Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book. Sample Book Insights: #1 The word world has a more abstract, impersonal ring to it than the word universe. The traditional idea of world ages served the ancients as a convenient device for understanding large cultural contexts from a spiritual perspective. #2 Samsara is the cycle of birth, life, death, rebirth, and then death again. It is existence determined by fate, the intricate and inviolable web of karmic indebtedness that exists between beings. Samsara is karma. #3 The world is absurd and full of dangers. The brahmin is a symbol of the transience of life, and the giant female represents the ground of all adversity. To escape samsara, which is the birthplace of all suffering, one must renounce the world and become happy. #4 The goal of all spiritual traditions is to transcend the experienced world, which is both external and internal. To be able to transcend the world, we first need to know the territory.