Joseph A. Fitzgerald – författare

Beautifully illustrated with over 100 colour and sepia photos and illustrations, the present book includes a concise and sensitive biography of Anandamayi Ma with important selections from her oral teachings.Anandamayi Ma (1896-1982) was one of the great Hindu saints of the 20th century. She was born in present-day Bangladesh. As a person of remarkable piety, sanctity and wisdom, she came to the notice of both simple people and famous figures of India. During her long life, Anandamayi Ma traveled a great deal and assisted in the building or establishment of numerous ashrams and places of worship. Although born into a family that worshiped Vishnu, she became a devotee of Shiva. Her beatific presence and words of wisdom won her many followers and spread her renown. Many of Anandamayi Ma's sayings were written down and recorded in books.Through her teachings and the example of her life, Anandamayi Ma has inspired millions of individuals of diverse faiths and circumstances - from Prime Ministers, artists and industrialists to shopkeepers, beggars and monks including Mahatma Gandhi, Indira Gandhi, Jawarharlal Nehru, former Prime Minister of Canada, Pierre Elliott Trudeau, the Queen Mother of Greece and the former President of India, Ragendra Prasad. Without a doubt, Anandamayi Ma is one of the most beloved 20th century saints within her native India, and across the globe.

Honen Shonin (1133-1212 A.D.) founded the largest Buddhist sect in Japan (Pure Land, or Shin). This edited biography contains an Introduction by renowned Buddhist scholar, Alfred Bloom.

Ananda Coomaraswamy (1877-1947) was one of the most famous scholars of Indian art, culture, and religion. He served for many years as the Keeper of Indian and Islamic Art at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, establishing one of the most impressive collections of oriental artifacts in the world. This anthology contains thematically arranged excerpts from his many writings, letters, and speeches, making it a uniquely accessible collection of his wisdom and insight. It is richly illustrated with over 140 black-and-white historical photographs and paintings.

Sri Ramakrishna is the most famous saint of modern India. This book is the original version of the most famous work about him, translated into English by the author “M” himself. A short biography of Ramakrishna, written by his famous disciple Swami Vivekananda, is also included.

Sometime in August 1913, two Sioux warriors, Old Buffalo and Swift Dog, met with Frances Densmore at a makeshift recording site in McLaughlin, South Dakota. What Old Buffalo and Swift Dog said that day—about life as they knew it before the reservation era began—lives on still in the pages of this fascinating book. Densmore went on to interview numerous Sioux (or Lakota)/Teton (Lakota) Sioux men and women, collecting both their songs and their stories. The present version is an abridged edition of Teton Sioux Music, which according to William Powers is “one of the few monographs universally regarded as a true classic of Lakota culture.” It has been skillfully edited to focus less on musical technicality and more on the cultural value of Densmore's work. Its subjects include the Sun Dance, dreams, treatment of the sick, military societies, buffalo hunts, and social dances. Also included are over 130 color and black-and-white illustrations which further bring to life the world of the Teton Sioux.

Often spoken at the end of a prayer, a well-known Sioux phrase affirms that we are all related." Similarly, the Sioux medicine man, Brave Buffalo, came to realize when he was still a boy that the maker of all was Wakan Tanka (the Great Spirit), and ...in order to honor him I must honor his works in nature." The interconnectedness of all things, and the respect all things are due, are among the most prominentand most welcomethemes in this collection of Indian voices on nature. Within the book are carefully authenticated quotations from men and women of nearly fifty North American tribes. The illustrations include historical photographs of American Indians, as well as a wide selection of contemporary photographs showing the diversity of the North American natural world. Together, these quotations and photographs beautifully present something of nature's timeless message.

Richly illustrated with historical photographs and paintings, Spirit of the Indian Warrior presents the thoughts of some of history's greatest warriors and tribal leaders. It offers an intimate window into the cultural values of courage, loyalty, and generosity. When the first Europeans landed in North America, its native peoples faced a challenge unlike any before. Many warriors and chiefs vowed, like Tecumseh, "to resist as long as I live and breathe." Some eventually accepted treaties of peace, but they soon found, like Chief Joseph, that these were worth little: "What treaty that the whites have kept has the red man broken? Not one. What treaty that the whites ever made with us red men have they kept? Not one." Hope for the future, however, remains strong among their proud descendants. And the words of the Indian warrior live on and inspire the people of America's First Nations, as well as people across the world.

Priest, saint, and founder of the independent school of Pure Land (Jodo) Buddhism in 12th century Japan, Honen Shonin's importance has been largely unrecognised in the West, even though his legacy includes over twenty million living practitioners of Pure Land Buddhism in Japan. "Honen the Buddhist Saint: His Life And Teachings" is the first and only English translation of a biography of this remarkable man. Edited by Joseph A. Fitzgerald, this edition combines illustrations from Japanese religious sites as well as Honen's own words which allow him to speak "from across the ages", to any human being, Buddhist or non-Buddhist, who desires to have faith and gain knowledge. Honen was known to such figures as Alan Watts, Joseph Campbell, Martin Heidegger and Jack Kerouac and, in addition, to all specialists in Japanese history, among them the well-known and respected scholar D.T. Suzuki. For the first time a condensed and more readable version of this crucial text is available to English speaking scholars and practitioners. "World Wisdom has provided a priceless service to contemporary Pure Land Buddhists in making [Honen] and his teachings accessible to a wider readership.The Buddhist world will ever be grateful to them" - Jim Pym, Pure Land Buddhist Fellowship, UK.