Customer Reviews

Unlocking the Mysteries of Birth & Death: . . . And Everything in Between, A Buddhist View Life

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Now in a newly published second edition, Unlocking The Mysteries Of Birth & Death... And Everything In Between, superbly written by Daisaku Ikeda (a spiritual leader, Nichiren Buddhist teacher, and president of the Soka Gakkai International), is a philosophical exploration of the mysteries of nature and deep pondering on innate questions such as "What is life?" "Where does it come from?" "Where does it go after death?" "How do we overcome the sufferings that lie in between?" An inspirational guide offering wisdom to cope with the terrible tragedies of life as well as the frustrations of daily minutiae, Unlocking The Mysteries Of Birth & Death... And Everything In Between is a superb treatise on faith and the human condition from a Buddhist perspective.

This is a good follow up book after The Buddha In Your Mirror. If you like to learn more about Buddhism this is the right book for you. No need to get all confused reading Zen books. This is it. Simple explanations about Buddhism and its view on life and death. It's a collector's item and A MUST HAVE.

I just finished reading through/discussing this book with a small book club. We took about 6 months, meeting an average of twice a month. Although we, admittedly, went off topic as much as we stayed on topic, our discussions were an impetus to read and ponder the messages and teachings in this books. And our readings/ discussions led us to deeper understanding of life and how to view the various life challenges each of us is facing. I highly recommend this book to anyone at ANY level of understanding of Eastern wisdom...you will be awakened to many helpful concepts.

This is an excellent book explaining Buddhism's view of life and death. The subject is deep, but the presentation is down to earth and easy to understand. This book should be essential reading for anyone interested in Buddhism. For those who are not, reading it may expand your horizons and open up new ways of thinking about life.

Many people start to study Buddhism because they are interested in the ultimate mystery of life and death and have not gained a sufficient insight from western based philosophies. Unfortunately, much of the Buddhist literature we read focuses on how to perceive or deal with our heads and not on how to address the ultimate issues such has how to change our lives, why we are here, what is the happiest way to live. This book tears right into these issues and is thus remarkable in it's scope and relevance to a thoroughly disenchanted culture.

I recommend this book with both thumbs up...it helps to feel in the gaps, questions that remain unanswered for so many.
It discusses life in all it's myriad aspects.

I had read the 1988 edition many years ago after beginning my own Nichiren Buddhist practice in 1990. It opened my eyes at that time to an understanding of the ten worlds as 10 life conditions. I realized that I experienced Heaven and Hell from moment to moment in my daily life as opposed to places I might go after I died. But as I reread this excellent book as part of a Nichiren Buddhist study group, I learned so much more and achieved a much deeper understanding.
Dr. Daisaku Ikeda is able to express complex Buddhist concepts in a way that the average non-Buddhist can easily understand.
This is a book that you can read sections of depending upon the circumstances you find yourself in. Once you really understand that you and your environment are one, you realize that you can affect your circumstances by how you think about them and can then take value-creating action towards resolving them.
We all have unlimited potential and can turn poison into medicine. During the nine months that we studied this book, my husband went through a serious operation. He had never been that ill before. I had to study harder to find the guidance I needed to turn our circumstances around for a favorable outcome. It is my firm belief that if I had not had the support of my fellow Buddhists chanting for him and for my happiness as I deepened my faith, he may not have survived. The chapter on Illness and the medicine of Buddhism was especially helpful.
Towards the end of the book study, my mother passed away after a brief illness. She overcame the illness, but had seemingly made a decision that this year was going to be her time to die. Her greatest fear was that she would outlive her children and couldn't cope with that. She passed away peacefully sitting in the chair of her walker on the way back from the mailbox on a beautiful summer day in Maine on a mountaintop witnessed only by her flowers, butterflies, and the hummingbirds she fed. She never even fell out of the chair. A neighbor called 911, which was heard by her son-in-law, a police detective who notified my youngest sister Lori. She was well protected by what we call Shoten Jenjin - the protective forces in the universe that we appreciate in our Buddhist practice. The Buddhist view of the eternity of life and its cyclical nature as expressed in this book, helped me to cope with my loss. Even more importantly, my practice with the aid of the study of this monumental work by Dr. Ikeda allowed me to be the pillar that my 4 non-Buddhist siblings could rely upon during this sad time.

This is a beautiful book about Buddhism, easy to read and understand for everyone.

For adherents of the SGI version of Nichiren Buddhism, a number of books exist that explain the sect's basic beliefs and practices in an engaging manner. Woody Hochswender's "The Buddha in Your Mirror," and "The Buddha in Your Rearview Mirror" spring immediately to mind. Such books leaven the explanation of Nichiren's thought with personal anecdote and illustrative similes.

While it is a very good read, Daisaku Ikeda's "Unlocking the Mysteries of Birth and Death" lacks this personal approach. Rather, the book is a methodical overview of Nichiren's thought that makes no concession to the reader who wants to skim. It can be very deep going.

Nevertheless, I found the book engrossing due to the clarity of Ikeda's exposition and the intrinsic interest of the material. Regardless of what one thinks of chanting nam-myoho-renge-kyo--the basic practice of Nichiren buddhists--one has to admire the sect's realistic, gradualist approach to enlightenment, an approach that does not ask its practitioners to eliminate desires but rather to recognize the possibility of 'human revolution' through compassionate pursuit of those desires and an ethic of public service.

The first four chapters deal with the buddhist view of birth, aging, illness, death. This discussion is followed by a chapter entitled "Life's Unlimited Potential," in which Ikeda explains the concepts of the ten worlds (a psychological concept rather than a theory about the cosmos) and "3000 realms in a single instant." This latter concept is an attempt to explain how our physical, spiritual, and psychological makeup combine with our environment to produce each person's unique experience. I found this chapter difficult and I needed to re-read several parts. The next chapter deals with the concept of "9 consciousnesses." The final chapter treats the title of the Lotus Sutra as that sutra's summary and essential expression, Nichiren's key innovation.

Prospective buyers should be prepared to read slowly and carefully, ideally with a notebook to hand for recording the many impressions that will undoubtedly arise from Ikeda's discussion.

My mentor has a way with putting words that comes from his heart and experience ~ I strive to read all I can so I can better my life and those around me.