Buddha's Wife

I thoroughly enjoyed Buddha's Wife. I had never really thought about who she was before. The author brought the characters to life with warmth and passion. He made the Buddha human and showed the realities of how life may have been for these people. Her story, even in this fictional work, touched my heart and I feel as though I've missed not knowing her.

Reviewed by Paige Lovitt for Reader Views (10/09) When Buddha set off on his journey of enlightenment, he taught us many lessons about his life. One thing he didn't teach us about was the people that he left behind. This especially included his wife Yasodhara and his two-day-old son Rahula. When Buddha gave up his personal possessions, he also gave up his family. "Buddha's Wife" tells an incredible tale about what it would have been like for Yasodhara. In spite of her loss, she still tried to follow his teachings and chose to live a simple life. She had to deal with the pain of losing him, and the pain of watching her son grow up without his father. Her son carried a great deal of anger at being left behind. The wife also had to contend with her feelings regarding other people who were close to her husband. This included another woman. Yasodhara was really incredible in that she kept her compassion towards others and held on to beliefs that Buddha himself would have appreciated. As Yasodhara's life is winding down, her son sets out on a journey to see her for one last time. While he is on his way to her, she reflects upon her life experiences and how she chose to deal with the issues that were not easy. As her son finds his way to her, he is handed experiences that teach him some very important lessons. Towards the end, he has also learned a great deal about letting go and being able to heal. I found "Buddha's Wife" by Gabriel Constans to be very interesting and it made me very contemplative. As I read the story of Yasodhara, I realized how hard it would have been to be in her shoes, yet I also saw that she proved herself to be very enlightened being by the choices that she made about how to handle what experiences life gave to her. I highly recommend this novel, especially as a group reading selection. I think that it will stimulate very interesting conversations and provide a great deal of ideas for journaling.

I loved reading 'The Buddha's Wife'. It was such a smooth read. It reminded me of how I felt reading Hesse's 'Siddhartha' forty years ago. Knowing the book is a work of fiction, the author asks the question of what was it like for the wife of the Buddha to wake up one morning just after delivering a son to find her husband gone and the suffering that must have caused. How can the causation of suffering bring an end to suffering? It also asks how is unequal treatment of women enlightened? I have been a hospice volunteer for over a decade. The author's descriptions of the end of life process were written with the compassion of one who knows and understands. You may loose sleep over this book. I couldn't put it down.

Every so often, a book comes into your hands that touches you - I mean really touches you - deep in your heart. Buddha's Wife by Gabriel Constans does just that. Most people know about the Buddha, his travels, teachings and so on. But the author offers us a rare glimpse of Yasodhara, the woman he left behind. When Yasodhara was a mere 16 years old, Buddha left her in the middle of the night to care for their two-day-old son, Rahula, while he went off to find himself. Selfish? Yes. Was Yasodhara bitter? Of course. One day while seeing Buddha amidst his many rapt followers, she lost it: "He discarded us like a sack of rocks. For what? ...Adoration for a coward - a man who talks about peace, but leaves his family in torment?" Yasodhara was left to find her own peace and in her own way, she did. Though the wealthy wife of Siddhartha (Buddha), whose father was King Suddhodana, she chose to live a pious and underprivileged life- becoming a saint in her own right. Gabriel Constans writes with great sensitivity about the pain and suffering of this woman both during her life and as she lays on her deathbed looking back over her earthly existence. But it's not all misery, as the author lightens the reader's load with a little female humor graciously sprinkled throughout. This really is a book that captivates (I read it in two days because I couldn't put it down!) and fascinates.

Gabriel Constans brings us into the inner circle surrounding a magnificent woman in her dying days. Yasodhara, who, as the teenage bride of Siddhartha, seemed destined for a life of luxury with her beloved husband, became instead the abandoned wife of the great spiritual teacher. "Buddha's Wife" can be read at many levels. It is the captivating story of Yasodhara's own spiritual rebirth in the face of adversity, as well as a fresh perspective on the founder of Buddhism and his all-too-human shortcomings. Most of all, "Buddha's Wife" brings us an intimate portrait of an extraordinary woman practicing forgiveness, love and wisdom in the day to day challenges of her life.