Anyone suggestions on reading material concerning buddhism?
Thank you

david

Anything by Alan Watts gives a good insight into Buddhism....particularly Zen.
Here's a short talk you may (or may not) find interesting......WY

[www.youtube.com]

Eckhart Tolle. Even though he's not affiliated with Buddhism (that I know about), his teachings seem heavily influenced by it and he quotes the Buddha all the t ime.

I have yet to meet anyone who doesn't love this book: [www.amazon.com]

It's very accessible.

Well, I have no recommendations for any religion, but for spirituality I recommend anything by Ram Daas.

Oy vey. Buddhism is not a religion. I can also guarantee you that Ram Dass absolutely does not ignore religion. Completely shunning thousands of years of wisdom because some people have used it for negative purposes is not wise.

[login.ramdass.org]

"And it’s interesting that various religions, every religion like Judaism obviously has a mystic tradition but many religious rituals are designed for people who in one lifetime are not going to begin to awaken. And it’s designed to keep them cool. To keep them moral and cool and together."

--Ram Dass



Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Well, I have no recommendations for any religion,
> but for spirituality I recommend anything by Ram
> Daas.

Of course Ram Daas draws on religion. All ancient religions have much in common. I don't support any organized religion though. Taking a bit from all of them is good. P.S. No offense, but this is why I tend not to participate on forums. There are always people who act like people say things they didn't. (Strawman fallacy.) So many of the discussions become wasteful.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/06/2012 10:10PM by RawPlease.

Person X: Hey, can someone recommend a good tropical fruit?

Person Y: I don't normally eat cheese Person X, but I do enjoy a good head of cabbage. Give it a try.

Person Z: Uhhh, Person Y? Cheese is not a tropical fruit and cabbage is a vegetable."

Person Y: Quit creating straw man arguments. I'm outta here.


RawPlease Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Of course Ram Daas draws on religion. All ancient
> religions have much in common. I don't support any
> organized religion though. Taking a bit from all
> of them is good. P.S. No offense, but this is why
> I tend not to participate on forums. There are
> always people who act like people say things they
> didn't. (Strawman fallacy.) So many of the
> discussions become wasteful.

<<Anyone suggestions on reading material concerning buddhism?>>

papaya is a good tropical fruit

i also like mangoes

and pineapple guava are delicious as well

pineapples are super sweet but maui gold is the best

these are my fave... hope this helps... its great material to read
you can glean much information on happiness from these items
very sweet too

No books material to recommend

Many 'religions' (or philosophies) try to claim and define reality by selecting or creating a point of view. Then from that point of view everything else looks fake, which may make you believe on it. Conclusion, if you read the word reality on their books it is time to escape. Don't bother asking question.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/07/2012 01:49PM by Panchito.

maybe I'll go for a jog instead

OH look what I found:


david

LOL.

I liked: What the Buddha Taught - Walpola Rahula

[www.amazon.com]

HH Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Person X: Hey, can someone recommend a good
> tropical fruit?
>
> Person Y: I don't normally eat cheese Person X,
> but I do enjoy a good head of cabbage. Give it a
> try.
>
> Person Z: Uhhh, Person Y? Cheese is not a tropical
> fruit and cabbage is a vegetable."
>
> Person Y: Quit creating straw man arguments. I'm
> outta here.
>
>
> RawPlease Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Of course Ram Daas draws on religion. All
> ancient
> > religions have much in common. I don't support
> any
> > organized religion though. Taking a bit from
> all
> > of them is good. P.S. No offense, but this is
> why
> > I tend not to participate on forums. There are
> > always people who act like people say things
> they
> > didn't. (Strawman fallacy.) So many of the
> > discussions become wasteful.


Great exercise for the brain!

try Not to exercise the brain

Haha yeah. That would be great if not for neuroplasticity and the discovery that exercising the brain helps to fend off neuro-degeneration.

Panchito Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> try Not to exercise the brain

i don't know
because it is such a big subject
its like trying to recommend a water droplet in the ocean

just
be
a good person
and then, everything will fall into place
i think

Whats What This book- Handbook For Mankind
By Buddhadasa Bhikkhu
dvdai this book is one you should check out!

