Customer Reviews

Buddhism Is Not What You Think: Finding Freedom Beyond Beliefs

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1 star:		(2)

 

 

In this book, Steve hammers chapter after chapter about what being AWAKE really is. He goes into depth of how we live in dukka or the world of delusion and gives chapter after chapter of the various ways we stay asleep and live in dukka. Many practictioners decieve themselves about what being Awake is. Steve hammers away at the delusions, because they are so subtle and hard to realize...As far as compassion is concerned, real compassion comes when one becomes truly Awake, otherwise it is still a sophisticated form of delusion. This book may not be suitable for the beginer, but it is a must for practictioners that truly desire to WAKE UP.

Steve hagen like his teacher Dainin Katigiri, has a knack of describing the Buddhist teachings in simple straighfoward terms. Just be here, just be "now". The past and the furture are just delusion. Its always "Now". As hagen says, if we could just see this all pervading truth thats right infront of our face, we would be enlightened on the spot (that is, we would realise we are, and always have been, enlightened). And no longer reach for things "out there" that lead to turmoil in the first place. Nobody points this out better than Mr. Hagen. This book is completely on par with and adds to his first book. This book is a must for anyone (in my opinion). Especially for those who just want to "wake up", and live in a world with equality and compasion for every living being.

Pretty sure I'm not the first to ever notice the people with 'noble' egos, who like to smother and numb themselves with spiritual materialism do not seem to take to well to these books (see previous reviews). Ironically these are the ones who need it most. This book isnt to confirm your previous beliefs, but rather to free you from the burden that accompanies them. Contrary to some of the things previously said. This is a great book, but one needs and open mind before reading something as profound yet sublte as this. So dont pass this one up because some people find it easier to pigeon-hole things than to give them a fair unbiased chance. I would recommend this to beginner, intermediate, advanced or whatever... one would consider themselves on the spiritual path. After all, we are all just here in the...

Peace

Another terrific installment of Hagen's clear conceptual rendering of things perceptual. This book didn't read like 252 pages, seemed shorter through it's engaging style, and straight-forward presentation. Buddhist-novices, if there is such a thing, may want to start with the prior book "Buddhism Plain and Simple". I find that Hagen's writing style is digestable, yet sophisticated....ie....subtle points are made without alot of philosophical jargon or excruciating digression.

This book affected me with the aggravation and annoyance I suspect I will experience if ever I allow my arrogant self to come under the guidance of a flesh and blood teacher.

Here are thoughts I have about why this book is hard for many of us to take.

Steven Hagen is sure in his beliefs and despite knowing that Buddhism is not what you think (and therefore cannot be experienced by reading the written word), he is trying to explain things to those of us who have a longer way to go (or we wouldn't be reading this book).

I still would recommend it - it has some good stories and if you just read it to read it, without high expectations, parts of it may settle in well.

The book is divided into three sections.

The first, Muddy Water, addresses our confusion about what we think we see and experience in the every day world. (Human beings). We are confused. We think we know, or we think we can know. This section is very wordy, long and thick. So are we. Hah.

The second goes back and tries to view our experiences with a different view. Pure Mind. It offers some thoughts and stories, some explanations about why we are so muddy and what it would be like if we were not.

The third section, Purely Mind (a small section indeed) on being in the moment.

The book is a frustrating experience because it is a book. It contains thoughts of someone, when perhaps we are seeking experience.

I read and read, looking for explanations and answers that I know, from brief moments, are not 'there' and cannot really be explained well.

Until we stop reading the books and 'get it' I don't know that a book will be what we want in finding freedom beyond beliefs. Because Buddhism is not what you think. Nor what you read.

I saw Mr. Hagen speak about this book at the Wisconsin Book Festival in October. I had previously been curious but largely ignorant about the study and practice of Buddhism, but Hagen's talk (and his book, which I purchased later) really sparked my enthusiasm. His style is matter-of-fact and straightforward, yet not simplistic or condescending. In the book, Hagen emphasizes the importance of being present and aware and honest in one's dealings with the world. He writes of the difficulties that arise when we focus on what we think (what we think we know, what we fear, what popular wisdom tells us) and when we ignore what we see and experience first-hand. It's quite interesting, and more nuanced than "actions speak louder than words" or "trust your instincts." One gets the sense that Hagen feels deep respect for his readers, which encourages the reader in turn to treat self and others with a greater degree of respect as well. Somehow, Hagen conveys all of this without a hint of preachiness or self-help-ishness. I highly recommend this book.

