Dharma Rain: Sources of Buddhist Environmentalism

To borrow from poet William Blake, this anthology encourages us "to see a world in a grain of sand, and Heaven in a wildflower." Previous green anthologies, such as the 1991 "Green Reader" (which I also recommend), convincingly show that we are in the midst of a global environmental crisis. This impressive, 491-page collection not only examines the many problems contributing to that crisis (e. g., consumerism, nuclear waste, deforestation, and overpopulation), but proposes that it is now time we rethink our attitude "not only to people, but to plants, animals and places" (p. 356), suggesting that a compassionate, buddhist perspective can help. Contributors to this anthology include, among others, Thich Nhat Hanh, Gary Snyder, Joanna Macy, the Dalai Lama, Peter Matthiessen, Peter Timmerman, Robert Aitken, Rick Fields, and Christopher Titmuss. Although all of the contributors write from a buddhist point of view, you do not have to be a buddhist to appreciate this book. G. Merritt