Journey to Mindfulness

The Autobiography of Bhante G.

Henepola Gunaratana, Jeanne Malmgren

• Publisher: Wisdom Publications
• Year: 2017
• Print ISBN:
  9781614294429
• eBook ISBN:
  9781614294580
• Topic: Social Sciences
• Subtopic: Social Science Biographies
• Index: Social Sciences

The inspiring life-story of from the bestselling author of Mindfulness in Plain English—updated and expanded in honor of his 90th birthday.

Bhante Gunaratana—Bhante G., as he is affectionately called—has long been among the most beloved Buddhist teachers in the West. Ordained at twelve, he would eventually become the first Buddhist chaplain at an American university, the founder of a retreat center and monastery, and a bestselling author.

Here, Bhante G. lays bare the often-surprising ups and downs of his more than ninety years, from his boyhood in Sri Lanka to his decades of sharing the insights of the Buddha, telling his story with the "plain-English" good-humored approach for which he is so renowned.

This expanded anniversary edition includes four new chapters in which Bhante reflects on the impact of the tsumani that struck his homeland in 2004 and his subsequent appearance on Larry King Live, his brief experiment in ordaining nuns at his monastery, as well intimate reflections on the loss of family members, and his own aging and infirmity—providing a model an inspiring model to us all of gracious equanimity.

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Title Page
• Contents
• Preface
• 1. Small Treasure
• 2. The Homeless Life
• 3. Escape
• 4. A Monk Once Again
• 5. Monks’ School
• 6. Higher Ordination
• 7. The Final Cure: Meditation
• 8. The Struggle to Stay in School
• 9. Missionary Monk
• 10. Crossing the Ocean to India
• 11. The Relics and the Dalai Lama
• 12. Among the Untouchables
• 13. Under the Great Bodhi Tree
• 14. A Trip Back Home
• 15. My Father’s Funeral
• 16. Malaysia
• 17. An Invitation to the West
• 18. Coming to America
• 19. Manual Labor Missionary
• 20. Mistaken for a Woman
• 21. “Officer Bhante G.”
• 22. A Last Visit with My Mother
• 23. “Are You Mister Gunaratana?”
• 24. Breaking Free
• 25. Building a Monastery
• 26. No Price Tag
• 27. Chief Sangha Nayaka
• 28. Helping My Homeland
• 29. Battles
• 30. Saved By a Man on a Bicycle
• 31. Coincidence—or Kamma?
• 32. Facing the End
• Afterword by Jeanne Malmgren
• Index
• About the Authors
• Copyright