Piercing the Autumn Sky: A Guide to Discovering the Natural Freedom of Mind

“'Piercing the Autumn Sky' will quench the thirst of the spiritual seeker.”
Khenchen Könchog Gyaltsen Rinpoche, Great Drikung Kagyu Abbot (from Foreword, 1993)

This is a simple and delightful guidebook for exploring the magic of your mind, with emphasis on its awareness, space, time, ground, and continuity aspects.

It presents the heart of Mahamudra in a most accessible manner, including both introductory and advanced topics, and was developed in reliance upon the teachings of Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche and Dukchen Thuksay Rinpoche.

Endorsed by Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche (Foreword), Khenchen Könchog Gyaltsen Rinpoche (Foreword), and Traleg Kyabgon Rinpoche ("MInd of Ease"), three of today’s leading Tibetan Buddhist teachers, and by M. Scott Peck, M.D., the NY Times Best-Selling Author of "The Road Less Traveled" and a leading human development psychiatrist, the book has introduced countless readers and students around the world to the “mind teachings of Tibet” since its original publication in 1993.

“ 'Good. good. Oh son of noble qualities! Thus it is! Thus it is! Exactly as you have taught it……'
- Guru Shakyamuni Buddha, Heart Sutra, at Vultures Peak.
It is an utter delight to hear another western teacher show the essence of Dzogchen/Chagchen with such clarity and simplicity. And in a wholly western context!  Thank you!”
Lama Lena, Dharma heir to Lama Wangdor Rinpoche (in email from Tso-Pemma, India, 2009)

This eBook edition (2018) is a new edition, largely unchanged from the out-of-print First edition (1993), but includes a couple of new stories and teachings.

Peter Barth (Lama Thapkhay) is also the author of "A Meditation Guide for Mahamudra" and "The Meditations of Longchen Rabjam" and editor of "Mahamudra Teachings" by Garchen Rinpoche. He served as Director of Mahamudra Meditation Center in Petaluma, California under Thrangu Rinpoche from 1990-2015.

Peter has a M.S. in physics from the University of Vermont, specializing in statistical mechanical approaches to neurophysics and is the author of one of the few theoretical "exact solutions" in statistical mechanics. He went to India at the age of 18 and studied Mahamudra under some of the leading Tibetan Buddhist teachers there, and in Europe, in the early '70's. He is one of the first graduates of Tarthang Tulku's "Time, Space, and Knowledge" Nine-Month Program at the Nyingma Institute in Berkeley, California and maintains an interest in Zen practice and literature.