Mudra: Early Songs and Poems

Until I read this book, I thought that Mudra means hand gestures. But what mudra means is a spontaneous gesture or action that may result in symbol or manifestation of some sort. This book consists of spontaneous poems that explain the meaning of life around us, explans the purpose of meditation and the path of meditation. I particularly liked one poems that says to be friendly towards people but not to trust them. Because trusting means surrendering and one that wants to be enlightened cannot surrender himself to someone else but only to himself. This is the first book that helped me truly understand the difference betweren love and compassion and why is it that compassion is the higher state of being than being in love is. I also loved the pictures that explain the training of the mind also known as oxherding: 1) search for the bull, 2) discover the bull's footprints, 3) seeing the bull, 4) catching the bull, 5) taming the bull, 6) riding the bull, 7)transcending the bull, 8) transcending self and bull, 9) reaching the source, 10) fully awakened state of being (in the world).

Mudra by Chogyam Trungpa (Shambhala) is in many ways one of the best books by the late Chogyam Trungpa. First published in 1972 it was I believe the first title by the Lama brought out by Shamahala and in many ways these brief poems offer the nectar of Varjayana wisdom in ways Chogyam Trungpa's more discursive and popular titles do not. True Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism provides a biting critique of western presumptions upon spiritual practice, but in the brief poetic reflections we are shown in Mudra suggest how simple gestures, slight alterations of attitude shift one from suffering to bliss. The famous Ox Herding Pictures are also included with a telling commentary on the path toward enlightenment.