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The Upanishads, the earliest of which were composed in Sanskrit between 800 and 400 bce by sages and poets, form part of the Vedas - the sacred and ancient scriptures that are the basis of the Hindu religion. Each Upanishad, or lesson, takes up a theme ranging from the attainment of spiritual bliss to karma and rebirth, and collectively they are meditations on life, death and immortality. The essence of their teachings is that truth can by reached by faith rather than by thought, and that the spirit of God is within each of us - we need not fear death as we carry within us the promise of eternal life.

The saga of the Three Kingdoms—which recounts the dramatic story of the civil wars (ca. 180–220 CE) that divided the old Han Empire into the Shu, Wei, and Wu states—remains as popular as ever in China, having served as the basis of not only traditional operas and ballads, but also, in more recent years, of movies, television dramas, and video games.Translated into English for the first time here, the Sanguozhi pinghua (thirteenth century CE) provides a complete and fast-paced narrative account of the events of the period, from the beginning of the civil wars to the demise of the Three Kingdoms and the short-lived reunification of the realm by the Jin dynasty. Shorter, clearer, and more accessible to Western audiences than Luo Guanzhong’s later, greatly expanded Romance (Sanguo yanyi)—and beautifully rendered in this edition by two modern-day masters of the art of Chinese literary translation—the Records of the Three Kingdoms in Plain Language provides an ideal introduction to one of the foundational Chinese epic traditions.Tables of major Chinese dynasties and reigns, a guide to understanding formal Chinese naming conventions, a glossary of Chinese names and terms, and reproductions of some woodcuts from the original edition of the text are included.

Contains The Cloud of Unknowing, The Mystical Theology of Saint Denis, The Book of Privy Counselling, and An Epistle on Prayer. Against a tradition of devotional writings which focussed on knowing God through Christ's Passion and his humanity, these texts describe a transcendent God who exists beyond human knowledge and human language. These four texts are at the heart of medieval mystical theology in their call for contemplation, calm, and above all, love, as the way to understand the Divine.

The timeless epic of the Hindu faith, now available from Signet Classics in this edition translated by Swami Prabhavananda and Christopher Isherwood—with an Introduction by Aldous Huxley.The Bhagavad-Gita is the Gospel of Hinduism, and one of the great religious classics of the world. Its simple, vivid message is a daily inspiration in the lives of millions throughout the world and has been so for countless generations.Here is a distinguished translation that can be read by every person, not as an archaic monument to an ancient culture, but as a living contemporary message that touches the most urgent personal and social problems.

The definitive translation of the world's oldest known epic, now updated with newly discovered materialMiraculously preserved on clay tablets dating back as far as four thousand years, the poem of Gilgamesh, King of Uruk, predates Homer by many centuries. The story tells of Gilgamesh's adventures with the wild man Enkidu, and of his arduous journey to the ends of the earth in quest of the Babylonian Noah and the secret of immortality. Alongside its themes of family, friendship and the duties of kings, the Epic of Gilgamesh is, above all, about mankind's eternal struggle with the fear of death. This new edition of Andrew George's translation has been extensively revised to include recently discovered fragments and new sources. Translated and revised with an introduction by Andrew George'Our first recognisable epic poem. What is exhilarating, the more we learn of it, is how directly it speaks to us' Literary Review

An erotic contemporary love story, with the bestselling potential of ‘The Butcher’ or ‘Damage’ but of superior literary quality.From their first meeting, the elusive 16-year-old Lila seduces Chimo with words. Is she speaking from experience or revelling in sexual fantasy? In this journal, Chimo records their meetings with dissarming simplicity, with an erroticism that is never sensationalised. At the same time he offers acerbic and witty insights into the grim urban environment near Paris where he and Lila live. Alongside the shocking ironies of Lila’s gripping story, LILA SAYS creates romance and beauty in a setting where those gifts are usually conspicuous by their absense. An original, unforgettable novel.

‘Sadopaideia’ is a shocking, explicit, classic tale of Sado Masochism at the heart of English high society. Set in London and the Dorset coast, in an era of English history where corporal punishment was freely dispensed, the characters represent the core principles of disobedience, chastisement and compliance.How far is too far?Cecil Prendergast has a problem. He has been selected by Muriel Harcourt and her maid as the third dimension in their relationship. The 'problem' is that Muriel likes to beat Cecil's backside with a bamboo cane. Before long, a new master emerges – and Cecil finally asserts his dominance. Through disciplinary scenes, he wages a war of retribution via stinging pleasure and mutual consent – and punishes Muriel, her maid and Muriel's two nieces in turn.

