Customer Reviews

What the Buddha Taught: Revised and Expanded Edition with Texts from Suttas and Dhammapada

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The Ven. Dr. Walpola Sri Rahula has produced one of the best texts I have ever read on Buddhism! There are many out there that incorrectly talk about Buddhism and they also have many incorrect interpretations of the Buddha.

Venerable Rahula does an outstanding job in his correct translations/interpetations of important teachings of Siddhattha.

The reader is introduced to key Buddhist teachings such as:

-The Buddhist attitude of Mind

-The Four Noble Truths (each one having it's own chapter!) And the eightfold path as well as the five aggregates.

-The doctrine of No-Soul: Anatta. This is one of the most important ones and the author talks about how 'self' is incorrectly being introduced by some authors, etc.

-Meditation: Everything from a few 'basic' meditation techniques to such things as why meditate...

-What the Buddha Taught and the World Today: This great section shows how to apply the Buddhas teachings into every day life. There is even the 10 duties of a ruler (Government) which would be great if some politicians read!

And finally there is 'selected texts' which provide even more insight...it was a refreshing thing to read after the chapters and after reading the book it made sense when reading these selected texts!

There is even a Glossary to help you understand words used in Buddhism. In fact throughout the book you are introduced to the correct sayings and words...

All in all you should get this book even if you are already 'into' Buddhism.

I was a student at Oxford University, England and was given this informative book to read for my studies. I was born into Buddhism and had practiced, even intensely at times, the Mahaparinirvana Sutra. So I had good experience going into my class. This book answered and made clear many of the questions I had been pondering for many years. It is the definitive book on Buddhism. The Chair of the Buddhism department at Oxford, use to tell us that "What The Buddha Taught" by Walpola Rahula will change the way you think about life and Buddhism. It has. I encourage everyone to buy this jewel of a book. It is rare you find a book so masterfully written.

This is a clear and concise introduction to the central teachings of Buddhism--the Four Noble Truths, the Eightfold Path, no-self (which Rahula calls "no-soul"), and meditation--by a monk and scholar from the Theravada Buddhist tradition. It includes translations of selected Buddhist texts and a glossary of Buddhist vocabulary.

When I first read "What the Buddha Taught" in college, it helped spark my interest in Buddhist practice, and one bit in particular has fundamentally shaped my approach to life and religion (Christianity as well as Buddhism): the story of the man wounded by a poisoned arrow, a parable illustrating the Buddha's utter noninterest in metaphysical speculation and his pragmatic and compassionate focus on liberation from suffering.

I'd also recommend "Awakening the Buddha Within," an introduction to Buddhist teachings by Lama Surya Das, an American teacher of Tibetan Buddhism. (If you're looking for a "how to" book on meditation, I'd recommend "The Three Pillars of Zen.")

Many non-traditional religions in North America have experienced an increase in their membership numbers, not the least of which is Buddhism. For this reason alone, _What the Buddha Taught_ may have a greater pragmatic value today than it did when it was first published in 1959. The principle value of this text is its' descriptive depth on the fundamental and foundational concepts that constitute the religion of Buddhism. Rahula gives a succinct and concise elucidation of the Four Noble Truths, the Eightfold Path and the doctrine of 'anatta' or no-self. For this reason alone this book is worth owning. However, to leave the discussion at that would be to underestimate its' potential utility. It is obvious that _What the Buddha Taught_ is useful toward the study or understamding of Buddhism, but it is of equal value in the context of camparative religion or in the philosophy of religion. The fundamental concepts of Buddhism can be found in a wide variety of texts, Rahula's unique contribution is via his insight into the ways in which the ancient teachings of Buddhism can be incorporated into the modern world. To this end he devotes the last chapter of this book. A thoughtful addition to this edition, (1974) is the selection of translated Pali texts which enable the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path to be understood within the beauty of their original context. In addition, since many of these texts are in the form of parables, they provide an interesting comparative opportunity with traditional Christian biblical parables. An excellent primer for this text is Huston Smith's classic _The Religions of Man_ (New York: Harper & Row Publishers, 1958) and an excellent in depth follow up text is _Buddhism: The Religion of Analysis_ by Nolan Pliny Jacobson, (Carbondale and Edwardsville: Southern Illinois University Press, 1966).

Cycling through the books on Buddhism at the bookstore my eye cought "What the Buddha Tought" which its intrinsic appearance forced it down off the shelf and under my eyes. I've never read slower in my life yet finished in that bookstore that very day. Unlike other books on Buddhism the author used no filliers and personal observation to distract the reader. Instead, quality and the natural sence of Buddhism were abundant in his translations and examples, as if it were the Buddha teaching himself. I have never read a more direct and enriching book on Buddhism before where every page filled in the gaps of unanswered questions I had and leaving me with a sense of completion and a wanting to learn more. I can sure say that my life has been changed today.