Buddhadasa Bhikkhu: Chapter 1: Looking At Buddhism
Buddhadasa Bhikkhu: Chapter 2: The True Nature Of Things
Buddhadasa Bhikkhu: Chapter 3: Three Universal Characteristics
Buddhadasa Bhikkhu: Chapter 4: Grasping And Clinging
Buddhadasa Bhikkhu: Chapter 5: The Threefold Training
Buddhadasa Bhikkhu: Chapter 6: The Things We Cling To
Buddhadasa Bhikkhu: Chapter 7: Insight, By The Nature Method
Buddhadasa Bhikkhu: Chapter 8: Insight, By Organized Training
Buddhadasa Bhikkhu: Chapter 9: Emancipation From The World




Handbook For Mankind
By Buddhadasa Bhikkhu



translated from the Thai by Ariyananda Bhikkhu (Roderick S. Bucknell)
For more information: Dhammadana Foundation c/o Suan Mokh Chaiya Surat Thani 84110 Thailand
First electronic edition: December 1996
Scanning & Proofreading: John Gebhardt: Email: gebhardt@well.com


This electronic edition is offered FOR FREE DISTRIBUTION ONLY
by arrangement with the Dhammadana Foundation.
This text is a gift of Dhamma. You may print this file for your personal use, and you may make and distribute unaltered copies of this file, provided that you charge no fees of any kind for its distribution.
Otherwise, all rights reserved


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Foreword

In 1956, the Venerable Buddhadasa Bhikkhu gave a series of lectures to a group of prospective judges, which were subsequently edited and arranged into what became The Handbook for Mankind.

Since then, the success of this small book has been astounding. Well over 100,000 copies have been printed in Thai, and the book still enjoys widespread popularity, more than three decades after the original talks. The reason for the "Handbook's" duration is clear: that the Venerable Buddhadasa offers fresh insights into a timeless Truth (Dhamma), in the direct and simple manner that characterizes all his teaching. The clarity of his insight brings the Dhamma to life, so that today, a new generation of readers, not yet born at the time of these talks, can find meaning in his words.

As a guide for newcomers to the Buddha-Dhamma (the Truth which the Buddha awakened to and subsequently taught), this book is an invaluable guide. In it are contained the essential teachings of Buddhism. The "Handbook" is especially useful for those who approach the Buddha's teaching, not as a subject for scholarly study, buy as a means to understand and ennoble their lives.

The Handbook for Mankind was originally published in English by the Sublime Life Mission, buy has long been out of print. With their permission, we have reprinted this book, making some corrections where necessary, buy leaving the text otherwise intact. Our thanks are due to Mr. Pun Chongprasoed, who first put this book together in Thai, and to all the people whose effort has made possible the reprinting of this book.

Biography

Buddhadasa Bhikkhu (Servant of the Buddha) went forth as a bhikkhu (Buddhist monk) in 1926, at the age of twenty. After a few years of study in Bangkok, which convinced him "purity is not to be found in the big city," he was inspired to live close with nature in order to investigate the Buddha-Dhamma. Thus, he established Suan Mokkhabalarama (The Grove of the Power of Liberation) in 1932, near his hometown of Pum Riang (now in Chaiya District). At that time, it was the only forest Dhamma Center and one of the few places dedicated to vipassana meditation in Southern Thailand. Word of Buddhadasa Bhikkhu, his work, and Suan Mokkh spread over the years so that they are easily described as "one of the most influential events of Buddhist history in Siam." Here, we can only mention some of the most interesting services he has rendered Buddhism.

Ajahn Buddhadasa worked painstakingly to establish and explain the correct and essential principles of what he called "pristine Buddhism," that is, the original realization of the Lord Buddha before it was buried under commentaries, ritualism, clerical politics, and the like. His work was based in extensive research of the Pali texts (Canon and commentary), especially of the Buddha's Discourses (Sutta Pitaka), followed by personal experiment and practice with these teachings. Then he taught whatever he could say truly quenches dukkha (dissatisfaction, suffering). His goal was to produce a complete set of references for present and future research and practice. His approach was always scientific, straight-forward, and practical.

Although his formal education only went as far as ninth grade and beginning Pali studies, he was given five Honorary Doctorates by Thai universities. His books, both written and transcribed from talks, fill a room at the National Library and influence all serious Thai Buddhists in Siam. Doctoral dissertations are still being written about him and his legacy. His books can be found in bookstores around the country and are favorites as gifts at cremations.

Progressive elements in Thai society, especially the young, were inspired by his teaching and selfless example. Since the 1960's, activists and thinkers in areas such as education, ecology, social welfare, and rural development have drawn upon his teaching and advice. Most of the monks involved in nature conservation and community development were inspired by him. He provided the link between the scriptural tradition and engaged buddhist practice today.

