A Bigger Sky: Awakening a Fierce Feminine Buddhism

Weiss examines in this steady, wise debut how she has overcome traumatic personal events by embracing Buddhist principles. In 1987, seeking help for her spirit as well as her diabetes, she entered Tassajara, a Zen monastery in central California, and began her study of Buddhism. After four years, she left the monastery and abandoned her plans to be ordained as a priest; instead, she married and became a life coach. Then, after a bicycle accident left her husband with a debilitating brain injury, Weiss reveals how the Buddhist teachings of impermanence and the interconnectedness of suffering and happiness helped her get through his recovery and become a better caregiver. Through informative tales of the Buddha, spiritual instructions, and an homage to the women in Buddhist tradition (such as the Buddha’s mother, Maya, and wife, Yasodhara), Weiss weaves an empowering vision of Buddhism into her life story; she also integrates feminine views into Buddhist tenets and encourages women to speak up: “speaking up is the first step toward untangling the tangle of unseen rules and conventions that tie us up.” Filled with both humility and confidence, Weiss’s quest for peace will appeal to Buddhist women. (June)