I've been studying the Dhamma for over a quarter century, and have been fortunate in having a number of wonderful teachers. In my opinion, Rahula's book is the best introduction available. The book is also quite useful as it is the ultimate "briefer course" on the subject. Extremely well-ordered and organized, the book presents all the basic concepts and tenents of Buddhism, in concise and easily accessible explanations. Noteworthy is Rahula's blessed blend of economy and comprehensiveness. In less than 150 pages, an average reader can be well-versed in this magnificent teaching as it was originally disemminated. The entire book can be read in a couple of sittings (great for students under pressure, reads like higher order cliff notes!).

Rahula, a Theravadan Monk, begins his discussion by relating the life of the Buddha (the dhamma) and continues with an exposition of "The Buddhist Attitude of Mind". Here he discusses with brevity and precision the purpose and essence of the Buddha's thought and enlightenment. In the following four chapters he discusses the details of that enlightenment, "The Four Noble Truths", which is simultaneuosly a map of "The Middle Way", the path the Buddha has prescribed to reach freedom (nibbana, which is Pali for the Sanskrit, nirvana). The next chapter deals with the most difficult concept for Western students, Anatta (the idea of 'no-soul'). In this chapter, there is also a clear and understandable discussion of 'paticcasamupada' which is often called in older English translations 'dependent-arising' or 'co-dependent arising'. This idea is the Buddha's theory of causation and is the central philosophical concept in Buddhism. Rahula translates it as 'conditioned genesis', but much more to the point is the contemporary Vietnamese Buddhist Thich Nhat Hanh's translation of the idea as 'Interbeing'. However, in brevity, focus, and comprehensiveness, Rahula's explanation is most helpful. Following are chapters on meditation, mindfulness, and the potential helpfulness of Buddha's teaching for the contemporary world.
Then, we get forty pages of selections from the most essential Buddhist texts, including Buddha's first talk after attaining enlightenment, the wonderful Dhammapada, the Metta-sutta, and much else. The book includes a comprehensive and informative glossary of Pali (the scriptural language of Buddhism in contrast to Sanskrit which is Vedic/Hindu)words, excellent Bibliography, and complete Index.
The Theravadan teaching is the original teaching of Buddhism as close as the world's scholars and devotees can seem to get to how Gotama Buddha taught it. You simply cannot do better that this book for quickly attaining a foundational knowledge of Buddhism.

The first thing that strikes one upon reading this text is the entirely this-worldly character of Buddhist thought. Like the philosophers that we are familiar with in the West the Buddha ("The Enlightened One") does not claim to be other than a man or posses other than human knowledge. That is, the Buddha is not a god or a recipient of a god's revelation. Now, unlike our modern philosophers, the Buddha does not deny the existence of the gods; perhaps even more radically - he ignores them. According to our author, Walpola Sri Rahula, the Buddha teaches that, "man's emancipation depends on his own realization of the truth, and not on the benevolent grace of a god or any external power..." This does indeed remind one of Kant's definition of Enlightenment as adulthood. In a nutshell, no one can grant adulthood to you - you must achieve it yourself. In fact, according to our author, the Buddha goes so far as to advise us to be, "not led by the authority of religious texts..." And he adds that the Buddha "discovered and showed the Path to Liberation, Nirvana. But we must tread the Path ourselves." Any modern philosopher (Kant, Hegel, e.g.) would say the same of his path (i.e., philosophy).

Our author quotes with approval the following remark of one Buddhist monk (or bhikkhu) to another:

"without devotion, faith or belief, without liking or inclination, without hearsay or tradition, without considering apparent reasons, without delight in the speculations of opinions, I know and see that the cessation of becoming is Nirvana."

What is required for Buddhistic Enlightenment is the modesty of reason, not the enthusiasm and hubris of speculation, which always brings in its wake the indignation of warring factions. Buddhists tell us with deserved pride that there are no Buddhist wars, crusades or jihads. One comes to Enlightenment not by reciting some articles of faith but by thinking things through on ones own. Our author correctly reminds us that with Buddhism it "is always a question of knowing and seeing, and not that of believing."

So, the Buddha, the Enlightened One, brings knowledge - not faith. It seems to follow that it is not necessary to be a 'Buddhist' to achieve salvation, i.e., enlightenment. Indeed, our author goes on to say that if "the medicine is good, the disease will be cured. It is not necessary to know who prepared it, or where it came from." The comparison of the Buddhist teaching to a type of medicine is very interesting. Medicine is a very practical discipline, concerned with alleviating the suffering (Dukkha, this term can also mean: conflict, unsatisfactoriness, unsubstantiality, emptiness) of those it treats. If a person is healthy he needs no medicine at all. Thus what shined through to me (a non-Buddhist) in reading this book is that the Buddha teaches a series of behaviors, or, if you prefer, a circle of practices, whose only purpose is to protect the individual from all suffering - whether the suffering is produced by will, desire or thought. The Buddha clearly judged his teachings not on their truth content but rather on their results; that is, on the type of lives his followers would live. So, one could perhaps infer that when a patient is cured he no longer has the slightest need for the medicine...

