{"product_id":"hungry-ghosts-paperback-7","title":"Hungry Ghosts - Paperback","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp style=\"text-align: right;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/reportcopyrightinfringement.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eReport copyright infringement\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eAndy Rotman\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eClassical stories and depictions of hungry ghosts not only tell us a great deal about Buddhism in the ancient world--they also speak to the modern human condition.\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThe realm of hungry ghosts is one of the unfortunate realms of rebirth in the Buddhist cycle of existence, and those reborn there are said to have led lives consumed by greed and spite. Hungry ghosts are often described as having enormous stomachs and tiny mouths, forever thwarted in their search for food. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e One of the earliest sources about hungry ghosts is the ten stories about them in the \u003ci\u003eAvadanasataka\u003c\/i\u003e (\u003ci\u003eOne Hundred Stories\u003c\/i\u003e), a Buddhist scripture from the early centuries of the Common Era, and these ten stories are elegantly translated in this volume. These hungry ghosts know the error of their ways, and they sometimes appear among humans, like the ghosts that haunt Ebenezer Scrooge, as augurs of what may await. Their bodies trigger disgust, but their aim is to inspire in us a disgust with the human thoughts that lead to such wretched bodies. Hungry-ghost stories are meant to shock us out of our complacency. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Artistic depictions of the travails of hungry ghosts are found throughout the Buddhist world, and \u003ci\u003eHungry Ghosts\u003c\/i\u003e reproduces some of the best examples with detailed descriptions. The volume also begins with a meditation on meanness (\u003ci\u003ematsarya\u003c\/i\u003e), the mental state that engenders rebirth as a hungry ghost. We discover how the understanding of miserliness, cruelty, and bad faith found in the stories illuminates the human condition, offering insight and inspiring compassion for readers both in ancient times and in the world today.\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAndy Rotman\u003c\/b\u003e is a professor in the religion department and Buddhist studies program at Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts. He received his PhD in South Asian languages and civilizations from the University of Chicago in 2003. His research concerns the ways in which narratives and images in South Asia function as a part of social history and material culture. He is the translator of the inaugural volume in Wisdom's \u003ci\u003eClassics of Indian Buddhism\u003c\/i\u003e series, \u003ci\u003eDivine Stories: \u003c\/i\u003e \u003ci\u003eDivyavadana Part 1\u003c\/i\u003e, and of \u003ci\u003eDivine Stories: Divyavadana Part 2.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 224\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.5 x 9 x 6 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e May 25, 2021\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47368963129593,"sku":"9781614297215","price":22.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0789\/2782\/3097\/files\/bG80TmdpMEhmQ05uQWRFazFUaldtQT09_6cd763dc-ada4-435a-b7fe-e140fcc110d4.webp?v=1769983793","url":"https:\/\/bookscloud.io\/products\/hungry-ghosts-paperback-7","provider":"BooksCloud Book Dropshipping","version":"1.0","type":"link"}