A USA Today Bestseller
A Buddhist Lama and intersectional thought leader shares a guide for those who would dream a more just, ethical world into being.
Saints, spiritual warriors, bodhisattvas, tzaddikim—no matter how they are named in a given tradition, they all share a profound wish to free others from suffering. Saints are not unattainable beings of stained glass or carved stone. "Saints are ordinary and human, doing things any person can learn to do," teaches Lama Rod Owens. "Our era calls for saints who are from this time and place, speak the language of this moment, and integrate both social and spiritual liberation. I believe we all can and must become New Saints."
With The New Saints, Lama Rod shares a guidebook for becoming an effective agent of justice, peace, and change. Combining personal stories, traditional teachings, and instructions for contemplative and somatic practices, he shares inspiring resources for self-exploration and wise action. Each chapter reinforces the truth of our interdependency—allowing us to be of service to the collective well-being, access the unseen realms of divine guidance and strength, and call on the support of the countless beings who share our struggles and hopes.
The status quo of our society is crumbling, and rightly so. But what future will emerge to replace it? "There's nothing like crisis to wake us up and force us to get serious about change," says Lama Rod. "Ancient, powerful magic is returning. With the end of the lies of the old world comes the awakening of truth." For those who have the willingness to allow our hearts to break, disrupt systems of violence, and let deep, authentic care guide our actions instead of fear and hate, here is a clarion call for becoming a spiritual warrior—a human refreshed, serving a vision of a world shaped by love.
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
October 31, 2023 -
Formats
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Kindle Book
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OverDrive Read
- ISBN: 9781649630018
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EPUB ebook
- ISBN: 9781649630018
- File size: 551 KB
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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August 28, 2023
In this eclectic guide, Buddhist teacher Owens (Radical Dharma) urges readers to become “New Saints” by “free each other from suffering while we... reduce our own.” While acknowledging that it might seem like a “lofty and vague endeavor,” Owens contends that anyone can become a “new saint” so long as they “give a shit” about others’ liberation, and “figure out their work (what they are supposed to do), do that work, and return to that work,” whether such labor means prayer or being one’s most “authentic self” even within such rigid social systems as the patriarchy. Mining a wealth of traditions, including Buddhism, Christianity, and Indigenous spiritualities, Owens explores how readers can become “aware of... the workings of the world” through meditation and somatic practices; model “restorative forgiveness”; and commune with their ancestors, whether using psilocybin to “journey into the spirit world” or through concrete rituals, such as how the author makes pound cake to connect with his Black heritage (“The taste is an energetic expression of all those who have come before us”). Owens corralls a wide array of practices, insights, and observations, and while the kitchen-sink organization might put off some, it will satisfy readers in search of sharp, creative insights on social justice, collective action, and compassion for oneself and others. This has the power to change perceptions.
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