Buddhism: A Very Short Introduction by Damien Keown

Buddhism: A Very Short Introduction Reviews

• 
  Amira Mahmoud

  لم تكن البوذية يومًا أحدى المجالات التي يدفعني فضولي للبحث بها أو القراءة عنها وما أدركته الآن وأنا أضع االكتاب في رف المقروء وأحاول تصنيفه في بقية الأرفف أنني لا أملك سوى ثلاثة أرفف؛ أحدهما للإسلام ولأنها ديانتي فهي تأخذ نصيب الأسد من البحث وبالتالي تأخذ رفًا بأكمله وثانيهما يضم المسيحية واليهودية معًا ربما لتقاربهما لا أدري، وثالثهما للإلحاد واللاأدرية.
  
  
  وهكذا فإنه بخلاف الأديان السماوية التوحيدية ونقضيهما لا يجذبني شيئًا آخر للبحث فدائمًا أعتقد بلا سبب واعي أو منطقي أن أديان الشرق كالبوذية والكونفوشيوسية وغيرها ما هي إلا فلسفات أخلاقية تسعى إلى وضع بعض القواعد ونشر روح السلام بين أصحابها، وفي نظري لا يمكن لأي منها أن تنتج حضارة أو دولة خاصة بها أو نظام حكم كذلك الذي تمخضت عنه أديان كالمسيحية والإسلام.
  
  
  الحق أن الكاتب نفسه يتفق معي في ذلك الارتباك الذي لا يعرف هل يجب اعتبار البوذية ديانة أم فلسفة، وعلى الرغم أنه قام بشرح نظرية "نينيان سمارت" عن الأبعاد السبعة التي يمكن من خلالها تصنيف الأفكار كدين؛ وتفنيده لمظاهر البوذية في كل بُعد منهم فإنه في النهاية لن يُقدم إجابة صريحة وواضحة عن هذا الأمر.
  
  
  لكنه في الوقت ذاته سيقدم عرض شامل للغاية عن البوذية منذ نشأتها وحتى انقسامها وهو ما يبدو مؤسفًا للغاية فهي الأخرى تعرضت للانقسام إلى عدة طوائف كما حدث في المسيحية والإسلام، وإن كانت العديد من طوائف البوذية قد اختفت تدريجيًا بمرور الزمان ولم يبقى منها سوى طائفة الماهايانا تلك الطائفة التي أحدثت طفرة غريبة في البوذية نتيجة لتأثرها بالمسيحية وأفكار التضحية والمخلّص؛ حيث كانت فترة تكوينها في فترة ظهور المسيح تقريبًا وبدلاً من أن يسبب ذلك تنافرًا نتيجة بعض أفكار البوذية الغريبة كتناسخ الأرواح والكارما فقد كان ما حدث هو تأثر ومحاكاة إلى حد مثير للدهشة.
  
  
  ولم يتوقف ذلك التأثر عند الأفكار بل شمل أيضًا التأثر بالثالوث المسيحي وقد بدأت بوذية الماهايانا في الاعتقاد أن لبوذا –الذي أصبح فجأة يتم اعتباره على أن نصف إله- أن له ثلاثة صور أو أبعاد وهي بُعد أرضي وبُعد سماوي وبُعد متسامي، كان جزء التأثر بين البوذية والمسيحية هو أكثر الأجزاء التي أثارت اهتمامي بالإضافة إلى ذلك الجزء الذي يتحدث عن بوذا وحياته وتنويره أما باقي أجزاء الكتاب والتي تشرح تفاصيل الطقوس والعقيدة فقد كانت كثيرة ومشتتة وعصيّة على الفهم في كثير من الأحيان.
  
  
  في المجمل كتاب جيد، وسيكون أكثر من جيد للمهتمين بالبوذية وبكافة تفاصيلها الأكاديمية.
  
  تمّت
• 
  Julian Worker

  My very short review is as follows: I thoroughly enjoyed this brief overview of Buddhism and I would recommend the book to anyone seeking an introduction to the subject.
  
