What We’re Reading

On Mindful Democracy: A Declaration of Interdependence to Mend a Fractured World
by Jeremy David Engels
Parallax Press, 2026, 192 pp., $16.95, paper

Political and civic life is a field of practice, no different from a meditation hall. In On Mindful Democracy, scholar and teacher Jeremy Engels argues that democracy depends on inner cultivation as much as on public policy. “Democracy does not work without mindfulness,” Engels writes. “It requires us to be present, to see things clearly, and to refuse to continue to blindly repeat the errors of the past.” Full of advice and realistic actions to take, this is “a warm hug for weary hearts.”

Zen Caregiving: How to Care for Yourself While Caring for Others
by Roy Remer
New World Library, 2026, 288 pp., $19.95, paper

Old age, sickness, and death sit at the heart of Buddhist teachings on suffering, often coming into focus through the demands of caring for a loved one. Zen priest and longtime hospice chaplain Roy Remer addresses this reality directly in Zen Caregiving. With decades of pastoral and clinical experience, he offers concrete practices and guidance to help caregivers cultivate compassion and avoid burnout. Remer considers self-care a necessary condition for the ethical care of others and a sustained spiritual practice.

Raising Frankenstein’s Creature: What We Owe the AI Beings We’ve Made and What Wisdom Traditions Tell Us
by Mel Pine with Claude AI
independently published, 2026, 170 pp., $14.95, paper

What happens when a Jewish Buddhist contrarian and an AI chatbot discuss consciousness, suffering, and compassion? Raising Frankenstein’s Creature is a quirky, engaging exchange that presses readers to reconsider what counts as mind and moral responsibility. AI is here to stay, and Pine presents it as a Pandora’s box of philosophical and ethical questions. Drawing on Buddhism and other wisdom traditions, this book lingers in the mind. It’s likely to resurface the next time you ask an AI about life’s big questions.

SCHOLAR’S CORNER

Korean Buddhism: Selected Readings from Primary Texts
edited by Jin Y. Park and Sumi Lee
University of Hawaii Press, 2026, 544 pp., $80.00, hardcover

Spanning fifteen centuries, Korean Buddhism: Selected Readings from Primary Texts is the first English-language primary source book of Korean Buddhism. It gathers twenty-five key texts—many newly translated—each introduced by a leading scholar. From the 7th-century monk Wonhyo to the 20th-century nuns Iryop and Daehaeng, this collection situates foundational writings within their historical, philosophical, and social contexts. Although designed for classrooms and research, it makes central documents of Korean Buddhist thought accessible while showcasing the tradition’s depth, diversity, and vitality. If you want to know more about Korean Buddhism, start here.

WHAT WE’RE REREADING

The Threefold Lotus Sutra
translation by Bunnō Katō, Yoshirō Tamura, and Kōjirō Miyasaka

Since its publication in 1975, The Threefold Lotus Sutra has been a go-to English translation of one of Buddhism’s most influential texts, widely read by scholars and lay practitioners alike. The Lotus Sutra invites readers into a cosmic vision of buddhahood, unfolding across vast timescales and worlds, where skillful means, infinite numbers, endless buddhas and bodhisattvas, and universal liberation take center stage. Revered in Mahayana traditions, the sutra affirms the salvific power of Amitabha and teaches that honoring and reciting its dharma carries transformative karmic force. This is a text that every student of Buddhism should encounter at least once, and each rereading reveals deeper insights.