- Paperback: 256 pages
- Publisher: Harperone; Reprint edition (Dec 2 2004)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0060730676
- ISBN-13: 978-0060730673
- Product Dimensions: 20.3 x 13.6 x 1.6 cm
- Shipping Weight: 136 g
- Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #157,314 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
|
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
Product Details |
Product Description
From Publishers Weekly
Bookshelves abound with introductions to Buddhism, many written by luminaries and spiritual giants of the faith. But this primer co-written by Smith, whose magnum opus The World's Religions has sold more than two million copies, is distinguished by its gentlemanly erudition and thoughtful attention to Buddhist diversity. The book's first half is an expanded and updated version of the Buddhism sections of The World's Religions and was penned by Smith. Special attention is given to Theravada Buddhism, which "was overshadowed by Mahayana" in the original version; one chapter provides a helpful side-by-side chart illuminating the basic differences between the traditions, while the next features an in-depth discussion of Theravada's influence in South Asia and its emphasis on insight meditation. The primer's all-new second half-written by Smith's former doctoral student Novak-presents the story of Buddhism in the West, discussing its multifaceted presence in the United States. While Novak devotes time to the rise of Buddhism in Germany, England and France, it is clear that he finds the "New Buddhism" of America, with its emphasis on lay involvement, social engagement and the cross-pollination between Buddhist traditions, to be the source of the most exciting contemporary innovations. Smith's helpful afterword gauges the rising importance of Pure Land Buddhism in America, though this vital information should have merited a full chapter. Novak and Smith's collaboration is a fine contribution to the admittedly crowded corpus of introductions to Buddhism: the strokes are broad, the writing style engaging and the chapters short and accessible.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Booklist
Smith, the dean of religious studies in America, and his former student, philosophy and religion professor Novak, offer a concise, readable, enlightening introduction to Buddhism. They present the history of the man Buddha, born about 563 B.C.E. in what is now Nepal, and of the religion, which they compare with its Hindu roots. They examine Buddhism's original teachings and what Buddhism was (an empirical, pragmatic, therapeutic, and egalitarian response to the world of its founding) and what it was not (a religion devoid of authority, ritual, and tradition). They discuss such Buddhist essentials as the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path and such other basic concepts as nirvana, the three marks of existence, and emptiness. Like most other religions, Buddhism has not been immune to schism, and Smith and Novak explain why it split into its present many divisions. They devote a goodly portion of the book to Zen Buddhism and Buddhism's increasing popularity in the West and to its remarkable resiliency, especially evident in the meditation-centered New Buddhism of America. June Sawyers
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
First Sentence
Buddhism begins with a man. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
Buddhism begins with a man. Read the first page
Explore More
Concordance
Browse Sample PagesConcordance
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
Tag this product(What's this?)Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organize and find favorite items. |
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most helpful customer reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
A excellent place to start,
By
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Buddhism: A Concise Introduction (Paperback)
For those with little or no understanding of Buddhism, this would be an excellent place to start. If you feel you're already quite knowledgable, this book would be helpful when you want to explain key concepts to a friend without using jargon or obscure references.There's the historical overview plus details about the separate, but connected strands of Buddhism. Buddhism's appeal over the last 2,500 years becomes easier to understand for those unfamiliar with it. I like to dip into the book from time to time as a way to refresh some of the basics when I think I'm getting too caught up in the minute details.
4.0 out of 5 stars
It's too short!,
By
This review is from: Buddhism: A Concise Introduction (Hardcover)
I have read a number of books about Buddhism, and this is the best of its kind. However, to avoid disappointment, it is very important to understand what its "kind" is!This is NOT -- as the subtitle and the cover art could misleadingly suggest -- a user-friendly introduction to Buddhist practice. It is not a hand-holding tour of the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold way, with beginning training in meditation. If you buy it expecting such things, you may well write another negative review. The authors are academics specializing in the history of religion (see Smith's other books, which are widely respected), and they are both Buddhist practitioners. In this book they combine these traits to write a deep, sympathetic account of Buddhism as a religion: what its main tenets are -- how it is practiced -- how it fractured historically into different strands. They write analytically and comparitively, but they also write with understanding and sympathy. They treat Buddhism as a living religion to be practiced by modern people - not as an anthropological artifact, the way some non-Buddhist authors do. Smith and Novak are particularly good at describing, sympathetically and in depth, the philosophical roots of the different practices in each strand. The chapters that compare the differing values of the Mahayana and Theravada strains, and then show their fundamental unity, is worth the book's price. They also tease out the key differences between the four types of Tibetan Buddhism, and explain the sources and values of other schools as different as Goenka and Pure Land. They are also good at showing and how Western practices were formed by the sheer happenstance of which individuals happened to first import Buddhist thought, and which Eastern school they happened to stumble upon for their initial training. Finally, they do a good job of showing how Western, and especially American, Buddhism is in many ways a different beast from any Eastern form, and still evolving. The main problem with the book, aside from its slightly-misleading title, is that it is too short. For some reason, the authors felt they had to restrict the length. At several points they apologize for giving only a "summary" of some important point (like: Buddhism in Europe). And several key concepts are only sketched in the end-notes, when they deserve to be written out in full and integrated into the book. I'm only giving 4 of 5 stars because of this compression.
1.0 out of 5 stars
Reader's Digest Buddhism,
By AMICUS QUE (California United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Buddhism: A Concise Introduction (Hardcover)
If you want to discuss Buddhism over cocktails and feel the satisfaction of seeming to understand profound doctrines through quaint digestible sound bites then, look no further, this introduction to Buddhism is sure to please you and collect dust for years to come. If you are allured by the uniqueness of the Buddha's personage and if you are serious about attaining to samsara's end, then do not buy this book. It will waste your time, transform insightful doctrines into trite crowd pleasing fluff, and say good-bye with a cute Afterword that manages to completely alienate you from the original impetus of the Buddha's teaching. Smith has, once again, successfully reduced a profound religion to the cozy feeling we get while singing Amazing Grace in Sunday School. The work, especially with the crucial Afterword, reveals more about the man Huston Smith and his own metaphysical beliefs than it does the man Gotama Buddha and his timeless teachings of impermanence, unsatisfactoriness, and unsubstantiality.
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
Want to see more reviews on this item?
|
Most recent customer reviews |
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
