What is enlightenment? Rodney Smith's answer to that elusive question offers an explanation not only of the radical shift in perception that the word enlightenment connotes, but of the entire topography of the journey from beginning to end, of the multiple ways we undermine the very growth we seek, and of the awakened life that ultimately arises out of the new consciousness.

Awakening: A Paradigm Shift of the Heart, Rodney Smith, Shambhala Publications, Paperback, 256 pages, $24.95

Rodney Smith is a retired Insight Meditation Society guiding teacher and retired founding and guiding teacher of the Seattle Insight Meditation Society. A former Buddhist monk and hospice director, he has taught meditation for over 30 years and is the author of Lessons from the Dying; Stepping Out of Self-Deception: The Buddha�s Liberating Teaching of No-Self; Awakening: A Paradigm Shift of the Heart; and Touching the Infinite: A New Perspective on the Buddha�s Four Foundations of Mindfulness (Oct 2017).