lamdha books -
Catalogue of books on Tibet

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98826 Chapman, Spencer (Introduction by Sir Charles Bell) Lhasa The Holy City Chatto & Windus Ltd., London, 1938. First edition: octavo; hardcover, with spine decorations; 342pp., on laid paper, top edges dyed red, with a full-colour frontispiece, 7pp. of plates likewise, 64pp. of monochrome plates and a folding map. Moderate wear; cocked; spine cracked; softening to the spine extremities; a circular mark to the upper board; text block edges heavily spotted; offset to the preliminaries; retailer's bookplate to the flyleaf. Price-clipped dustwrapper rubbed and edgeworn with some moisture damage to the upper panel; spine heavily sunned; chipping to the spine panel extremities and flap-turns; a large chip from the top edge of the lower panel near the spine panel head; now backed by archival-quality white paper and professionally protected by superior non-adhesive polypropylene film. Good to very good. Spencer Chapman (1907-1971) was an English adventurer and mountaineer. He was part of Gino Watkins' Greenland Expedition of 1932-33. Early in 1936, he joined a Himalayan climbing expedition. At the time he met Basil Gould, the Political Officer for Sikkim, Bhutan and Tibet. Gould invited Chapman to be his private secretary on his political mission, from July 1936 to February 1937, to persuade the Panchen Lama to return from China and establish permanent British representation in Lhasa. Chapman learned Tibetan well enough to converse. He kept a meteorological log, pressed six hundred plants, dried seeds, and made notes on bird life. He recorded "events" in Lhasa in a diary and took many photographs that were sent to India on a weekly basis. He was allowed to wander and did so in an unshepherded way into the middle of Tibet and around the Holy City. Click here to order $180

79305 Chopel, Gendun (Donald S. Lopez, trans.) In the Forest of Faded Wisdom: bilingual edition 104 Poems University of Chicago Press, 2009. Hardcover, octavo, 191pp. Minor scuffing and edgewear to dustwrapper. Otherwise near fine. Gendun Chopel (1903-1951) was a Tibetan scholar, thinker, writer, poet, linguist, and artist. He was a creative and controversial figure and is considered by many to have been one of the most important Tibetan intellectuals of the twentieth century. Click here to order $22

216034 Fields, Rick & Brian Cutillo (trans.) & (illus. Mayumi Oda) The Turquoise Bee: The Lovesongs of the Sixth Dalai Lama Harper, San Francisco, 1994. First printing. Octavo hardcover; beige speckled boards with cream cloth spine and gilt spine titling; 137pp., b&w illustrations. Spotting to upper text block edges. Illustrated dustwrapper now professionally protected by superior non-adhesive polypropylene film. Very good to near fine. Click here to order $17

217988 Govinda, Li Gotami Tibet in Pictures - A Journey into the Past: 2 volumes Volume 1: Expedition to Central Tibet; Volume 2: Expedition to Western Tibet Dharma Publishing, Berkeley, 1979. Two square quarto hardcovers; dark blue cloth boards with dark red endpapers; 210pp., b&w illustrations. Minor wear; faint spotting to text block edges; mild scattered spotting to prelims. Red illustrated dustwrappers sunned along spine panels and slightly rubbed; mild edgewear with tiny scrapes on corners and some chipping on head of spine Vol.2. Very good. Wrappers now professionally protected by superior non-adhesive polypropylene film. "This collection of beautiful photographs has the unique distinction of bringing to the notice of the world the last documentary record of a vanishing culture. Tibet's great and ancient civilization flourished with unbroken vitality for more than a millennium. It is the last surviving civilization in which the oldest traditions of humanity are still alive. Because of this, the preservation of its artistic, religious, philosophical and literary traditions is an urgent task." Tibet in Pictures is the photographic record of the Tsaparang expedition to Central and Western Tibet undertaken by Li Gotami Govinda and Lama Govinda from 1947-1949. Volume 1 records the expedition to Central Tibet, depicting the people, geography, architecture, and importantly, the statues in many temples along the route. Volume 2 takes us on a pilgrimage to Tsaparang in Western Tibet with its sacred statues. Click here to order $500

