Enlightened Vagabond: The Life and Teachings of Patrul Rinpoche

This is a beautifully done book. It has all that's needed to appreciate the rich context of the many stories about that great master Patrul Rinpoche. There are three forewords including one by the Dalai Lama. There is an index, not to be expected in a book of this sort. There's a glossary, an intricate chart of Rinpoche's spiritual lineage and a chart of his family tree to date. There are forty-eight pages of brief biographical sketches of important masters and disciples of Patrul Rinpoche as well as, in Ricard's words, sketches of 'several important earlier figures who played an influential role in Patrul Rinpoche's life'. There are sources for the stories themselves, sources for the biographical notes and sources for written works in Tibetan and in English. These sources are very interesting and informative to look into. There are forty illustrations including a map of eastern Tibet, Patrul Rinpoche's stomping grounds, and a picture of the young and handsome Nyoshul Khenpo before his sad and premature decline in health. There are ten 'gems of spiritual advice found in Patrul Rinpoche's own writings' - gems indeed they are! These gems are easily identified in the table of contents by 'small ornamental guillemets' and in the text by italicized titles and guillemets. The exceptional thoroughness of Ricard's presentation in this book might have been anticipated from the equally exceptional presentation in his translation of the autobiography of Shabkar.

Fabulous book. Short inspiring stories from Payrul Rinpoche’s life, some quite humorous. Each story a teaching! Well worth the money. Pith instructions on Dzogchen and Mahamudra.

I had no idea who Patrul Rimpoche was and now am delighted to have read this book!!! It is fast and easy to read. It is filled with delightful short stories of Patrul's adventures that share about the true nature of a prayerful man who gave up everything for faith and teaching people the way to happiness and God.

Great biography of a great being.

Wow! The stories collected and retold here put such a human face to rimpche and his contemporaries. The main message I took from this book was to be your authentic self and practice!

I just loved this book. Storys and pit instructions, pit instructions in storys

An utterly sublime being is adeptly described here. Read it and weep.

Enjoyed reading it

Shabkar is one of the most important figure in modern Tibetan Buddhism, and his biography is one of the seminal works. Matthew Ricard's translation is superb, readable, and capturing both the flavour and meanings of the text. Shabkar's life and teachings through his songs can be read by anyone interested in the spiritual path, not just Tibetan Buddhists. Highly recommended.

Another important Buddhist book by Matthieu with stories of the great Patrul . Recommended .

Wonderful book delivered right on time. Thank you very much.

Se alguém quiser conhecer a vida, os mais interessantes eventos e alguns de seus belos poemas, como 'Conselho Para Mim Mesmo' (Advice to Myself), tudo traduzido para o inglês diretamente a partir de fontes tibetanas, este é, sem dúvida alguma, o melhor livro sobre Patrul Rinpoche, um homem extraordinário em sua simplicidade e sabedoria.

Enlightened Vagabond reads like The Hundred Thousand Songs of Milarepa...wonderful anecdotes interspersed with personalized guidance - for all levels of spiritual development.For example:Don’t ruminate about the past!Don’t anticipate the future!Don’t cogitate about the present!Not tampering with itLeave mind just as it isThis very instantAwareRelaxedBeyond this, there’s not a damn thing!Actually, these meditation instructions are very similar to Tilopa’s famous Mahamudra instructions.Patrul Rinpoche targeted many levels and proclivities in spiritual aspirants. For those that feel drawn to the gradual path, he gave thorough, step-by-step instructions (after all, Patrul Rinpoche’s most famous book is The Words of My Perfect Teacher). For those drawn to the non-gradual path, he gave pointed, pith instructions that went to the heart of the matter. Matthieu Ricard and Constance Wilkinson do a great job of showing how Patrul Rinpoche was both an erudite scholar and, at the same time, an insightful life coach and therapist. In reading the many stories I am reminded of Milton H. Erickson’s uncommon therapeutic interventions. Patrul Rinpoche was not a fanatic that pushed a narrow spiritual philosophy on anyone and everyone. Rather, he tailored whatever he had to offer to each individual. In many cases he didn’t in any way try to instruct “spirituality” to someone. Instead, he offered practical help that met the needs of the person. As with, for example, the famous story of his helping the young widow for weeks or months with her children, even going begging with her when she went begging and finally securing offerings (offered to Patrul Rinpoche himself) to help set up a more stable life for the family.Have read the book several times the last three years and highly recommend it.