(Part 3) Reddit mentions: The best karma books

You can try Buddhism for Beginners by Thubten Chodron, a highly reviewed book with recommendations from leading Buddhist figures like the Dalai Lama. Once you're a little more familiar with basic Buddhist concepts, you can try more in-depth books such as The World of Tibetan Buddhism: An Overview of Its Philosophy and Practice by the Dalai Lama, if you're interested in more detailed philosophical explanations of Buddhism. For lighter books that focus on applying a few core Buddhist concepts to everyday life, there's quite a few bestsellers by the Dalai Lama and Thich Nhat Hanh to check out. If you eventually take an interest in the Vajrayana aspect of Buddhism, Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche is the author to go - he also has an intro to Buddhism-ish book called What Makes You NOT a Buddhist, which is another highly reviewed & recommended book.

Edit: https://studybuddhism.com/ is also a great source, founded by a longtime Western student of the Dalai Lama.

Source: Longtime Buddhist practitioner with exposure to both the Chinese & Tibetan Buddhist traditions. I tend to suggest books by authors who are both highly experienced in the philosophy and practice of a certain lineage, because I feel that a lot of books where the author is only knowledgeable about philosophy are just... really lacking in quality, to be honest. Buddhist philosophy is great, but it's the practice of it that really brings these philosophies alive.

The Stages of the Path genre, which covers the Path to Enlightenment, step by step for the very beginning to Enlightenment.

I recommend the Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment.

https://www.amazon.com/Treatise-Stages-Enlightenment-Lamrim-Chenmo/dp/1559394420

Gift her a copy of this: https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B00HQM20NK/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1

a nice book covering some methods and objects: https://www.amazon.com/Contemplating-Reality-Practitioners-Indo-Tibetan-Buddhism/dp/1590304292/

They're not all secret. The basis of the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism is the Lamrim Chenmo, which is completely exoteric (publicly known). This isn't some preliminary teaching, this is the whole deal. Any esoteric stuff is a helpful addition.

You might have a look at Philip Kapleau's Wheel of Life and Death. I remember liking it a lot way back when.

> When a population of 37 trillion of these 'counsciousness' come together, as in the case of the cells of our body, and act as a cohesive whole then mind emerges.

According to Buddhism, the mind is beginningless and endless: your mind, at least its subtlest level, has already existed before the conception and cell divisions in the womb. https://www.reddit.com/r/Buddhism/comments/c8ag8j/everything_psychological_is_biological/esm6nbz/

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"In Buddhism, there is an understanding that consciousness cannot arise from nowhere or without a cause; and at the same time, that consciousness cannot be produced from matter; ... the primordial knowing faculty [of consciousness] ... cannot be produced from matter whose nature is different [from consciousness]. It follows that since consciousness cannot arise without a cause, and since it cannot arise from a material cause, it must come from a ceaseless continuum. It is on this premise that Buddhism accepts the existence of (beginningless) former lives." https://www.amazon.com/Essential-Dalai-Lama-Important-Teachings/dp/0143037803

On the topic of emptiness, I thought I'd recommend this book too, Contemplating Reality by Andy Karr. It's a summary/distillation of the ideas present in the Mahayana/Vajrayana development over hundreds of years. Armstrong has a background in Mahamudra/Dzogchen as well, but I don't know how much of his book delves into the worlds post-Pali Canon.

Contemplating Reality: A Practitioner's Guide to the View in Indo-Tibetan Buddhism https://www.amazon.com/dp/1590304292/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_p3GczbDC94KSZ

https://www.amazon.com/Compendium-Mahayana-Asangas-Mahayanasamgraha-Commentaries/dp/155939465X/ref=nodl_

You might study the Asanga/maitreya texts directly.

That particular translation is not out yet but others are.

Yup. I think many people have a similar experience when they start practicing Buddhism. One Buddhist teacher talks about this in his book, Not for Happiness.

Could you be more specific as to what problems you are having? I am familiar with this book and with related materials on Madhyamaka, as are a lot of other people on this subreddit so ask away!

Also, there is a very similar book to this that goes into a lot more detail but goes over the same subject material called Contemplating Reality.