  I will add more comments here - this book has inspired me to continue learning about Buddhism and Zen Buddhism in particular as it sounds like a wonderful way to conduct your life, so expect to see some Zen Buddhism books added to my 'currently reading' list.
  
  Books such as this open a whole new world of possibilities and there comes a time when you wonder whether you could earn a living from reading, as there's so much to find out about the world. It's the same with the Earth Mysteries book I am reading, I'm amazed at how much I don't know.
• 
  Bea

  I'm studying Philosophy and Religion right now in college and this book covered pretty much everything on the topic of Buddhism that I needed to know!
  
  It's a very small book, but it's packed with information that as well as being written in an interesting way was also informative and helpful. I want to pick up more of these small 'Introduction' books now on other topics, and hopefully they'll be just as good.
• 
  Aurelia

  A very short introduction to Buddhism succeeds in demonstrating that Buddhism is a sophisticated system of thought and a deep religious experience which cannot fully be explained nor covered in a short book. So an awareness of the complexity of the subject matter is the first thing to gain with this reading . On the other hand, it would be perfect before diving in more details. Personally, I feel more enlightened (and prudent) that I picked this up instead of going to the Dhammapada directly (in my usual suicidal reading strategies). I would have missed so many subtle concepts and interpreted the texts out of their context.
  
  The popular side of Buddhism has always been its ethics. Although it serves the religion very well, it kind of obscures its origins, which are very crucial to the understanding of the Buddhist worldview. The cosmology of Buddhism relies on concepts from Indian philosophy, which is radically different from what we in the abrahamic monotheism sphere of influence are familiar with. The difference is so vast that most ideas would seem simply illogical. There is no need for a demiurge, no afterlife, no system of reward and punishment, Existence is not centered about humans and their relationship with their omnipotent, omniscient God. In Indian thought, this is grossly anthropocentric, instead we find a Universe where humans are but a small part, coexisting with all life forms and spiritual beings too, gods or ghosts. They are all subject to the law of impermanence and eternal change, decay and rebirth, with no beginning and no end.
  
  The Buddhist theory of Human Nature is also very distinct, to say the least. It simply denies the existence of the Self. Human consciousness is also affected by the impermanence of the Universe. What we describe when we say “I” have nothing essential which defines it. The Self is a dynamic mix of emotions, ideas, perceptions which coexist in what resembles a turbulence pattern, each component dominating or dominated by another, constantly shifting from one state to another. Beneath this state of things is the strife after something, or away from something. Humans constantly imagine that if only this or that is present then this feeling of uneasiness will fade away. More than fear of sickness, old age and death, which are inevitable parts of the cycle of existence, what torments humans the most is this dissatisfaction and disappointment at themselves and the world, which is due to the transient constitution of their consciousness.
  
  It is only here when the Ethics enters the scene, they are a response to this cosmology. In order to overcome the restlessness of human existence one must cultivate virtues of non attachment to wordily matters. The illusion of the Self generates greed and hatred, to which only an active exercise in selfishness and compassion is the solution. Knowledge also is an essential condition in order to be liberated from desire. Insight into the real nature and value of things is crucial in breaking away from the enormous power they hold on us.
  
  This is the core on which the entire Buddhist tradition was built. Through millennia and across a vast geographical domain, it encountered other systems of thought and local religions with which it interacted, resulting in a rich variety of tradition each one emphasizing a particular aspect of the initial teaching of the Buddha. Today there are two main forms of Buddhism, the Theravada tradition, a conservative interpretation which tries to remain as close as possible to the initial teachings of the Buddha, very dominant in Thailand, Sri Lanka, Laos and Cambodia. The much more innovative Mahayana school is dominant and China and Korea. The degree of innovation in the Mahayana interpretations can be really surprising. Teachings of the Buddha were pushed to their ultimate conclusions, especially when it comes to the nature of Nirvana and the way to attain it. The Buddha also acquired a semi divine status, and new somehow messianic figures known as bodhisattva were introduced to its pantheon. Two other schools developed very distinct forms due to peculiar geographical parameters, mainly Tibetan Buddhism and the Zen tradition in Japan.
  