205969 Gyaltshen, Khenchen Konchog (Khenmo Trinlay Chodron, ed.) Opening the Treasure of the Profound Teachings on the Songs of Jigten Sumgon and Milarepa Snow Lion/Shambhala Publications Inc., Boston MA, 2013. Octavo; paperback; 276pp. Remainder. New. In Tibet, vajra songs became popular when Milarepa gave teachings in that style to his disciples. His example influenced all Tibetan Buddhist schools, particularly the Kagyu lineages. People commonly memorized such songs and sang them with beautiful melodies. But vajra songs are much more than pleasant tunes or ordinary poetry. A vajra song reflects the enlightened mind of its author by encapsulating precisely profound meaning in just a few words. Thus, it can be difficult for the unenlightened to penetrate their meaning. Khenchen Konchog Gyaltshen learned to sing vajra songs at his mother's knee. Later in life, he learned of their profound meaning from masters of Tibetan Buddhism, which allowed him to finally experience their depth in solitary retreat. Rinpoche brings this tradition into a Western context by translating songs composed by iconic Buddhist figures and explaining them in contemporary terms. Rinpoche presents the outer and inner meaning of nine vajra songs by Milarepa (ca. 1052-1135) and Jigten Sumgon (1143-1217). He describes the Buddhist path of wisdom and compassion that leads to ultimate peace and happiness, and shows how to develop our mental qualities. In ancient times, these teachings were given to help others reach spiritual maturity. Here, we are invited into the world of transmission from master to disciple in order to discover truth for ourselves - to open the eye of wisdom that reveals the mind that cannot be seen. Click here to order $18

63417 Harrer, Heinrich (translated by Richard Graves and introduced by Peter Fleming) Seven Years in Tibet Rupert Hart-Davis, London, 1953. Second impression. Octavo hardcover; blue boards with gilt spine titling; 288pp., monochrome plates, top edges dyed red. Owner's Christmas gift tag on front endpaper; owner's name. Minor wear; toned and spotted text block edges; mild foxing to endpapers. Dustwrapper worn and rubbed along edges with missing segment on head of spine and adjacent, faded and well-rubbed spine-panel. Wrapper now professionally protected by superior non-adhesive polypropylene film with white paper backing. Good to very good. Click here to order $20

209911 Kunrig, Rongton Sheja (Christian Bernert, trans.) Adorning Maitreya's Intent Arriving at the View of Nonduality Snow Lion, Boulder CO, 2017. Octavo; paperback; 158pp. Remainder. New. A seminal commentary on one of the most important works of Mahayana Buddhism. According to tradition, Distinguishing the Middle from the Extremes (Madhyantavibhaga) was revealed by Maitreya to Asanga, and the radical view it presents forever changed the way Mahayana Buddhists perceive reality. Here, the Tibetan master Rongton unpacks this manual and its practices for us in a way that is at once accessible and profound, with actual practical meditative applications. The work explains the vast paths of the three vehicles of Buddhism, emphasizing the view of Yogacara, and demonstrates the inseparability of experience and emptiness. It offers a detailed presentation of the three natures of reality, an accurate understanding of which provides the antidotes to confusion and suffering. The translator's introduction presents a clear overview of all the concepts explored in the text, making it easy for the reader to bridge its ideas to actual practice. Click here to order $17

202761 Landor, A. Henry Savage In the Forbidden Land An account of a journey in Tibet, capture by the Tibetan authorities, imprisonment, torture, and ultimate release; also, various official documents, including the enquiry and report by J. Larkin, Esq., appointed by the Government of India. William Heinemann Ltd. London, 1899. Second edition: octavo; hardcover, full decorated cloth with gilt spine titles; 508pp. (+ 32pp. of adverts), untrimmed, with a monochrome portrait frontispiece (plus tissue guard), many illustrations likewise, and a folding map. Moderate wear; somewhat cocked; spine extremities softened; boards mildly rubbed and edgeworn with some minor marks; text block edges toned and top edge dusted; offset to the preliminaries; top joint cracked (still strong); previous owner's bookplate to the front pastedown; previous owner's ink inscription to the flyleaf; map professionally repaired. No dustwrapper. Very good. Laid in: a sales invoice. "In this book I have set down the record of a journey in Tibet undertaken by me during the spring, summer and autumn of 1897. It is illustrated partly from my photographs and partly from sketches made by me on the spot. Only as regards the torture scenes have I had to draw from memory, but it will be easily conceded that their impression must be vivid enough with me..." (from the author's Preface). Click here to order $120

7427 Lauf, Detlef-Ingo Secret Relevation of Tibetan Thangkas Picture meditation and interpretation of Lamaistic cult paintings Aurum, 1976. Hardcover, quarto, 172pp., numerous colour & monochrome plates. Boards slightly rubbed, sunned at upper and lower edges. Otherwise fine in like dustwrapper; now professionally protected by superior non-adhesive polypropylene film. In Tibet these thangkas served as meditational aids in the worship of the buddhas, bodhisattvas and gods of Lamaism. The book introduces the iconography of Tibetan art and informs about the teachings and initiatory structures of Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism, as well as suggesting the psychological structures recognizable behind the outward appearance of these paintings. Parallel English and German text. Click here to order $55

