Hi all,

Happy Holidays and New Year to you, whatever you may celebrate this season. I have several reviews of new offerings for you to consider as you complete any holiday shopping you may be doing - or perhaps you will be inspired to buy for yourself to empower your own practice moving into 2013:

The Female Buddha
This lovely, contemplative photography and quotation book features images of Kuan Yin, the 'female buddha', taken throughout East Asia, along with quotes from women teachers and writers from the Buddha's time to our own.

http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art178986.asp

Note that I am offering a GIVEAWAY of The Female Buddha at my blog:
http://www.MommyMystic.com

Jesus and Buddha – Practicing Across Traditions
Are you a Christian interested in Buddhism? A Buddhist interested in Christianity? An interfaith spiritual seeker? The documentary Jesus and Buddha: Practicing Across Traditions may offer you new insights into the connection points between these two spiritual traditions.

http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art178846.asp

In light of the tragic events in Sandy Hook, CT this past week, I also felt compelled to re-post the following resource:

A Lamp in the Darkness - Book/CD by Jack Kornfield
A Lamp in the Darkness: Illuminating the Path Through Difficult Times, by celebrated American Buddhist author and teacher Jack Kornfield is a beautiful and warm book/CD combo offering meditations for moving through the most difficult phases of our lives, including illness, loss, betrayal and more.

http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art173156.asp

I will leave you with a passage from The Female Buddha, by Ziyong, an 18th-century Chinese Buddhist nun:

"I still recall, how with my bag on a pole,
I forgot my yesterdays,
Wandering the hills, played in the waters,
went to the land of the clouds.
The lift of an eyebrow, the blink of an eye–
all of it is samadhi;
In this great world there is nowhere that is not a wisdom hall."

I wish for you all a peace-filled and loving holiday season and New Year.

In Peace,
Lisa Erickson, Buddhism Editor
http://buddhism.bellaonline.com
Blog: http://www.MommyMystic.com
Facebook: http://www.Facebook.com/MommyMystic
Twitter: http://www.Twitter.com/MommyMystic