This book has changed my life. I recommend it to all walks of life, not just Buddhists, but Christians and other beliefs.

I like the short chapters and how the author avoided rambling on about Buddhism. It explains life based on truthful observations and isn't filled with biased opinions. This isn't a book that tells you what you need to do, nor does it tell you what you shouldn't do. This is not a "self-help" book.

Although there are times when the book is a little deep, the author pulls you out of the abyss and back to an understanding in simple and easy to understand analogies. It's a book that laymen and advance students would understand.

Absolutely one of my top three books on philosophy and Buddhism

While it is comforting to read about the life of the Buddha, and hear interesting historical tales of how a teacher arrived, these are of no help in practice. One reviewer noted Hagen's lack of attention to compassion. I can only assume Hagen's omission was intentional. Compassion cannot be taught. See the Truth clearly, Hagen states, as it is, and you will BE compassionate. Any mindset and you are a million miles away despite wonderful intentions.

Although I realize many other readers here did like this book, I did not find it very insightful nor very applicable to everyday life, and yet Hagen states himself that everyday life is at heart of Zen Buddhism. One reviewer says that Hagen "hammers" at his point chapter after chapter, and I agree -- this book gets rather repetitive.

Hagen points out, as many other writers on mindfulness have done, that we believe that our thoughts are real, that our perceptions are reality, that we suffer from illusions about the world and our lives. If we can see through our illusions, we can see that we cause our own suffering. What would be more useful for the reader are more practical examples of these illusions, how they cause suffering, how we can see through them, and what happens after we see through them.

However, each time Hagen wants to demonstrate the idea that we confuse our perceptions with what is real, he resorts to hypothetical "object lessons." For instance, he discusses our illusory understanding of the reality of a tea cup we might have before us (page 57). But how many people are suffering because of their illusions about a tea cup? Whose suffering is eased by such examples? What everyday, pain-inducing illusions arise from tea cups? Not many that I can think of. In his next book, Hagen should take real examples from his own life, from the lives of his friends and students -- what illusion did he or they awake from? how did that illusion cause suffering? what happened when it was seen as an illusion?

I would recommend Lorne Ladner's "The Lost Art of Compassion" as a very practical application of Buddhist teachings. It provides insight into mindfulness and practical advice. I also would recommend "Being Nobody, Going Nowhere" by Ayya Khema. I would not recommend Hagen's book to the person just beginning to explore Zen Buddhism. For the person JUST beginning, I would recommend Cheri Huber's books, such as "Suffering is Optional" or "Being the Person You Want to Find."

I bought the book when it first came out. I was annoyed as a beginner, as some earlier reviewers echoed, by the "talk down" tone in the writing. Years later, an "experienced beginner," I re-read the book and found it agreeable throughout the book. This book, like a great teacher, doesn't entertain us, but as a mirror, shows where we are in the journey.

This book is shot through with the usual Buddhist modernist propoganda, all conveyed with the misappropriated authority so typical of Western dharma teachers. All of the old saws are here, helping to confuse people in perpetuity about Buddhism.

Let's debunk some of it.

On page xxi, Hagen writes "The Buddha was not interested in theology or cosmology." That's ridiculous. I refer you to "Cosmology and meditation: from the Agganna-Sutta to the Mahayana Buddhism" by Rupert Gethin (an actual Buddhist scholar) in History of Religions, Vol.36, No.3. You can get it on the web freely. Although it wasn't systematized until the Abhidharma came along, the Buddha had an awful lot to say about cosmology (and theology too, for that matter). Yes, he was anti-speculative in some regards, but Hagen very much overstates it.

However, that is a quibble compared to his chapter 8, entitled "Rebirth, Not Reincarnation." Here he is purposefully deceptive. Yes, there is no enduring self or entity that reincarnates. However, Buddhist tradition is very clear (and there is no teacher of any lineage before the 20th century that argued otherwise) that the stream of consciousness (viññana-sotam) is causally connected across countless lifetimes. Hagen, however, strongly implies that Buddhism offers a one-lifetime model, which is 100% wrong (with the sole exception of post-19th century Modernists.)

Buddhism was very reformulated in the 20th century, particularly by Japanese Zen teachers teaching in the west and their students, to make it seem like it is totally congruent with the western scientific-materialist outlook. That's fine, but they also try to pass this off as traditional Buddhism, or, even worse, "original Buddhism," which it most certainly is not. People are free to believe what they want, but truth in advertising is the only decent approach, and that isn't found here.