  If codes of Ethics are common across so many religions worldwide, one feature of the Buddhist religious experience remains really unique, and that’s meditation. Surprisingly, Meditation is not separate from the ethics. Although we think of meditation as this lofty spiritual exercise (Somehow like prayers in other religions) with no practical implications, this is not the case inside of the teachings of Buddhism. On the contrary, it seems that all about meditation is practical. It is the ultimate tool to remodel the mind and thus the conduct and the entire worldview of the individual. This belief in the malleability of the mind and the ability to transcend delusions, desires and violent emotions and replace it with clairvoyance, peace and contentment is perhaps the most appealing side of Buddhism.
  
• 
  Sarah Booth

  This book gives you the bare bones history of Buddhism. The quick and dirty - who, what, where, when, and how. It gives you a good foundation for learning more about Buddhism and the different schools of Buddhism with some idea where their ideas come from and how they differ. It's a great way to get a quick foundation of something that you know little or nothing about so that you can read more with much better understanding. this book was SUPER helpful to me and now I am getting much more from the other reading I am doing. This book rocked.
• 
  Mustafa Nuwaidri

  
  مراجعتي في اليوتيوب
  
  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r8Hhk...
  
  ---
  كلنا يعرف البوذية في مظاهرها التي نراها عنهم في الشاشة، وفي شذرات متفرقة عن ديانتهم وعن بوذا وعن الرهبان ذوي الاردية البرتقالية وهم في جلسات تأملاتهم، وهذه النظرة اشبه بالقصة الهندية عن الاشخاص الذي يمسكون باجزاء الفيل ويظنون ان الفيل هو ذلك الجزء فقط
  فنحن اذ نفتح هذا الكتاب على موعد مع معرفة الاجزاء الرئيسة المكونة للفلسفة أو الديانة البوذية
  
  من هو بوذا
  هو سدهارتا غوتاما ولد 550 قبل الميلاد بجبال الهملايا لعائلة نبيلة، عاش في حياة الرغد حتى تزوج وانجب ولدا، وحدثت له في تأملاته أن شاهد شيخا عجوزا ومرة اخرى شاهد مريضا ومرة شاهد جنازة فتسائل عن المعاناة والفناء الذي يعيشها العالم وقرر لحظتها ان يهيم في البراري ناسكا متسولا، فظل لا يأكل الا القليل ويتقشف حتى وصل الى مرحلة التنوير بأن استراح ليلة تحت شجرة التين المقدسة فرأى في البداية كيف كانت حيواته السابقة ورأى تاليا حيوات كل الموجودات .. وفي نهاية تلك الليلة تطهر قلبه من كل شيء سيء ووصل حينها الى النيرفانا وهي الغاية الاسمى التي يسعى لها البوذيون
  
  وخرج بوذا مبشرا بما لديه فالقى خطبته الاولى على خمسة نساك سوف يصبحون حوارييه ومبشرين لهذه التعاليم وستنتشر التعاليم البوذية بهذه الطريقة
  
  وماهي التعاليم البوذية التي القاها بوذا في خطبته؟
  هي الحقائق الاربع النبيلة
  وهي باختصار
  ان الحياة مليئة بالمعاناة
  وان هذه المعاناة سببها ثلاثة امور
  الطمع(الرغبة)- الكراهية(الغضب)- الوهم(الجهل)
  
  وان الحل للتخلص من هذه المعاناة هو عبر سبيل نهج
  الحكمة والاخلاق والتأمل
  
  وأن تردع الوهم بالفهم
  والكراهية بالاحسان
  وأن تردع الرغبة بعدم التعلق
  
  الكارما (تناسخ الأرواح)
  الكارما هي عقيدة لم يبتدعها البوذيون وانما هي موجودة قبلهم عند الهندوس وعند غيرهم ولكنها عقيدة اساسية عند البوذيون بنوا عليها ديانتهم
  وتعني ان كل من يموت سوف يتم احياؤه مجددا على هيئة أخرى .. فاذا كان انسانا واساء في حياته السابقة فسوف يهبط الى مرتبة اقل وهي مرتبة الحيوانات وان احسن فسوف يرتقي الى مرتبة الالهة.
  
