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Buddhist monasteries in medieval China employed a variety of practices to ensure their ascendancy and survival. Most successful was the exchange of material goods for salvation, as in the donation of land, which allowed monks to spread their teachings throughout China. By investigating a variety of socioeconomic spaces produced and perpetuated by Chinese monasteries, Michael J. Walsh reveals the "sacred economies" that shaped early Buddhism and its relationship with consumption and salvation. Centering his study on Tiantong, a Buddhist monastery that has thrived for close to seventeen centuries in southeast China, Walsh follows three main topics: the spaces monks produced, within and around ...
Here is the extraordinary story of a veteran of 26 years of combat with the Navy's most elite special force--the legendary SEALs--including five tours of Vietnam (one in the top-secret PHOENIX program). Walsh's exploits stand alone as the pinnacle of daring and sacrifice in the history of the SEALs.
The great religious orders of Christianity - the Benedictines, the Dominicans, the Franciscans and the Jesuits - are well known for their monasteries, their learning and their missions around the world. But in the Middle Ages, to some extent surviving to this day, there was another kind of religious order, one whose members' profession was to bear arms in defence of Christendom. From humble beginnings in the early 12th century, caring for the sick in the Holy Land and protecting pilgrims, the military religious orders spread out across Europe. Not only did they fight for the holy places, they helped push back Islam in Spain and what is now Portugal, and spread Christianity to the lands across the Baltic, then still pagan. The Knights of St John, the Knights Templar, the Knights of Santiago and of Calatrava, the Teutonic Knights and others played a fearsome, sometimes brutal and often neglected role in the history of Christianity. The wars, which they fought in the name of Christ, helped shape the world as we know it.
**SOON TO BE A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE STARRING BENEDICT CUMBERBATCH** 'It was a revelation. Moving, terrifying, funny and brilliant. I shall never forget it - an amazing achievement' STEPHEN FRY 'Brash and frightening and funny' NEW YORK TIMES * * * * * * The Sunday Times bestselling Gypsy Boy was the first commercial memoir written by someone on the inside of the notoriously secretive culture of the Romany Gypsies. MIKEY WAS BORN into a Romany Gypsy family. They live in a closeted community, and little is known about their way of life. After centuries of persecution Gypsies are wary of outsiders and if you choose to leave you can never come back. This is something Mikey knows only too well. Growing up, he rarely went to school, and seldom mixed with non-Gypsies. The caravan and camp were his world. But although Mikey inherited a vibrant and loyal culture, his family's legacy was bittersweet with a hidden history of grief and abuse. Eventually Mikey was forced to make an agonising decision - to stay and keep secrets, or escape and find somewhere he could truly belong. Mikey's amazing story is continued in the sequel Gypsy Boy on the Run.
Short stories and science writing from a Robert A. Heinlein Award winner: “Allen Steele is among the best.” —St. Louis Post-Dispatch In Rude Astronauts, Allen Steele presents some of his finest stories—including the Diamondback Jack Trilogy and his first published story, “Live from the Mars Hotel”—along with excerpts of the nonfiction science writing with which he made his name. In Steele’s universe, the stars are cold, space is big, and it’s the normal people who make things interesting.
Historians have given a great deal of attention to the lives and experiences of Civil War soldiers, but surprisingly little is known about navy sailors who participated in the conflict. Michael J. Bennett remedies the longstanding neglect of Civil War seamen in this comprehensive assessment of the experience of common Union sailors from 1861 to 1865. To resurrect the voices of the "Union Jacks," Bennett combed sailors' diaries, letters, and journals. He finds that the sailors differed from their counterparts in the army in many ways. They tended to be a rougher bunch of men than the regular soldiers, drinking and fighting excessively. Those who were not foreign-born, escaped slaves, or unemp...
Michael J. Lavery's theories about how large and small motor-skill development of both right and left hands is directly linked to development in the left and right hemispheres of the brain is revolutionizing our understanding of how best to train the brain. The application of his theories and training methodologies are universal, including benefits for athletes seeking to supercharge their performance, for Baby Boomers wanting to reverse the aging process, and for retirees looking to rejuvenate their memory powers and regain an active lifestyle. Learn how a dozen Whole Brain Power All-Star practitioners from the ages of fifteen to ninety-one have transformed their brains and bodies through Michael's simple ambidextrous skill training, penmanship drills, and memory drills. Get ready to become part of the revolution in wholebrain development in the 21st century.
The greatest threat we face is not robots replacing us, but our reluctance to reinvent ourselves. We live in an age of wonder: cars that drive themselves, devices that anticipate our needs, and robots capable of everything from advanced manufacturing to complex surgery. Automation, algorithms, and AI will transform every facet of daily life, but are we prepared for what that means for the future of work, leadership, and creativity? While many already fear that robots will take their jobs, rapid advancements in machine intelligence raise a far more important question: what is the true potential of human intelligence in the twenty-first century? Futurist and global nomad Mike Walsh has synthes...
Designed to be the most complete and accurate dictionary of saints available, this book includes date and place of birth and death as well as family background, education, activity for which the saint is remembered, and whether he/she is a patron saint.
For almost 40 years, Michael Walsh has been working alongside Indigenous people: documenting language, music and other traditional knowledge, acting on behalf of claimants to land in the Northern Territory, and making crucial contributions to the revitalisation of Aboriginal languages in NSW. This volume, with contributions from his colleagues and students, celebrates his abiding interest in and commitment to Indigenous society with papers in two broad themes. 'Language, identity and country' addresses the often complex relations between Aboriginal social groups and countries, and linguistic identity. In 'Language, identity and social action' authors discuss the role that language plays in maintaining social identities in the realms of conversation, story-telling, music, language games, and in education. 'Language and Social Identity in Australian Indigenous Communities' will be of interest to students of linguistics, Indigenous studies, anthropology, and sociology.