The Garden: A Parable [Paperback]

Michael Roach (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 15, 2000

With The Garden, centuries of Tibetan Buddhist wisdom are brought to life for readers by one of its greatest Western teachers, Michael Roach. Through a parable in which a young man is brought into a mystical garden by a beautiful embodiment of Wisdom, Roach presents the pantheon of great Tibetan teachers. The nameless seeker lured to the garden meets the dominant historical figures who have contributed fundamental teachings to Tibetan Buddhism, such as Tsong Khapa, the first Dalai Lama, and Master Kamalashila. Unique among works of Buddhism now available, The Garden is destined to become a classic for its lucid revelation of the secrets of the Tibetan tradition and for the wisdom Geshe Michael Roach evokes.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Roach, an ordained Buddhist monk, has crafted an enchanting, luminous introduction to the basic tenets of Tibetan Buddhism. The tale begins when a beautiful personification of Wisdom takes a never-named young man to a garden, where she tries to introduce him to life's truest values. Later, having abandoned the beautiful teacher as well as his home in pursuit of fame and career, the now not-so-young man returns to the garden seeking solace from life's wounds, especially the gruesome death of his mother. Through many visits, he fails to find the one he seeks, but on each occasion a different apparition of one of Buddhism's most sacred historical figures appears to teach him a new skill needed for his advance along the path. Highly recommended for all collections offering popular materials in religion.
-James R. Kuhlman, Univ. of North Carolina Lib., Asheville
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

Roach captures the entire breadth of Tibetan Buddhist teaching in this spare, plain-spoken parable about a man led to a mystical garden by his young lover, a teenager who possesses more than average wisdom. Like many lovers, the youth disappears, and the man begins what looks to be a two-pronged quest: to reunite with "Her" and to comprehend the agonizing death from cancer of his good-hearted mother. Over the course of the book, the seeker returns again and again to the garden. Each time he is met by a Tibetan Buddhist saint, each of whom gives him one of the fundamental lessons of Buddhism and guides him on the path to realization. Some historical and philosophical context for these teachers and teachings Roach covers in "The Garden," and explaining the role of guru yoga, parable and debate, among other themes, in Tibetan Buddhism, would go a long way toward making the book accessible to readers with a budding, or general, interest in Buddhism. Still, launching headlong into the book has its merits. Unfiltered, these Buddhist concepts must settle in on their own and, like the seeker, we are left with a trove of spiritual lessons to test for ourselves. -- From Beliefnet

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Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Image; 1st edition (February 15, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 038549789X
• ISBN-13: 978-0385497893
• Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 0.5 x 8.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.7 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #56,238 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Michael Roach is a fully ordained Buddhist monk who received his geshe (Master of Buddhism) degree from Sera Mey Tibetan Monastery after twenty-two years of study. A teacher of Buddhism since 1981, he is also a scholar of Sanskrit, Tibetan, and Russian, and has translated numerous works.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Garden. A parable, February 15, 2000

By 

Bonnie Baptist - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Garden: A Parable (Paperback)

This incredible book was written not only by a learned scholar of Tibetan Buddhism, but by one who has obviously experienced realizations of the path. In this book Geshe Michael provides us with all of the information we need to embark upon the same spiritual journey, and to experience its magical results. If this whets your appetite for more, he also has created a series of correspondence courses which provide even more elucidation of the Buddhist path to enlightenment. (not a money making scheme-these course are free to those who cannot afford them) These are available through the Asian Classics Institute. If you like this book, try also Santidevas "Guide to the Bodhisattvas Way of Life"

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Garden. A Parable, February 10, 2000

By 

Isidro Gordi/[e-mail] (Menorca, Spain) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Garden: A Parable (Paperback)

About the Garden. A Parable. This is a breeze of fresh air in the heat of a very complex and stressful world. It is also a very clever way to present the ancient and wise buddhist advices for the modern world. Definitely it is a must for anybody interested in the inner development. The message in it is beyond harmful cultural and historical trappings which unfortunately hide the real religious experience that everybody is thirsting for. Being written by a very special person from our western world that has drunk the essence of the great tibetan buddhist training, definitely it is going to reach our hearts and fill them with the greatest blessings.

10 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Wonderment!, May 10, 2001

By 

Bill Butler "Bill Butler" (Tarzana, Ca. USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Garden: A Parable (Paperback)

A "wonderment" is a thing of wonder. And this parable is that. Haven't you ever had the itch to someday ask Jesus or the Buddha everything that you have always wondered about. "Why do bad guys get rich?" "Why are some good guys poor?" "What happens after death?" "Who stuck me with such a horrible mother-in-law and why can't she just blow away?" "Why did I eat the potatoe chips with food poisoning?" "Why did I spell 'potato' with an 'e'?" "How come babies die?" The author was the first Westerner to become a Tibetan Geshe. And this takes twenty years! So he knows his stuff. To answer these questions and others that you may want to ask, you will take many trips into a garden. Buddhas and Buddhist saints will come to you and answer these type of questions. The reader is represented by a man who is searching. Isn't this what we want? This is a beautiful parable. And somewhat spooky at times! At least, that's the way I felt. Imagine sitting on a bench and waiting for some spooky Buddha to arrive to answer your grisly questions. And that's what happens. I will say no more. Buy the book.