  من هم الالهة ؟
  الالهة هي كائنات سماوية ارفع من البشر اشبه بالملائكة لا يوجد لديها معاناة مثل البشر ولكنها لم تخلق العالم .. وللاسف لا تؤمن الديانة البوذية بوجود خالق ..
  
  المذاهب البوذية
  1- التيرفادا: لكل دين مذهب سلفي يؤمن بالتمسك بالاصول الاولى وفي البوذية هو هذا المذهب الذي ينتشر في ميانمار وتايلند وسريلنكا وما حولها وهؤلاء يتمسكون بالنصوص البوذية القديمة بظواهرها وببساطتها وهم محافظون اكثر، وفي زمننا هم متعصبون اكثر.
  2- الماهيانا: هي مذهب تجديدي نشأ بعد خمسة قرون من بوذا وكان له نصيب النجاح حيث انتشر في الصين واليابان وكوريا والتبت والفلبين وغيرها، ونظر الى بوذا نظرة تقديسية كبيرة وصلت به الى مقام الالوهية (وقلنا ان معنى الالوهية لا يعني انه خالق او شخص يتم التعبد له بالضرورة وانما هو اشبه بالملائكة ) واعادت قراءة التاريخ البوذية وفق فلسفة معقدة اكثر .. وامنت بفكرة (المتيريا) وهي فكرة مجيء البوذا المخلص او المهدي في اخر الزمان، ويهتم هذا المذهب بالمجتمع اكثر من الفرد، فيشجع على مساعدة الاخرين وجعل الحياة افضل ، وتفرعت عن هذا الماهيانا مذاهب كثيرة في كل اقليم كان له ذوقه الخاص .. منها مذهب الزن الياباني المشهور بتأملاته الفريدة، ومنها المذهب التبتي (والتبت اقليم كبير كان مستقلا ولكن الصين ضمته لها في العقود الاخيرة) وهذا المذهب يرأسه الدلايلاما الحالي المعروف.
  
  التأمل أم اليوجا؟
  البوذية لاتحب كلمة يوجا ، اليوجا ممارسة هندية قائمة على التعاليم الهندوسية ، وحين جاء بوذا كان معارضا للهندوسية وكذلك اليوجا ، ولكنه طور استخدم هذه الممارسة بأسم (التأمل)، فكانت طقوس التأملات البوذية احد ثلاثة اركان الدين البوذي (الحكمة،الاخلاق،التأمل)، ورغم ذلك كانت طقوس التأملات تقتصر على الرهبان حتى زمن طويل
  والتأمل يهدف الى تصفية الذهن تماما من اي فكرة فتسمو الروح فوق الحس والمادة والعالم الدنيوي، اما مذهب الماهيانا فحاول ان يضيف ثمة موضوعا في التأمل، فيصفي المتأمل ذهنه ثم يشرع بالتفكير في موضوع معين
  
  
  الدارما (الاخلاق)
  لدى البوذية وصايا تشابه كثيرا ما لدينا فتحرم البوذية القتل والسرقة والزنا والخمر والكذب والبهتان، وتركز البوذية ايضا على عدم الطمع (الزهد) وعدم كره الاخرين والحديث معهم بقسوة والاعراض عن اللغو
  فتبدو كل هذه الاخلاقيات موجودة في الاسلام
  