‘The Way of a Man with a Maid’ is a foray into pleasure, pain, lesbianism and etiquette – told from the viewpoint of a quintessential Edwardian gent. Having first appeared in Parisian journals around the turn of the century, it is widely acknowledged to be a defining example of the erotic genre, and reveals the dark underbelly of human sexuality.Do the best things come to the woman who waits?Jack has built a special place in a padded room of an old lunatic asylum named 'The Snuggery'. Filled with ropes, cushions, straps and feathers, he chooses Alice to complete the decoration. Imprisoned against her will, she is teased into submission. And in moments of passion, when Jack names her his 'wife', Alice finally surrenders her maidenhead, submitting to the power of his unbridled lust.

LAUREN BAILEY HAS DISAPPEARED. As her friends and the police search for answers, Matt Barker begins to dream of trees and black skies and something drawing closer.Through fragments of journals, blog posts and messages, a sinister, slender figure emerges and all divisions between fiction and delusion, between nightmare and reality, begin to fall.The urban legend of the Slender Man has inspired short fiction, viral videos, and a feature film. Gathered from onlinewhispers, Matt’s story reveals the true power of the internet’s most terrifying creation.

Well, it just gets worse and worse doesn't it? Collapsing banks, collapsing countries, massive government cuts, rising debt, inflation and the possibility of a double dip. It's amid all this uncertainty that the already embattled modern woman needs the best advice she can get about how to be as cool and calm in life as possible. Keep Calm for Ladies offers the same pearls of life wisdom, inspirational quotes, proverbs and mantras as Keep Calm and Carry On but with women at their wits' end in mind. An emergency pocket survival bible for today's plucky female.'Don't compromise yourself. You are all you've got' Janis Joplin'A man would prefer to come home to an unmade bed and a happy woman than to a neatly made bed and an angry woman' Marlene Dietrich'Remember, blood is not only much thicker than water, it's much more difficult to get out of the carpet' Phyllis Diller'In politics, if you want anything said, ask a man; if you want anything done, ask a woman' Margaret Thatcher'Never eat more than you can lift' Miss Piggy

In the never ending streams of traffic and the choking fumes of pollution this book gives the average cycle enthusiast or, indeed novice, a collection of quotes, sayings and proverbs on even more reasons why one should get on their bike.In the format of the bestselling Keep Calm and Carry On, Keep Calm and Pedal On is the perfect gift for keen bikers. It is a book that will give a cyclist comfort in the knowledge that their passion for bikes is shared with some of world's greatest leaders, personalities and authors.After all, in the words of John F. Kennedy, 'Nothing compares to the simple pleasure of a bike ride.'

Alice could be anyone - she could be someone you know, or someone you love - and Alice is in trouble ...Being fifteen is hard, but Alice seems fine. She babysits the neighbour's kids. She is doing well at school. Someday she'd even like to get married and raise a family of her own. Then she is invited to a party, a special party where the drinks are spiked with LSD and Alice is never the same again. This tragic and extraordinary true-life story shows the devastating effect that drug-abuse can have. But the big difference between Alice and a lot of other kids on drugs is that Alice kept a diary . . .

Compiled by an unknown scribe in Iceland around 1270, and based on sources dating back centuries earlier, these mythological and heroic poems tell of gods and mortals from an ancient era: the giant-slaying Thor, the doomed Völsung family, the Hel-ride of Brynhild and the cruelty of Atli the Hun. Eclectic, incomplete and fragmented, these verses nevertheless retain their stark beauty and their power to enthrall, opening a window on to the thoughts, beliefs and hopes of the Vikings and their world.

On 15 August 778, Charlemagne’s army was returning from a successful expedition against Saracen Spain when its rearguard was ambushed in a remote Pyrenean pass. Out of this skirmish arose a stirring tale of war, which was recorded in the oldest extant epic poem in French. The Song of Roland, written by an unknown poet, tells of Charlemagne’s warrior nephew, Lord of the Breton Marches, who valiantly leads his men into battle against the Saracens, but dies in the massacre, defiant to the end. In majestic verses, the battle becomes a symbolic struggle between Christianity and paganism, while Roland’s last stand is the ultimate expression of honour and feudal values of twelfth-century France.For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.