90422 Mullin, Glenn H. Living in the Face of Death The Tibetan Tradition Snow Lion Publication, Ithaca NY, 2008. Octavo; paperback; 238pp. Remainder. New. Whereas Western society views death as the last taboo, the Tibetan tradition incorporates meditation on death into everyday life. Tibetan Buddhists believe that a conscious awareness of one's own impermanence allows a person to live a happy, fulfilled life. Over the centuries, the Tibetans have developed a wide-ranging literature on death, including inspirational poetry and prose, prayers, and practical works on caring for the dying. This fascinating book presents nine short Tibetan texts. Important writings by the Second, Seventh, and Thirteenth Dalai Lamas and by Karma Lingpa, author of The Tibetan Book of the Dead, are included. It covers topics such as meditation techniques to prepare for death, inspirational accounts of the deaths of saints and yogis, and methods for training the mind in the transference of consciousness at the time of death. Click here to order $17

217953 Pal, Pratapaditya with Ian Alsop; Heather Stoddard and Varlrae Reynolds Art of the Himalayas Treasures from Nepal and Tibet Hudson Hills Press, New York, 1991. Quarto paperback; 208pp., blue endpapers; colour and b&w illustrations. Minor wear only; two tiny marks on upper text block edges; mild rubbing and edgewear to black illustrated covers. Very good to near fine. Exhibition catalogue. "Despite the remoteness and harshness of the terrain of the high Himalayas, the arts of Nepal and Tibet did not develop in splendid isolation. On the contrary, in addition to interacting with each other, both countries remained open to ideas from outside that contributed to enriching their artistic traditions. Both the Newars and the Tibetans are receptive and inventive people. The incredible richness and diversity of their artistic heritage as represented in the Zimmerman Collection amply attest to both their fecund imagination and their superb technical skill. It would be futile to try to understand the objects' iconographic complexity, but in this most permissive and eclectic age in art history, few viewers can remain unmoved by the delightfully expressive and dramatically exciting forms created by generations of unknown Himalayan artists... None of the objects in the Zimmerman Collection, whether from Tibet or Nepal, ever decorated a wall or mantel, and all were primarily esteemed for their spiritual significance rather than their aesthetic allure. In this artistic tradition beauty is not admired for its own sake; the image is viewed by the devotee in a state of grace." (intro.). Click here to order $30

35882 Peissel, Michel (text and watercolours) Tibetan Pilgrimage Architecture of the Sacred Land Abrams, New York, NY, USA, 2005. Landscape quarto; hardcover, with illustrated boards, red endpapers; 136pp., with many full-colour illustrations. Minor wear only. Near fine in like dustwrapper now professionally protected by superior non-adhesive polypropylene film. By combining masonry with the skills of nomad tent-makers, Tibetan architects have produced unique, magnificent buildings that, for too long have remained obscure and underestimated. It took author-illustrator Michel Peissel, who speaks Tibetan, forty-five years and twenty-nine expeditions on foot and on horseback to reach the lesser-known fortresses, chapels, and monasteries that he sketched and painted for this book... (the result) is certain to foster an appreciation for the elegance of Tibetan architecture, confirming the extent of its influence and its remarkable originality. With nearly a hundred watercolour illustrations. Click here to order $35

59332 Teltscher, Kate High Road to China George Bogle, The Panchen Lama and the First British Expedition to Tibet Bloomsbury Publishing Plc., London, 2006. Octavo, hardcover, 316pp., 8pp. of colour plates & many monochrome illustrations. Dustwrapper. Remainder. New. In 1774, the East India Company sent an emissary - George Bogle - into Tibet to contact the Panchen Lama and convince him to speak with the Chinese Emperor in favour of trade with Britain, something which the Emperor refused to countenance. In doing so, Bogle and the Panchen Lama formed a unique and mutual connexion, that furthered both their understandings of each other's cultures and forged strong alliances between both nations. Pieced together from Bogle's journals, official Tibetan histories, the accounts of a wandering Hindu mystic and the writings of the Qianlong Emperor of China himself, this is a fascinating look at the first steps of exploration and diplomacy which would create the notion of Shangri-la for the West, and kick off the "Great Game" in the Twentieth Century. Click here to order $20

96761 Tenzin Gyatso, The Fourteenth Dalai Lama (Jeffrey Hopkins & Lati Rimpoche, trans.) The Buddhism of Tibet and The Key to the Middle Way The Wisdom of Tibet Series 1 Vikas Publishing House Pvt. Ltd., Delhi India, 1975. First edition. Octavo; hardcover; 104pp. Moderate wear; offset and spotting to the endpapers; flyleaf top corner clipped; ink stamps to the rear free endpaper. Dustwrapper is lightly rubbed and edgeworn; now professionally protected by superior non-adhesive polypropylene film. Very good. Click here to order $18