  ولكن تخالف البوذية الاسلام في نظرتها السلبية للحروب ايا كانت وحتى الحروب الدفاعية، ففي البوذية لا توجد فكرة ان المقاتلين هم شهداء، وترى بأن من يقتل وهو يحارب سواء ظالم او مظلوم فسيذهب الى الجحيم
  قد تبدو هذه السلامية امرا جميلا ولكن ما حدث في التاريخ ان الجماعات والحكام البوذيين طول التاريخ تورطوا مثل غيرهم في حروب وابادات عنيفة وربما كان التحريم القاطع للحروب مبرر لأن تكون الحروب اكثر فتكا، فعندما تقول ان المدافع عن نفسه والباغي كلهم مخطئين فاذا كان لا بد من الحرب فالافضل ان تكون باغيا
  ربما كان تاريخ الاسلام يحتوي على حروب اكثر من حروب البوذيين، ولكن توجد في الاسلام تشريعات تجعل الحرب اقل فتكا واكثر رحمة، ولكن ما رأيناه في بورما من ابادات بشعة تجعلنا نفكر انهم حين تجاوزوا خطيئة دخول الحروب والقتل لم يحسوا بوجود تدرجات للاجرام فوصلوا بالاجرام الى منتهاه، فكأنما لايوجد تشريعات بوذية تقول اذا اضطررت ان تحارب فلا تقتل الكثير ولا تقتل الاطفال والنساء ولاتمثل ولا ولا..
  
  ماذا تقدم البوذية للعالم؟
  البوذية تم تصديرها للعالم من خلال طقوسها التأملية، كل كتب السعادة والنظريات المعاصرة مقتبسة من البوذية، وفي الحقيقة نظرية السعادة هي فكرة بوذا الاصيلة والمحورية فهو رأى مشكلة معاناة العالم واوجد لها حله الخاص
  وهذه المعاناة التي وصفها والحل الذي اعطاه موجود واكثر الحاحا في زمننا هذا .. فنجد المفكرين الاكثر الهاما في السعادة مثل اكهارت تول والدلايلاما و واين داير كلهم يتكلمون بمنطق البوذية وذهبوا ليتعلموا منها، وفعلا هذه التأملات البوذية مفيدة جدا
  
  ولكن هذه التأملات ليست دينا ، وفي نظري ان البوذية كانت فلسفة وحركة اشبه بالعلمانية انشأها بوذا ثم تحولت الى عقائد و طقوس وصارت دينا جديدا
  حيث ان بوذا لم يأتي ليخبرنا عن الماوراء بالعكس هو ركز على الدنيا، وما انكره من عقائد الهندوس لم يكن سوى "علمنة" وطرد للعقائد الغير نافعة من وجهة نظره، واتوقع لو ظهر بوذا في ايامنا هذه لكان فيلسوف ومؤلف كتب سعادة وتنمية ذاتية وليس صاحب دين
  
  كتاب مفيد وسهل ومقدمة جدا رائعة لمن يريد ادراك هذا العالم ذي الفلسفات والطقوس والذي يعتنقه قرابة النصف مليار.
• 
  Thaer

