Customer Reviews

Buddhist Scriptures (Penguin Classics)

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

 

 

This was a very good collection of scriptures, and my own personal sort of "Buddhist Bible" - but there is one slight problem with it; it only contains scriptures from certain sects; it has none of the major (come to think of it, I do not believe any at all) texts from the Theravada sect. It does not even have the Dhammapada, one of the most important Buddhist scriptures out there.
If you have an interest in any sort of buddhism, this is an excellent book. But remember that it is not the only perspective out there.

It has been almost five decades since the Penguin Classics series last launched an anthology of Buddhist texts onto the market, during which time interest in the religion throughout the English-speaking world has grown to more than justify a new anthology well over twice the size of the original. That first volume was largely the work of E. Conze, working from Sanskrit, with heterogeneous scraps of translation from other languages, provided by E. M. Hare, David Snellgrove, Trevor Leggett and D. T. Suzuki, mixed in here and there.

In this new work the editor has made less of a personal contribution through translation, but has done a far superior job of orchestrating a much more balanced whole and equipping it with a reflective and highly readable introduction, which in itself provides a succinct commentary (pp. xiv-xviii) on the history of such anthologies over the years--including in its final paragraph some delightfully (and justifiably) acerbic comments on the codswallop that in all too recent times past was excerpted to represent his own area, Tibetan Buddhism. The generous list of books for further reading on pp. xlii-xlix also deserves commendation.

Inevitably the need to include translations reflecting the current state of Buddhist textual studies has all but wiped out the contribution of United Kingdom-based scholars to the enterprise, though for example the translations of K. R. Norman represent a standard of work unlikely to be matched elsewhere for some time to come, and so still find a place amongst a much longer roster of translations mostly carried out specifically for this anthology and largely undertaken on the other side of the Atlantic. One or two sacrifices have clearly been made in order to find room for such a wealth of materials, notably the exclusion of any of the finding lists cross-referencing the contents by language or by contributor that formed such a useful feature of the editor's earlier anthologies for Princeton University Press, but by and large there is very little here to complain about.

That is not the same, however, as declaring this anthology perfect. Such an ambitious enterprise is bound to entail errors, though mostly (one hopes) errors of the trivial sort that can be readily corrected in future printings.[...]

[...]drawing attention to these lapses is by no means intended to discourage any would-be purchaser: at under ten pounds a copy, one certainly gets a remarkable quantity of good, accurate translation and up-to-date introductory remarks for one's money. No one at all interested in Buddhism should hesitate for a second to make the investment.
T. H. BARRETT

This is a very useful anthology for students of Buddhism. In addition to highly readable translations of selected ancient texts filled with descriptions and advice; it also includes many instructive fables and tales, including "Maitreya describes the Future" and "A King gives away his Head."
Of particular note is the predecessor to the biblical story of the loaves and fishes -- it is the story of how a single portion of alms fed 84,000 sravakas and 12,000 bodhisattvas, and still the food did not run out. hmmmm, sound familiar?

The book was great. Enjoyed it. this book is great for the new buddhist to get into this religion. This book is not like a bible, but selective scriptures and stories. Stories such as buddha's past lifes( all have a meaning to them of genorosity) and the idea of the six realms, what you have to be if you want to be reborn in this or that realm. i suggest you should get this book if you want to know about boddhistava( sorry if i cant spell), teachings of buddha here and there, and the the history of how it spread and who spread them to keep this faith going.
really interesting.

I have been practising Buddhism for a few years now in a fairly specific way. I have been interested lately in the differing belief systems and interpretations of other streams of Buddhism. After all all dharma is interrelated to all other dharma. This book is a very good overall snapshot of different beliefs and will be quite complimentary to your own practise no matter what it is.

According to many scholars, the amount of Buddhist literature is vast. It would be impossible to present all of it in one volume. But Dr. Lopez has presented a plausibly representative sample of Buddhist literature, with very helpful commentaries preceding each selection. The collection is quite revealing to a Western reader like myself, in that it shows the implausible, supernaturalistic nature of much Buddhist literature. Nevertheless it is good background information for anyone who wants to study more modern or Western-friendly Buddhism, like Zen. It is not surprising that Zen practitioners dismiss many Buddhist writings as irrelevant or unimportant. Zen considers lengthy, repetative sutras and philosophical treatises to be merely fingers pointing at the moon, which should not be mistaken for the moon itself.

Well written and comprehensive text. Purchased it used and it arrived in record time and was in the condition expected. Good value and excellent reading for students of Buddhism, or for anyone simply interested in Buddhism.