Customer Reviews

Buddhist Path to Simplicity

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I don't have long excerpts or quotes from the book to back up my praise - it's simple - I liked the book, it spoke to me, and I enjoyed reading it. It's stayed in my mind, and is creeping into my soul.

This is a thoughtful, clearly written book. It is accessible to those who are new to Buddhism. There is a clear and insightful presentation of lived truths for those who have been on the path for some time.

I paid for this book so I am reading it, but it has taken me several months and I am only half way through. It is definately not compelling or life-changing. But it does make you re-evaluate your life in small ways, which is good, and I can say I have gotten some useful insights out of it at the end of the day. Although to what degree they will stick with me I am not sure. I was expecting more of a "how to" or "what to do to become more enlightened" type of book. This is more of a description of the already enlightened mind. It doesn't really explain how to get from point a to point b. I keep waiting for her to tell me what to do. I thought it was going to teach me how to simplify my life, and ultimately it has not. I think there are probably better books on the topic out there.

I wanted to like a book called "The Buddhist Path to Simplicity." I like simple, clear books, like those by Thich Nhat Hanh. Unfortunately, this book is very badly written. Ms. Feldman doesn't know where she wants to go with this book. She mixes in anecdotes, which is nice enough, but the connector sentences, the structure, the conclusions that are supposed to make sense of it all, are missing. Her sentences are disjointed, and she throws adjectives and nouns all over the place, in a chaotic manner. I will show you one sentence as an example of what is wrong with this book. This sentence is from the chapter entitled, "Integrity": "Treasuring freedom and compassion, we cultivate an ethical life not as an end in itself, but as a means to serenity and wisdom." Can you see the problem? The whole book is like this. The chapter is about Integrity, but this sentence says that because we treasure freedom and compassion, we cultivate ethics to get serenity and wisdom. How can I make sense of this? What is she talking about? Integrity? Wisdom? Ethics? She makes no real distinction of terms, and she uses so many of them, that the reader is left rudderless. There is no coherence to the book. Every page, and every paragraph, is a hodgepodge of mixed up sentences like that. The book is, frankly, unreadable. I really don't want to blast Ms. Feldman, because I figure any Buddhist teacher is a really nice person, but I felt this book deserves one star, and that I should, as a service to other readers, warn them to stay clear of this one, and grab one of the many other fine Buddhist books out there.

Have purchased over a dozen of these and handed them out as gifts - so simply written, so deeply focused, you don't even realize you are lovingly being led along the path of a thoughtful life....