Customer Reviews

The Illustrated World's Religions: A Guide to Our Wisdom Traditions

5 star:		(27)
4 star:		(9)
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2 star:		(1)
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This book has deep respect for the wisdom traditions and Huston Smith has lived this. A practicing Methodist, Smith had discussions with the Vendanta Society, does Hatha Yoga, and prays five times a day like the Muslims. His perspective is not one looking for divisions within a religion, but as an outsider wanting to understand the experiences. For example, in discussing Islam, he talks about the Sufis, but not about the division between Sunnis and Shi'ites.

This book is less about details, facts, and religious holidays, and more about the underlying meaning and unique insight of each religion. E.g., in discussing Hinduism he looks at "What people really want", about a wearing out of the material world. In the chapter of Judaism he discusses meaning in history and justice.

The illustrations complement the text with a symbolic sense of the culture and beliefs. Looking at a sculpture of a very sensual Shiva with consorts helps one realize that the Hindu view of pleasure may be different than your own. The Buddhist and Taoism paintings project a sense of peace. The photographs of the worshippers are very respectful.

In this book Huston discusses many of the major world religions, or systems of belief: Christianity, Judaeism, Islam, Hindism, Animism, etc. The Neutrality in his approach to these religions is refreshing. He's able to discuss the beliefs and practices of each of these religions without saying that one, or the other is necesarilly correct. Thus, the book doesn't get bogged down in discussing the truth claims of any one religion.

Huston has obviously done a great deal of research in the area of World religions. This work is an interesting and informative guide to understanding why people believe what they believe. In each section he gives a brief discussion of the history of each system of belief (for instance, he talks about Siddhartha's life in the section about Bhuddism). He then continues to discuss the main points, or fundamental beliefs, of each religion. In these discussions, Huston is concise and incredibly informative. Again, it's very obvious that he's done his homework. I found all of these sections very illuminating.

All of the major branches of religion are repressented here (both oriental and occidental thought). That doesn't necesarilly mean that all of the offshoots of any particular religion are repressented --that would probably lead to a much larger, more cumbersome work. With this in mind, Huston's book is an excellent source of information on the various world religions. I would recomend the book to anybody with an interest in religion. It is an excellent tool to help you understand the world, and is well worth the read.

For those wanting to understand the core beliefs of world religions, this book is an excellent place to start. Author Smith includes chapters on Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, Islam, Judaism, Christianity, and the "Primal Religions," or early tribal beliefs. While each section is remarkably detailed, this book remains an introduction, not a comprehensive examination. The explanations are straightforward and clear without being overly simplified. The illustrations and photographs, most in color, illuminate moments of each religion's faithful.

For students and scholars and the curious, this is a good reference book to own, if for no other reason than to expand your understanding of world beliefs. If you are looking for in-depth analysis, you would be better off looking elsewhere.

When I was 16, I started questioning my beliefs as an atheist. Never before had I questioned the fact that there was "something else," and I never had any idea of the rest of the world's religions. Then I ran across this book, and it opened up a whole new world to me. No longer was I smug in my avowment that there was no God. I actually began to understand why and how people could follow their faith, even to levels that would seem in excess to most people in the Western world. This book is a must read for those who are Searching, and for those who are even a little curious about other spiritual beliefs.

I'd never taken a class on any religion other than Christianity. And I live in a predominately Christian area of the US. So, I've always hungered for a different voice. Not to negate the faith around me, but to add scope to the human experience. But I didn't really know where to start. There are so many books out there that attempt to give an overview of the major world religions. And while I certainly haven't read them all, I can tell you that I can easily recommend this book to start your religious education. Mr. Smith has an obvious love and respect for religion that he wishes to impart onto his readers. He does this with a conversational tone that he embellishes with beautiful sacred art. I particularly enjoy that this book is straight-forward and easy to read without being condescending. And though Smith holds religion in such high regard, I feel he wants us to treat it with reverance but not passivity. I feel that his goal is invite the reader to treat religion as an ancient spiritual tribe that everyone has the power to join in today, not the human-driven institutions that disenchant so many today.

Read this as a jumping off point for your own explorations, and you'll begin this journey well-informed.

I'm about two thirds of the way through the book and I have to say that it's well ballanced and well written. The author takes great care in presenting accurate and unbiased descriptions of the world's religions. I'd recommend it for anyone trying to gain an understanding of what each of these religions represent.

You might leave with an impression or feeling of what the religions are about but I dont think you can take away anything concrete. He rarely gives clear explanations about the various practices and beliefs. Instead his explanations have an esoteric feel as though intended for people who already have knowledge of the religions. It is also written in a hifalutin way which at times seems a bit poetic but overall it lacks a clarity in explaining things. I was hoping for a better understanding of the various practices (for example how each religion dealt with death but it was either like putting together a puzzle after intense scrutiny or not explained at all). It seemed he would just discuss whatever he felt like going into with each particular religion. I especially felt that when I went into the chapters with the western religions I'm more familiar with. He did not describe them well at all and it was unclear what he was talking about which led me to believe he did not explain well the religions I'm less familiar with. The positives are that he had an open mind about the religions themselves and religion as a whole and you do come away with a vague impression about the various religions.

The book is a good basic introduction to the world relgions covered. Its dealing with the fundamental beliefs and practices of the faiths covered is clear, concise, well organized, and well thought out. One draw back for the person looking for more detail is that it isn't there. But this is not an effort to be comprehensive. It can serve to open your eyes and your mind to the positives of each faith and launch you on the road to furthud study. The pictures are nice. They do give a feel for the lifestyles of those who live the faiths. But there is no real tie in to the text as interesting as they are. I would recommend this book as a beginning reader to comparative religious thought and a basic introduction to the religions of the world.

In his intro he writes that the book "respects" religion. He does a great job of explaining the beauty of the different religions and the underlying rationale for them and what we might take away from each (even if you don't care to practice that religion per se -- he gets to each's "wisdom").

He steers away from the ways in which actual implementation of the religions cause problems. For instance, he covers why a caste system could theoretically make sense, if implemented the way the religion had intended it to be -- but points out only briefly that it is not.

In all this is an excellent overview of the major religions, put in a way that an adherent to any religion would likely like seeing their religion explained to others.

He does seem to have a view that there are a few common themes among the religions (e.g., achieving happiness by losing the separate self in compassionate service to others).

I feel hugely privileged to have spent a weekend with Dr. Smith, receiving an oral overview of this material at the Esalen Institute. I found this most avuncular gentleman to the epitome of sincere faith, and his gentle nature reminded me of the late, great actors Robert Young and Jimmy Stewart.

The Illustrated Guide to World Religions provides not only a lucid summary for each of the world's great Wisdom Traditions, but also contains gems of wisdom from each one. Browsing through this book, I discovered one such gem that has made a profound difference in my experience of prayer and meditation. Reading Rabi'a al-Adawiyya's "Night Prayer," I came to understand and share in this Sufi saint's feeling of being wedded to one's Maker.