After the founding of Suan Mokkh, he studied all schools of Buddhism, as well as the other major religious traditions. This interest was practical rather than scholarly. He sought to unite all genuinely religious people in order to work together to help, as he put it, "drag humanity out from under the power of materialism." This broadmindedness won him friends and students from around the world, including Christians, Muslims, Hindus, and Sikhs.

His last project was to establish an International Dhamma Hermitage. This addition to Suan Mokkh is intended to provide facilities for:

Courses which introduce foreigners to the correct understanding of Buddhist principles and practice;
Meetings among Buddhists from around the world to establish and agree upon the "heart of Buddhism";
Meetings of leaders from all religions for the sake of making mutual good understanding and cooperating to drag the world out from under the tyranny of materialism.

He also left instructions for a small monastery in which foreign monks may train as Dhamma-duta (Dhamma missionaries). It now functions under the name "Daun Kiam" or Suan Atammayatarama.

A similar facility for nuns, Thai and foreign, awaits the women who will make it happen. He called it Dhamma-Mata (Dhamma Mothers, those who give birth to others through Dhamma).

Ajarn Buddhadasa died in 1993 after a series of heart attacks and strokes that he kept bouncing back from in order to teach.

The final stroke occured as he was preparing notes for a talk to be given on his birthday in two days (27 May). Suan Mokkh carries on in the hearts and actions of all those who have been inspired and guided by his example and words. Suan Mokkh is not so much a physical place as it is the space of liberation that we all must discover in this very life.

About The Translator

Rod Bucknell first became seriously interested in Buddhism in the mid -1960's, when, during a visit to Thailand, he was introduced to the techniques of insight meditation. After spending a year in various Thai meditation centers and monasteries, he took ordination as a bhikkhu (monk) under the guidance of Ajahn Pannananda of Wat Cholapratan Rangsarit. He soon became interested also in the teachings of Ajahn Buddhadasa, and, recognizing their potential value to westerners, began translating some of the Ajahn's more important works into English. During the four years he spent in the Sangha, he translated altogether six works of varying length, usually in close consultation with the Ajahn in order to ensure accuracy in the rendering of key concepts. Despite his return to lay life, he maintains a close interest - both scholarly and practical - in Ajahn Buddhadasa's teachings, and has published several related articles in religious studies journals. He is currently a lecturer in the Department of Studies in Religion at the University of Queensland, Australia.


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Thanks riverhousebill. I will definitely check that out!

david

Buddhism has a number of different aspects or sides. Just as the same mountain when viewed from a different direction presents a different appearance, so different benefits are derived from Buddhism according to how one looks at it. Even Buddhism has its origins in fear--not the foolish fear of an ignorant person who kneels and makes obeisance to idols or strange phenomena, but a higher kind of fear, the fear of perhaps never attaining liberation from the oppression of birth, aging, pain and death, from the various forms of suffering we experience. The real Buddhism is not books, not manuals, not word for word repetition from the Tipitaka, nor is it rites and rituals. These are not the real Buddhism. The real Buddhism is the practice, by way of body, speech and mind that will destroy the defilements, in part or completely. One need not have anything to do with books or manuals. One ought not to rely on rites and rituals, or anything else external, including spirits and celestial beings. Rather one must be directly concerned with bodily action, speech and thought. That is, one must persevere in one's efforts to control and eliminate the defilements so that clear insight can arise. One will then be automatically capable of acting appropriately, and will be free of suffering from that moment right up to the end.

This is the real Buddhism. This is what we have to understand. Let us not go foolishly grasping at the tumor that is obscuring Buddhism, taking it for the real thing.


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David I hope you have had a chance to look at the Hand book For Mankind.
A hitchhiker left me the copy in my car thats how I came about it,
Ive found it most interesting, and yes its bottom line is what is what, nothing more or nothing less.

I wanted to mention one more book on the Buddhist perspective.
The book For The Sake Of PEACE -Daisaku Ikeda
Seven Paths To Global Harmony A BUDDHIST PERSPECTIVE
Foreword By Glen D.Paige
Center For Global Nonviolence.

David The book based on decades of writings and lectures,
For The Sake Of Peace tackles the issue of peace from the
Buddhist perspective of compassion and the INTERCONNECTEDNESS
of all life.
Those searching for new answers to the percistent issues of
our day will find invaluable Dr.Ikedas clear message.

Peace is the prize of self mastery and sincere dialogue,
the ultimate expression of repect.
It starts with the individual and spreads through all of society.