Buddhism: A Concise Introduction

As I am writing this I have just seen a new report lamenting the lack of knowledge about religions amongst the youth of America. It's easy to see that ignorance about the core beliefs of others is dangerous, and, perhaps, a bit disrespectful. This is a marvelous introductory book to the basic tenets of Buddhism by the well-known writer Huston Smith, whose magisterial book The World's Religions has sold more than two million copies. The first half of this book is an expanded and updated version of the sections on Buddhism from the World's Religions. Though there has been a shift in emphasis between the two: the big book focused more on Mahayana Buddhism, in this new book, the emphasis is more on Theravada Buddhism, with a useful chart delineating some of the differences and similarities between the two major schools of Buddhism. The second half of the book is all new and was largely written by Philip Novak, one of Smith former doctoral students who is now a professor in his own right. His focus is more on the growth and spread of Buddhism in Europe and the amazing way in which Buddhism has evolved in North America. A tribute to its remarkable resilience in the face of cultural forces. Although many of the basics of Buddhism can be picked up online, or by consulting any decent encyclopedia, the discussion of concepts like the our Noble Truths, the Eightfold Path, Nirvana and the Three Marks of Existence goes beyond the essentials and brings out a number of new and important points. There is an important issue when we examine philosophical or religious matters. There is inevitably a subjective component in how anyone, scholar or otherwise, interprets the teachings and their own experiences. So it is inevitable that not everyone will agree with every interpretation and nuance. Insight meditation, one of the tools of Theravada Buddhism, was one of the first forms of meditation that I ever learned, and the way that I was taught, by a well-known Thai-born teacher, was somewhat different form the interpretations in this book. I have also seen a couple of reviewers take issue with some of the book's comments about Zen Buddhism. They make some excellent points. Though I studied Zen too, and my own teaching was close to the information given in the book. So this book will not be the final word on Buddhism, but then there probably cannot be a "final word." The system has shown remarkable adaptability over the last twenty-five centuries, and there is no reason to think that it won't continue to evolve in the future. Highly recommended.

If you want a introduction to buddhism this is the book. Covers all branches of buddism. Huston Smith part is very well written and easy to read. The second part of the book by Novak isn't as enjoyable it can drag on at points and isn't as well written. All in All though if you are interested in buddhism this is a great book that covers alot of ground for a small 200 page book.

I've read dozens and dozens of books on Buddhism, but the clarity with which Smith and Novak explain basic principles, distinctions between sects, and the development of Buddhism in America makes Buddhism: A Concise Introduction very special. It's definitely the first book I'd recommend to anyone interested in learning about Buddhism (supplanting Steve Hagen's Buddhism Plain and Simple, a great book itself, but in a different way). Best of all, this book helped me understand which type of Buddhist practice made the most sense for me.

Of the dozens of Buddhist books I've purchased, this book provides the clearest, most understandable introduction to Buddhism. It gives a succinct historical background, complete with context (religions that were prominent where Buddism's roots sprouted). It then lays out the foundations of Buddhism (4 noble truths, eightfold path, etc.).The authors do a great job explaining some of Buddhism's complex terms (dependent arising, nen-self, etc.), and do not confuse matters by relying to heavily on Sanskrit or Pali terminology.Although the description of the various branches of Buddhism was a bit short, it did lay out the fundamental thoughts of each branch, and compare/contrast with the others. The authors detail meditation types(vipassana, samantha) and how the different branches use meditation differently.Finally, there is a summary of how Buddhism migrated to the western world, and how it is practiced today.An excellent book, I would highly recommend it.

A fantastic book to give one an overview of Buddhism...from the history to fairly detailed explanations of its various "branches" such as Theravada, Mahayana, Tibetan, Vispassana, etc. One could almost use it as a "shoppers guide to Buddhism". It also gives a "who's who" in contemporary American Buddhism, such as Surya Das, Kornfield, Epstein, Goleman, Salzberg, etc.I couldn't stop reading it. It really drew me in. Fascinating reading.Great for someone like myself who is very interested in Buddhism, and has had some experience with the different traditions, but needs some help in sorting out the different paths and which is the right one for you. Appears to be written with the westerner in mind, or anyone new to Buddhism.I really like it since it gives a wholly unbiased introduction to the various types of Buddhism, opposed to most works on Buddhism which are written from the perspective that their path is the best.I also recommend "Big Bang, The Buddha, and the Baby Boom" - Wes Nisker and "Why Buddhism" - Vicki MacKenzie, and "Buddhism Without Beliefs" - Steven Batchelor.