Bitten by the Black Snake: The Ancient Wisdom of Ashtavakra [Paperback]

Manuel Schoch (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 30, 2007

In interpreting the timeless wisdom of the ancient Ashtavakra Gita for modern sensibilities, Manuel Schoch shows us very practically, step by step, how one can simply observe, instead of constantly reacting, projecting, desiring, and struggling in life. Instead of identifying with forms (the body, thoughts, feelings, habits, and experience) one can be connected to the everlasting consciousness that manifests forms. Out of this stillness emerge the qualities of life, love, peace, compassion, bliss, and enlightenment.

Editorial Reviews

Review

As interesting and enlightening as the works of modern writers are, some of us are drawn to the ancient texts. One such very old writing is the "Ashtavakra Gita".

Manuel Schoch, in his book Bitten by the Blacksnake reprints Ashtavakra's sutras and then expounds upon them and what they mean for us in our daily lives.

Little is known about Ashtavakra, but it is believed he lived around the 4th or 5th century BC, which could have had him predating Buddha or at least his contemporary.

The sutras are meant to reflect a dialogue between Ashtavakra and King Janaka on the nature of the soul, reality, and bondage and the means to liberation. The format in the book is to present a sutra and then follow it up with commentary. This allows the reader to form his own conclusions before reading any explanation. Bitten by the Blacksnake is very well done in this way.

I had never read the Ashtavakra Gita, so I was totally unfamiliar with it. I was surprised at the clarity of the words. The author's commentary made it even more meaningful in our modern life. Through this format in examining six different sutras, Ashtavakra and Schoch make an excellent team.

These passages cover suffering, misery, happiness, sense of doership, peace, bondage, witnessing consciousness, ego, stillness, fear, detachment, and awareness. Sounds familiar doesn't it? All of these words are used in spiritual writings found today.

There is such an amazing amount of wisdom in this book. I found that I enjoyed it even more than the "Heart of the Ribhu Gita", of which Ramana Maharshi said repeated reading of this in itself could bring liberation. -- Chapman, enlightenmentdudes.com

From the Publisher

Swiss mystic and therapist, Manuel Schoch, gives us his very simple, practical and comprehensable remarks to this ancient Indian scripture, a jewel of universal wisdom, helping us not to understand theoretically or philosophically but to be able to realize this timeless truth in our own lives. In interpreting the timeless wisdom of the ancient Ashtavakra Gita to the modern day understanding, Manuel Schoch shows us very practically, step by step, how - instead of constantly reacting, projecting, desiring, struggling in life - one can simply be observing. Instead of identifying with forms (the body, thoughts, feelings, habits, experience) one can be connected to the everlasting overall atmosphere in between things. Out of this stillness emerge the quality of life, love, peace, compassion, bliss, enlightenment.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 114 pages
• Publisher: Sentient Publications (May 30, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1591810604
• ISBN-13: 978-1591810605
• Product Dimensions: 7.3 x 5.5 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,044,957 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A powerful description of how to rest in the stillness that generates the highest qualities of life, October 6, 2007

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bitten by the Black Snake: The Ancient Wisdom of Ashtavakra (Paperback)

Swiss mystic and therapist Manuel Schoch presents Bitten by the Black Snake: The Ancient Wisdom of Ashtavakra, an interpretation of and commentary upon the timeless wisdom of the ancient Indian text of Ashtavakra, from the classic Vedanta period. Rendering the concepts into modern-day terms accessible to readers of all backgrounds, Bitten by the Black Snake reveals how to observe, rather than engage in the continual struggle created by the black snake of one's ego. Rather than identifying oneself through body, thoughts, feeling, habits, and experience, one can become connected to the everlasting consciousness that manifests these. "As Ashtavakra says, if you desire liberation, stop dealing with the mind. The Buddha said it differently - that enlightenment is the ending of identification. Only thoughts and fast and slow feelings can be identified with. You can never identify with the atmosphere; you cannot say this is my atmosphere. Climate cannot be identified with, but you can feel it even though you cannot grasp it as your own." A powerful description of how to rest in the stillness that generates the highest qualities of life, love, peace, compassion, and enlightenment.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars not what it claims to be, November 4, 2010

By 

donna (USA) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Bitten by the Black Snake: The Ancient Wisdom of Ashtavakra (Paperback)

I am a longtime student of the Ashtavakra Gita. I have several translations, and a few commentaries. I bought this book to continue my studies. I was extremely disappointed when I got the book. First, it should be made clear that this book does not contain a translation of the Ashtavakra Gita. Only small portions of Thomas Byrom's excellent translation are quoted. It should be noted that while small portions of Byrom's translation are quoted verbatim, no credit nor any indication of permission is given and this may be a copyright violation. But since only a small fraction of the actual Ashtavakra Gita is actually presented here, maybe it qualifies as "fair use", as if quoting for a review. However, nowhere is Byrom credited with the translation.

The contents of this small book are simply an exposition of Manuel Schoch's own philosophy and teaching, having very little resemblance to the teachings of the Ashtavakra Gita. Schoch does try to imply that his own teachings are somehow related to Ashtavakra's, but it's a big stretch to make the connection, to say the least. Schoch not only waters down Ashtavkra's uncompromising non-dualism, he adds a lot of stuff that has nothing to do with Ashtavakra's teachings at all, and are even at odds with them.

I find Schoch's teachings to be highly idiosyncratic and personal to him, bearing no resemblance to Ashtavakra or non-dualism. Students of Schoch may like this book, but those who wish to study the Ashtavakra Gita would do well to look elsewhere.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Ancient Wisdom from India Made Highly Accessible!, February 17, 2009

By 

Gary Reiner (Sacramento, CA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Bitten by the Black Snake: The Ancient Wisdom of Ashtavakra (Paperback)

Bitten by the Black Snake is a wonderful commentary on The Ashtavakra Gita, which is an ancient Indian text from the classic Vedanta period. The Ashtavakra Gita has been quoted by many renowned spiritual teachers, including as Ramakrishna, Vivekananda, and Ramana Maharshi. In this small book, Manuel Schoch interprets the timeless wisdom of this Indian text for modern sensibilities, and shows very practically, step by step, how one can simply observe, instead of 'being bitten by the black snake of the ego.' In his remarkably clear and straightforward manner, Schoch describes how an individual can rest in the stillness from which emerges the qualities of life and love, peace and compassion, bliss and enlightenment.

Definitely a book to be read over and over.

By the way, Schoch passed away very unexpectedly last year. He was in his prime and is sorely missed.