CompleteMartialArts.com - Buddhism without Beliefs
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List Price: $13.00
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Manufacturer: Riverhead Trade
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Average Customer Rating:  
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Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 294.34
EAN: 9781573226561
ISBN: 1573226564
Label: Riverhead Trade
Manufacturer: Riverhead Trade
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 144
Publication Date: 1998-03-01
Publisher: Riverhead Trade
Studio: Riverhead Trade
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Editorial Reviews:
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Those with an interest in Buddhism will welcome this new book by Stephen Batchelor, former monk and author of Alone With Others and The Awakening of the West. But those who are just discovering this increasingly popular practice will have much to gain as well-for Buddhism Without Beliefs serves as a solid, straightforward introduction that demystifies Buddhism and explains simply and plainly how its practice can enrich our lives. Avoiding jargon and theory, Batchelor concentrates on the concrete, making Buddhism accessible and compelling and showing how anyone can embark on this path-regardless of their religious background.
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Spotlight customer reviews:
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Customer Rating:
Summary: British Citizen Admits Attempt to Kidnap Buddha
Comment: Buddhism without beliefs would be like a violinist without hands. A state devoid of beliefs doesn't exist. You can choose between Buddhist beliefs or currently fashionable Western beliefs, but you can't have No beliefs any more than you can speak in no language.
This book merely repeats proposals that have been tried out decades ago in Christianity. From Rudolf Bultmann on, Christian intellectuals tried to purge their faith of "dated superstitions" and "supernaturalism", and to go back to a supposed pure experiential essence of Christian faith. The result? Mainstream Churches have been emptying like a bathtub while Fundamentalist Churches, blissfully unaware of those things "that we as modern people can no longer believe", are packed to the rafters.
Obviously, nothing could be more disastrous for Western Buddhism than for the ideas expressed in this book to become widely influential.
Buddhism is an historical reality; we can't just make it whatever we please. China and Japan evolved novel forms for Buddhism? Sure, but not by trying to, not by sitting down to work it out as a philosophical/sociological problem. Devoted practitioners did their utmost to preserve tradition: in spite of them it turned into something new.
Not that this book is without merit. It is concise and well-written; the musings on modern life and its uncertainties are poignant if unoriginal. Why confuse things by dragging in poor old Gautama Shakyamuni?
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Summary: Grounded in reality
Comment: This book is perhaps one of the best books on Buddhism I've read!
Buddhism has a tendency to be regarded as a religion. Religions as batchelor implies are dogmatic organizations with beliefs in esoteric and paranormal things. His version of Buddhism doesn't involve believing things that aren't known. Simply it is a process of "Awakening". In much the same way that the scientific method is the process for discovering truth. He describes the process and what it means in simple and understandable language.
For a beginner is Buddhism, that is quickly turned off by the "New Age-ness" and robes and reincarnation and mantras that comes to mind when thinking of buddhism. This book is an excellent introduction, it is grounded in reality but still inspiring and calming. It made me want to read more of stephen batchelor's books.
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Summary: Interesting book but didn't rock my world
Comment: As someone who feels that too much superstition and religion has been wrapped around the simple truths of Buddhism, I was intrigued by the title of this book. In my case the author was preaching to the choir, but this would probably be a good read for someone who feels like they're on the right road but perhaps headed in not quite the right direction.
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Summary: Try and see for yourself.
Comment: First of all I have to admit that I have not received my "Official Buddhist" certificate; it must have been lost in the mail. Despite this I will have to overstep the bounds of my credentials and say that I have confidence that if Shakyamuni Buddha was writing a review of this book he would simply say "try it and see for yourself." Perhaps he would even add, "Be wary of people who tell you to accept ideas that you cannot verify for yourself, through your own experience." This is the only test. Your life has nothing to do with my opinion, and even less to do with laying faith in something out of fear of the reprimands from the self proclaimed "higher-ups". I will even go against these declarations of inferiority-by-unorthodoxy by characterizing Buddhism as a living tradition that has continuously developed along lines of unorthodoxy, beginning with the Buddha himself. I would like to think that much of the criticism of this book is done out of love for the traditions and cultures through which Buddhism comes to us. The beauty of the Buddha's message is that whenever it has crossed cultural borders, or is faced with institutionalization and codification, it always seems to emerge renewed, refreshed, and alive, with new words and new ways to reach many different minds, with a respect and reverence for all things, all views, and all paths. The tradition should be a vehicle for a message of release from attachments, and should not simply become another attachment. This is the truest tradition of Buddhism of which I am aware (look and see for yourself), and that is where this book fits in. The audio version is excellent, perhaps better, and it contains clarifications of many things in the book that orthodox traditionalists or "conservative Buddhists" may take issue with. My advice, get both. A lotus for you, a Buddha to be.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Healthy and attitude changing
Comment: This book is a keeper to refer to for many years to come. I look forward to my second reading with as much enthusiasm as I did when I first bought it.
This path can be more easily interpreted by western minds, without instilling any concerns about conflicts with other belief-based religions.
In this way a Christian (or any other religion) reader can start to few other paths without challenging any of their "beliefs". Any work that brings different sects / faiths / belief structures to more common and positive ground is healthy and may facilitate contructive and peaceful change.
There are many paths to enlightenment. This book illuminates one such path, that can also be followed by most believers of other faiths.
Did Sittharra state something like - let each of you go out and serve, but let no two of you take the same path?
As a Christian, I found the book to be outstanding, attitude changing, healthy and constructive reading.
Another good book to help understand other viewpoints is "The World's Religions" by Huston Smith.
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