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Rude Awakenings

An Unconventional Guide to the Buddhist Path

Author Samuel Bercholz
Paperback
$24.95 US
Shambhala
On sale Aug 25, 2026 | 384 Pages | 9781645473282
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From the founder of Shambhala Publications, a no-nonsense, occasionally irreverent field guide to busting out of your own neuroses—mixing Buddhist wisdom and a dash of mischief to help you wake up (even in the middle of work, sex, and your bank account).

In this refreshingly unfiltered guide, Sam Bercholz—founder of Shambhala Publications and a lifelong student and teacher of Buddhism—invites you to drop the pretense, roll up your sleeves, and get real about waking up.

Drawing on decades of firsthand experience with some of the most influential Buddhist teachers of our time, Sam serves up the full spectrum of Buddhist teachings with a healthy dose of humor and zero sugarcoating. This isn’t about sitting on a cushion and pretending you’re above it all. It’s about wrestling with your own distractions, addictions, and neuroses—right in the middle of your messy, beautiful, everyday life.

From meditation and tonglen to the everyday chaos of work, sex, and money, Sam gets his hands dirty with the real challenges of being human—no spiritual bypassing required. He dives into the gritty details of breaking free from habitual patterns, finding flashes of clarity in the chaos, and discovering your own basic goodness—even when you feel like a total mess.

You’ll get the inside scoop on Vajrayana teachings, the power of lineage, and the Shambhala path of warriorship, all delivered with Sam’s trademark irreverence and honesty. If you’re looking for a guide who’s been through the wringer and come out laughing—and who’ll urge you to live the teachings, not just read about them—this is your invitation to wake up, lighten up, and join the dance.
As the founder of Shambhala Publications, SAM BERCHOLZ has been instrumental in the transmission of Buddhism and authentic lineages of wisdom from Asia to the rest of the world. He has been a close disciple of two of the great luminaries of his time, Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche and Thinley Norbu Rinpoche, who both empowered him to teach. His books include the best-selling anthology The Buddha and His Teachings (coedited with Sherab Chodzin Kohn) and a graphic memoir titled A Guided Tour of Hell (illustrated by Pema Namdol Thaye). A senior teacher in the Nyingma and Kagyu schools of Tibetan Buddhism, Sam has taught extensively in North America, Europe, and Australasia, often at the request of Traleg Kyabgon. His fearless, humorous, and deeply personal style makes the age-old tradition of Buddhism eminently relatable.
Samuel Bercholz View titles by Samuel Bercholz

About

From the founder of Shambhala Publications, a no-nonsense, occasionally irreverent field guide to busting out of your own neuroses—mixing Buddhist wisdom and a dash of mischief to help you wake up (even in the middle of work, sex, and your bank account).

In this refreshingly unfiltered guide, Sam Bercholz—founder of Shambhala Publications and a lifelong student and teacher of Buddhism—invites you to drop the pretense, roll up your sleeves, and get real about waking up.

Drawing on decades of firsthand experience with some of the most influential Buddhist teachers of our time, Sam serves up the full spectrum of Buddhist teachings with a healthy dose of humor and zero sugarcoating. This isn’t about sitting on a cushion and pretending you’re above it all. It’s about wrestling with your own distractions, addictions, and neuroses—right in the middle of your messy, beautiful, everyday life.

From meditation and tonglen to the everyday chaos of work, sex, and money, Sam gets his hands dirty with the real challenges of being human—no spiritual bypassing required. He dives into the gritty details of breaking free from habitual patterns, finding flashes of clarity in the chaos, and discovering your own basic goodness—even when you feel like a total mess.

You’ll get the inside scoop on Vajrayana teachings, the power of lineage, and the Shambhala path of warriorship, all delivered with Sam’s trademark irreverence and honesty. If you’re looking for a guide who’s been through the wringer and come out laughing—and who’ll urge you to live the teachings, not just read about them—this is your invitation to wake up, lighten up, and join the dance.

Author

As the founder of Shambhala Publications, SAM BERCHOLZ has been instrumental in the transmission of Buddhism and authentic lineages of wisdom from Asia to the rest of the world. He has been a close disciple of two of the great luminaries of his time, Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche and Thinley Norbu Rinpoche, who both empowered him to teach. His books include the best-selling anthology The Buddha and His Teachings (coedited with Sherab Chodzin Kohn) and a graphic memoir titled A Guided Tour of Hell (illustrated by Pema Namdol Thaye). A senior teacher in the Nyingma and Kagyu schools of Tibetan Buddhism, Sam has taught extensively in North America, Europe, and Australasia, often at the request of Traleg Kyabgon. His fearless, humorous, and deeply personal style makes the age-old tradition of Buddhism eminently relatable.
Samuel Bercholz View titles by Samuel Bercholz

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