With this tome (1087 pages) Windhorse Publications completes its staggering publication of Sangharakshita’s Complete Works, all 27 volumes! One of the greatest joys of these volumes is the inclusion of previously out-of-print or never-before-published material such as various talks by Sangharakshita given in India in the 1980s.

The final volume, the Concordance to the Complete Works, is an invaluable, comprehensive, yet accessible guide, index, encyclopaedia, dictionary, as well as concordance. It is also full of quotations, as the publisher’s blurb states, ‘It answers one’s questions, raises other questions, and above all it is full of signposts to help the reader find their own particular way through the vast forest of the Dharma.’ What constitutes the ‘Complete Works’? All of Sangharakshita’s published work, short stories, talks, seminars, and writings published in this volume, representing the definitive edition of his life’s work as a Buddhist teacher and writer.

The Concordance, compiled by Vidyadevi, includes a number of outstanding features: an introductory article on how to use the Concordance, a Retrospective, a detailed Bibliography (accompanied by dates of publication and a guide to which volume in the series the publication appears in), and lists of Errata and Omissions appearing in each of the 26 volumes.

This is not the first book that Vidyadevi has edited. Timed to celebrate the opening of Adhisthana's Sangharakshita Library in 2015, Metaphors, Magic and Mystery, is an anthology on the theme of words. This should not surprise readers. Vidyadevi reminds us that it was through reading that Sangharakshita first realised that he was a Buddhist. 

Remarking on the editing process, Vidyadevi said, ‘There's something about coming at it all fresh and trying to see the patterns in it and bring it together in its different “baskets”, has also spoken about her overall ambition for the Complete Works to be ‘as friendly and as approachable as possible’.

In this last Vidyadevi has excelled admirably. Indeed, I believe that anybody without a prior knowledge of either Buddhism or Sangharakshita can now fully enjoy their new adventure, discovering the world of Buddhism, and in so doing make that journey from head to heart.

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Luke Penkett is a member of the Norwich Triratna Sangha. He has been writing books and reviews for over two decades. He has lived as a solitary monk for 25 years. Earlier this year (2024) his abbot released him from his monastic vows in order for him to be welcomed as a Mitra. An avid reader, he is making his way through Sangharakshita's work and the Windhorse Publications collection, and will be posting reviews of some of those books in this space. 

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Volume 27: Concordance to the Complete Works is available to purchase from the Windhorse Publications website in hardback or eBook formats.