Customer Reviews

Philosophy of the Buddha

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The buddha's enlightenment and teaching is reduced to a simple logical tautology. After an introduction of blarney about all the textual research he claims to have done, the author arbitrarily chooses the most simplistic interpretation of the buddha's teachings and dismisses all other sources as misinterpretation.

The most striking bit of information I got out of this excellent book is about the conversation between SiddhArtha and one of his students. The student asks if Gautama is a god, to which of course he replies in the negative. "Then what are you?" his student asks - "Awake!" Gautama replies. Taoism, Confucianism and Buddhism are philosophical systems that were never intended to be religions. As a devout Christian, I am quite comfortable reading books like this one with that fact in mind. GOD didn't give wisdom only to the West - there is much wisdom in the East as well. The reader must keep in mind that this is human wisdom.

the book in my opinion was very interesting and i would recommend it very much. this book explores the levels above what other books do. Buy a copy for yourself and your partner.

This book was a welcome addition to my collection of Buddhist literature. It really helped me see a new angle on things and shake of the literalist dogma I had taken from the Thervadan writings I had read. It helped me see past to orthodoxy built around Zen. Finally, it allowed me to see Chan's preservation of the Middle Way, and thus further pursue their vehicles for use in my practice.

In addition, Archie is NOT a Buddhist nor a practicioner of Buddhist ways. He offers a refeshing view of a very misunderstood, simple and helpful tool for building a life filled with joy.