Hell realms, gods, and hungry ghosts—these are just a few of the images on the Buddhist wheel of life. In Awakening from the Daydream, discover how these ancient symbols are still relevant to our modern life.

In Awakening from the Daydream, contemporary meditation teacher David Nichtern reimagines the ancient Buddhist allegory of the Wheel of Life. Famously painted at the entryway to Buddhist monasteries, the Wheel of Life encapsulates the entirety of the human situation—all the pathos of our constant struggle in the sea of existence, buffeted by waves of pleasure and pain. Encoded in the image of the Wheel, we also find a teaching about how to make sense of life and how to find within ourselves peace with an uncertain world.

Nichtern writes with clarity and humor based on personal experience and from his years of working with the Wheel as a key teaching topic. His voice speaks clearly to our contemporary society and its concerns, and provides simple practical steps for building a calm, mindful, and compassionate approach to living. In reading Buddha's allegory of the Wheel in terms of the modern world,Awakening from the Daydream rouses us from the stupor of dry intellectualism. This teaching is meant for us, right now, in this world.