Rahula's recounting of a story about what the Buddha replied when asked by a young Brahmin to explain "the idea of maintaining or protecting the truth" might illustrate the point:

'A man has a faith. If he says "This is my faith", so far he maintains truth. But by that he cannot proceed to the absolute conclusion: "This alone is Truth, and everything else is false".'
Rahula immediately adds, in his own voice, "In other words, a man may believe what he likes, and he may say 'I believe this'. So far he respects truth. But because of his belief or faith, he should not say that what he believes is alone the Truth, and everything else is false.
The Buddha says: 'To be attached to one thing (to a certain view) and to look down upon other things (views) as inferior - this the wise men call a fetter'."

Now, does this mean that all the ideologies and revelations that demand that everyone be an adherent of their particular view are, according to the Buddha, fetters? ...No? 'Oh, but the fetters are so sweet' we hear many replying, 'how could they be fetters?' Not only Christians and Liberals but also far too many Buddhists that one meets (at least here in the West) are very interested, if not obsessed, in what we in the West might call theology, ontology and metaphysics. That is, the Truth of what might be called the 'Whole' or the Cosmos. But did the Buddha share this obsession? Our author tells a wonderful story about what the Buddha knew and what he taught:

"He took a few leaves in his hand, and asked his disciples: 'What do you think? O bhikkhus? Which is more? These few leaves in my hand or the leaves in the forest over here?'
'Sir, very few are the leaves in the hand of the Blessed One, but indeed the leaves in the Simsapa forest over here are very much more abundant.'
'Even so, Bhikkhus, of what I have known I have told you only a little, what I have not told you is very much more. And why have I not told you (those things)? Because that is not useful... not leading to Nirvana. That is why I have not told you those things'."

Knowledge of the Whole, whatever it might be, does not lead to enlightenment! Today, we who are influenced by philosophy would, following the Buddha on this point, speak of the abyss that (seemingly) forever looms between theory and practice. But the 'mania' of theory nevertheless insists upon showing each leaf to every inhabitant in the forest in the name of some 'Truth', while the moderation of philosophical practice remains helpless when trying to control the strife that inevitably results between the various (Christianity, Socialism, Islam, and Fascism, e.g.) possessors of 'Truth'. We are now perhaps in a position to say that post-classical western philosophy (i.e., theory) has been the process of showing every leaf in the forest to everyone. - No matter what the consequences! One day it may well be said that western philosophy showed everything except the 'practical truths' that the Buddha held in his hand. ...One day.

Be that as it may, the "Buddha was not interested in discussing unnecessary metaphysical questions which are purely speculative and which create imaginary problems." In fact the Buddha compares teachings to a raft and then wonders at those that say, "This raft was a great help to me. With its aid I have crossed safely over [...] It would be good if I carry this raft on my head or my back wherever I go." Thus Man goes from the correct use of a raft (i.e., a teaching), to help one across a river, to the incorrect carrying of rafts when they are no longer needed. Note that these 'rafts' only have a practical value. What determines their value is purely the circumstances one happens to be in. But did the Buddha think of his own teachings in this manner? Our author tells a wonderful story of how the Buddha, in a debate with a representative of Jaina Mahavira, refused to allow the man to become a Buddhist! ("When Upali expressed his desire again, the Buddha requested him to continue to respect and support his old religious teachers as he used to.") Why? Well, Rahula says this is an instance demonstrating the Buddha's tolerance. In my opinion this explanation is incoherent; all of the Buddha's followers came from other religious traditions, was the Buddha being intolerant when he accepted them as his his followers? No, the reason the Buddha didn't let the Jain Upali convert was that he was sent to debate him by Jaina Mahavira himself and such a conversion could only lead to conflict. In other words, the Buddha looked at circumstances to evaluate this particular conversion and quite admirably concluded that circumstances trumped doctrine...

Another story told by Rahula shows the Buddha refusing to answer questions about the eternity and infinity of the universe, about the relation between soul and body, and existence after death put to him by Malunkyaputta, one of his own monks. Why doesn't the Buddha answer these questions?

"Because it is not useful, it is not fundamentally connected with the spiritual holy life, is not conducive to aversion, detachment, cessation, tranquility, deep penetration, full realization, Nirvana. That is why I have not told you about them.
Then what, Malunkyaputta, have I explained? I have explained dukkha, the cessation of dukkha, and the way leading to the cessation of dukkha. Why, Malunkyaputta, have I explained them? Because it is useful, is fundamentally connected with the spiritual holy life, is conducive to aversion, detachment, cessation tranquility, deep penetration, full realization, Nirvana. Therefore I have explained them."

