to Its History and Meaning. Boston, Mass.: Shambhala, 2008.

Lhadrepa, Konchog, and Charlotte Davis. The Art of Awakening: A User’s Guide to Tibetan Buddhist Art and Practice. Boulder: Snow Lion, 2017.

McArthur, Meher. Reading Buddhist Art: An Illustrated Guide to Buddhist Signs and Symbols. London: Thames & Hudson, 2002.

Rice, John Henry, and Jeffrey Durham. Awaken: A Tibetan Buddhist Journey Toward Enlightenment. Richmond, Virginia: Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, 2019.

Buddhism and Medicine

Hofer, Theresia, ed. Bodies in Balance: The Art of Tibetan Medicine. New York : Seattle: Rubin Museum of Art ; in association with University of Washington Press, 2014.

Gyatso, Janet. Being Human in a Buddhist World: An Intellectual History of Medicine in Early Modern Tibet. New York: Columbia University Press, 2015.

Salguero, C. Pierce, ed. Buddhism and Medicine: An Anthology of Premodern Sources. New York: Columbia University Press, 2017.

Salguero, C. Pierce, ed. Buddhism and Medicine: An Anthology of Modern and Contemporary Sources. New York: Columbia University Press, 2019.

Salguero, C. Pierce. A Global History of Buddhism and Medicine. New York: Columbia University Press, 2022.

Films About Buddhism

(streaming via Falvey Library)

Kundun (director Martin Scorsese): A dramatization of the life and work of the current (14th) Dalai Lama and his ongoing struggle to regain independence for Tibet.

Unmistaken Child (director Nati Baratz): Filmmaker Nati Baratz follows the spellbinding journey of Tibetan Buddhist monk Tenzin Zopa as he travels far and wide to identify the child who is the reincarnation of his deceased master, Lama Konchog.

Sand Painting: Sacred Art of Tibet: A brief documentary film about Tibetan sand painting featuring interviews with practitioners.