Sadhana, which translates as "realization," is the primary form of meditation in the Tantric Buddhism of Tibet. In this spiritual exercise, practitioners dissolve their ordinary reality-their identity and environment-and in its place visualize an awakened being. Eventually they actually transform into this divine being. In this vital new volume, Yael Bentor offers an invaluable translation of Tsongkhapa Lobzang Drakpa's famous treatise on this form of meditation. Tsongkhapa was an influential monk, philosopher, and tantric yogi whose activities led to the formation of one of the four main schools of Tibetan Buddhism. His treatise draws fascinating links between tantric practice, cosmogony, and the life cycle of a yogi engaged in the practice. Bentor's vivid translation, accompanied by her expert introduction and commentary, provides the grounding necessary to properly understand the text, tracing the reception and trajectory of Tsongkhapa's work through history and evaluating its great relevance up to the present day.

Cosmos, the Person and the Sadhana: A Treatise on Tibetan Tantric Meditation, Yael Bentor, University of Virginia Press, Paperback,
304 pp, $40.00

Yael Bentor is a scholar of Indian and Tibetan Studies, specializing in tantric Buddhism. Her current research interests are the dynamics of the evolution of tantric traditions in Tibet during the fourteenth to sixteenth centuries, focusing on the creation stage of the Guhyasamaja Tantra. She is the author (with Penpa Dorjee) of The Essence of the Ocean of Attainments: Explanation of the Creation Stage of the Guhyasamja, King of All Tantras (AIBS, 2013) and A Classical Tibetan Reader: Selections from Renowned Works with Custom Glossaries(Wisdom, 2013).