From Andrea Miller comes a diverse collection of essays, articles, and interviews. Miller, whose writing is by turns earnest and irreverent, unadorned and lyrical, talks to Buddhist teachers, thinkers, writers, and celebrities about the things that matter most and frames their wisdom with her own lived experience.
In this engaging, deftly written book, Andrea Miller shares a collection of interviews, essays and observations experienced during her ongoing practice of Buddhism. Whether a practitioner, curious of the path or simply a fan of celebrity Buddhists, this well-researched amalgam of work has something to offer.
This, from Be Love Now, a Q&A with Ram Dass:
When Lion Roar’s editor-in-chief Melvin McLeod mentioned to me that he had been picked up hitchhiking by Ram Dass in 1973, I began to feel I was unqualified to do this interview. I wasn’t alive in ’73 when Ram Dass was driving around Vermont in a hippy van with images of Indian gods and gurus on the dashboard, and I certainly wasn’t alive in ’71 when his landmark book, Be Here Now, was published. But qualified or not, I wanted to do this interview.
I’ve read plenty of spiritual literature: philosophy to new age, religion to quantum mechanics. There was a time I’d read no less than two titles a week, consuming a thousand volumes over a decade. I treated it like exercise, which I suppose it was, an occasionally demanding workout for the mind, awareness, and connectivity. It fueled in me, more than anything, a desire to continue – pursuing the pursuit while doing my utmost to avoid the delusion we can arrive, the destination, in fact, being the path. So for editor, journalist, seeker, spouse and mom Andrea Miller I say kudos with a heartfelt namaste for creating and crafting Awakening My Heart, her excellent work clearly a life’s ambition that continues, as it should.
Other comments on Awakening My Heart:
- “A lovely repast of stories and inspiring conversations with Buddhist masters and celebrities, reminding us to relax and smile. The good medicine of the dharma comes in a thousand forms.” —Jack Kornfield, author of A Path with Heart
- Awakening My Heart has that rare combination of insight and empathy that distinguishes the very best spiritual literature. It is an inspiring, expansive, and probing exploration of what it means to be alive and practicing the dharma today.” —Shozan Jack Haubner, author of Zen Confidential
About the Author: Andrea Miller is the deputy editor of Lion’s Roar magazine. She’s also the author of the board book The Day the Buddha Woke Up and the editor of three anthologies. Miller has an MFA in creative writing from the University of British Columbia, and her writing has appeared in a wide variety of publications. Miller lives with her husband and two small children in Halifax.
- Title: Awakening My Heart: Essays, Articles and Interviews on the Buddhist Life
- Author: Andrea Miller
- Publisher: Pottersfield Press, 2019
- ISBN: 9781988286884
- Pages: 221
Bill Arnott is the bestselling author of A Season on Vancouver Island, theGone Viking travelogues, andA Perfect Day for a Walk: The History, Cultures, and Communities of Vancouver, on Foot(Arsenal Pulp Press, Fall 2024). Recipient of a Fellowship at London’s Royal Geographical Society for his expeditions, Bill’s a frequent presenter and contributor to magazines, universities, podcasts, TV and radio. When not trekking with a small pack and journal, Bill can be found on Canada’s west coast, where he lives near the sea on Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh land.