The Snow Leopard (Penguin Classics)
WINNER OF THE NATIONAL BOOK AWARD
“A masterpiece that exceeds the boundaries of the travel genre and envelops you with its incredible prose.” —Wall Street Journal
An unforgettable spiritual journey through the Himalayas by renowned writer Peter Matthiessen (1927-2014)
In 1973, Peter Matthiessen and field biologist George Schaller traveled high into the remote mountains of Nepal to study the Himalayan blue sheep and possibly glimpse the rare and beautiful snow leopard. Matthiessen, a student of Zen Buddhism, was also on a spiritual quest to find the Lama of Shey at the ancient shrine on Crystal Mountain. As the climb proceeds, Matthiessen charts his inner path as well as his outer one, with a deepening Buddhist understanding of reality, suffering, impermanence, and beauty. This Penguin Classics edition features an introduction by acclaimed travel writer and novelist Pico Iyer.
For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.
“A masterpiece that exceeds the boundaries of the travel genre and envelops you with its incredible prose.” —Wall Street Journal
An unforgettable spiritual journey through the Himalayas by renowned writer Peter Matthiessen (1927-2014)
In 1973, Peter Matthiessen and field biologist George Schaller traveled high into the remote mountains of Nepal to study the Himalayan blue sheep and possibly glimpse the rare and beautiful snow leopard. Matthiessen, a student of Zen Buddhism, was also on a spiritual quest to find the Lama of Shey at the ancient shrine on Crystal Mountain. As the climb proceeds, Matthiessen charts his inner path as well as his outer one, with a deepening Buddhist understanding of reality, suffering, impermanence, and beauty. This Penguin Classics edition features an introduction by acclaimed travel writer and novelist Pico Iyer.
For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.
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Community Reviews
Walking on dangerous snowy peaks and searching for the elusive Snow Leopard is a beautiful metaphor for walking the spiritual path and the things we ultimately seek in life.
In 1972 author Peter Matthiessen agreed to accompany a scientist friend on a trek into the Himalayas in search of rare sheep and the snow leopard. This is the story of that journey as recorded day by day, and the social, psychological, and spiritual impact it had on the author. Accompanied by a small group of Sherpas and porters, Matthiessen and his friend walked into the most remote and inaccessible part of Nepal encountering indigenous people, physical hardship, along with beauty and exhilaration. Each chapter recounts one day of the journey with the spiritual enlightenment and scientific achievement. There are breathtakingly beautiful descriptions of the physical world, including in-depth knowledge of the flora and fauna encountered. The author is candid about his drug use, his rocky marriage and loss of his wife, and his agony at leaving his child behind in order to take this journey. This is a book you probably won't forget, once read.
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