So we see the overriding importance that the Buddha assigned to the practical and results. The Buddha did not preach some Truth, he presented a cure to suffering (dukkha). The Buddha laughed that people carry their rafts (ideologies and revelations) when they are no longer needed, but today, the various possessors of 'truth' even use the rafts as an excuse to hate and kill. In the Buddha the moderation inherent in philosophical practice triumphed, but in the world around us it is the mania of theory and speculation that has triumphed. If the moderation of practice triumphs in the future we can create a world in which all can live; if not, there is no future at all...

Rahula ends this book, fittingly, with the last words of the Buddha. "'Then, Bhikkhus, I address you now: Transient are conditioned things. Try to accomplish your aim with diligence." One stands in awe, and gratitude, of how one so dedicated to extinction (i.e., Nirvana) could so actively and tirelessly pursue his aim. Now, this book contains only a small selection (pp 92 - 138) of the sayings of the Buddha and it was from the last text in this section that this last quote comes from. There is also a very helpful, but still too brief, glossary with an even briefer bibliography also included. Rahula's study and the selected texts are based upon the earliest texts (the so-called Pali texts) of the Buddha's sayings that have come down to us.

The moderation, care and single-minded pursuit of his goal by the Buddha are what we should perhaps be most grateful for...

Walpola Rahula's "What the Buddha Taught" has become a kind of measuring stick for introductory Buddhist texts. Clearly written, intelligently presented, and relatively unbiased, it paints a fairly accurate picture of Buddhism in general and Theravada (Vietnamese, Indian, Sri Lankan, etc.) Buddhism in particular. It covers all the major aspects of Buddhist belief: the Four Noble Truths, the Noble Eightfold Path, and the Three Jewels, the Doctrine of An-Atman (no-soul), but with a definite Theravada twist.

Buddhism is very difficult for many Westerners to understand, simply because it relies on a very different worldview. Most of the books available to Westerners (and I shudder when I see things like "The Zen Buddhist Tarot" in bookstores) are watered-down, feel-good nonsense that distills the "cosmic, dude!" aspects of Buddhism and leaves none of the religion's more difficult aspects intact. Rahula's book does none of that, and manages to communicate the Buddhist cosmology very effectively - no mean feat, considering that an understanding of Hindu thought is almost necessary to fully comprehend Buddhism.

But make no mistake, "What the Buddha Taught" is an introductory book, and nothing more. It contains no primary texts, and those interested in Buddhist Scripture and the actual PRACTICE of the religion in the world today would be better served to augment this introduction with "The Experience of Buddhism," edited by John S. Strong. Otherwise, "WTBT" is a good nudge in the direction of Buddhist thought. If there is a fault here, it is that Rahula can wax a little in favor of Theravada Buddhism (he makes several sly stabs at Mahayana cosmology here and there), but that is to be expected, and the serious reader/scholar can overlook these faults for the much better whole.

Final Grade: B+

I am a practitioner of the Theravada tradition. Of all the books I've read on the subject, I still find this the best introductory book.

Buddha advocated practitioners not to merely believe in any prescribed doctrine, as word is a poor medium for explaining the ultimate truth. This is why certain metaphysical subjects are not discussesd. Intellectual discourse and literary research into the Pali Canons will NOT lead to enlightenment. The practitioner must learn to "see" reality the way it is. It must be "practised".

Throughout the history of Buhhdism, differences of opinion did arise. The most important one is the Mahayana school's assertion on bodhisattvas vs arahantship. Or the soul vs no soul dispute, mainly with another religion in India: Hinduism.

These disputes will forever remain unresolved. When the reader attain certain Jhana, and calm the mind, and "able to see reality as it is", the answer will become apparaent. Readers should keep in mind that terms like no-self, no-soul, emptiness, ... are difficult to pin down, as these are mere concepts. And concepts cannot be definitively pinned down by words, or else it will become a doctrine. Thus intellectual discourse on these wording will never lead to any resolution.

As an introduction to Buddhism, one need not worry too much about soul vs no-soul. As the word "soul" in itself is difficult to pin down. If one must focus on words, why not first try to explain the word "life". Of course, it will lead to nowhere.

Walpola's book is beautifully and clearly written. Abundant citations of the Buddha's own words as recorded in the original Pali texts make the reader feel like he's getting "the real story" on Buddhism. Some of it is hard for the western, scientific mind to swallow (eg. the Five Aggregates), and the section on reincarnation was rather vague and unclear compared to the rest of the book. Nonetheless, an extremely useful read, with some beautiful texts and sayings in the appendix.