  لابد في البداية من شكر الجهد المبذول من قبل مؤسسة هنداوي لترجمة هذه السلسلة من الكتب.
  هذه السلسلة المفيدة التي تحوي مقدمات مكثفة عن مواضيع شتى يكتبها باحثين متخصصين, تعطي لمحة وافية عن عدة مواضيع. ورغم قصر الكتاب الا ان كثافة المعلومات فيه تستغرق وقتا لهضمها.
  ان اهتمامي بالروحانيات والتساؤلات الماوراء طبيعية هو اهتمام قديم, ولكن اهتمامي بالبوذية خاصة والديانات الشرقية عامة بدا مع قدومي لليابان والاحتكاك بهذه الديانات بشكل ما.
  كانت تجربتي المتواضعة مع البوذية تعتمد على قراءات بسيطة واستماع لمحاضرات متفرقة وكان لابد من وضع اطار اكاديمي لهذه التجربة, وقرائتي لهذا الكتاب هي في هذا الاطار.
  الكتاب مفيد جدا في اعطاء مقدمة وافية عن بوذا نفسه وعن بدايات وانتشار البوذية, وعن الافكار الاساسية فيها بالاضافة لتطورها في العالم المعاصر واحتكاكها بالثقافة الغربية وانا انصح بالكتاب للمهتمين بالبوذية. بل وانصح به ايضا المهتمين بدراسة الاديان بشكل عام.
  اتمنى قبل ان ينتقد انسان اي فكر او دين ان يفتح عقله وقلبه على معتقدات اخرى ويقيم بعقل قبل ان ينتقد او ينفي معتقد غيره.
  هناك الكثير من الافكار التي يمكن التحدث عنها هنا عن البوذية, لكن ساحاول اختصار اليسير منها واترك للمهتمين قراءة الكتاب للتعمق.
  يعتقد الكثيرين ان البوذيين يعبدون بوذا وهذا حسب فهمي هو غير صحيح, فمعنى اله في الديانات الشرقية مختلف كثيرا عن معنى اله في الديانات الابراهيمية, فالاله عندنا هو خالق للكون وهو مسيطر على حركته وهو منوط بحركة الثواب والعقاب, اما بوذا على سبيل المثال فهو متيقظ او متنور حصل على التنوير من تامله الذاتي وهو ليس بخالق ولا يعبد على الاقل في التعاليم البوذية الاصلية, قد يكون هناك انحرافات لاحقا في نظرة بعض الفئات البوذية لبوذا لكن هذا ليس في اصل المعتقد البوذي
  في البوذية يوجد عدد كبير جدا من الطوائف او الفئات لكن ممكن تقسيمها الى قسيمن رئيسيين هما الثيرافادا والماهايانا حيث يمثلان التعاليم القديمة والبوذية الاكثر حداثة على الترتيب.
  تنتشر الثيرافادا في جنوب اسيا مثل سيريلانكا وتايلند وبورما, وتنتشر الماهايانا في شرق اسيا كالصين وكوريا واليابان
  وبالرغم من ذلك هناك الكثير جدا جدا من التوجهات والطوائف التفصيلية ضمن البوذية
  تقوم البوذية على على الافكار التي وضعها بوذا في خطبته الاولى بعد التنوير وهي ان الحياة معاناة وان هذه المعاناة سببها الرغبة وان هذه المعاناة من الممكن ان تنتهي وان هناط طريق لنهاية هذه المعاناة
  البوذية لا تؤمن بوجود النفس, اذ انها تعتبر وجود الانا مثارا لخلق الكراهية والطمع
  تدين البوذية بشدة مسالة العنف وتؤكد على مسالة الرحمة او الشفقة على المخلوقات الاخرى, لكن حدثت انحرافات لاحقة ادت الى عنف وممارسة الاخلاق غير الحميدة من البوذيين بل وادى الى دعم بعض طوائفهم للحرب
  هناك معتقدات اشبه بالخرافية لدى بعض الطوائف وهناك ايضا تطرف في ممارسة الشفقة فمثلا كثير من الرهبان البوذيين يستعملون المصفاة عند شربهم للماء من اجل الحفاظ على الكائنات الصغيرة ضمن الماء
  هناك 3 فضائل رئيسية في البوذية وهي عدم التعلق والاحسان والفهم يقابلها 3 شرور رئيسية وهي الطمع والكراهية والوهم
  تحتل الشفقة على الاخرين مكانة محورية في العقيدة البوذية ولاتقتعد البوذية بان الانسان هو محور هذا الكون وللذك انتشرت الافكارالنباتية ضمن البوذية
  بوذا في الاصل كان ابن ملك ولكنه عندما راى المعاناة اشفق على الناس من دورة الالم التي يعيشون فيها وقرر البحث عن حل دائم لهذه المعاناة
  تهدف البوذية في النهاية للوصول لمرحلة النيرفانا وهي المرحلة العليا من الفضائل والاخلاق الحميدة والخلاص الكامل من دور ةالحياة والامها
  البوذية تؤمن بتناسخ الارواح وتؤمن بقانون الكارما الذي يعاقب او يكافئ الطالح او الصالح
  هناك تفاصيل كثيرة ايضا ولكن هذه خلاصة بعض الافكار
  اتمنى لكم قراءة ممتعة
• 
  Darwin8u

  "...rather than devote years of one's life to learning to walk on water it was simpler to engage the services of a boatman!"
  - Buddha, quoted in Damien Keown's Buddhism: VSI
  
  
  
  Vol N° 3 of Oxford's
  Very Short Introductins series.
  
  I've been fascinated with Buddhism for years and for years jokingly called myself a Zen Mormon. Although that probably undersells my relationship with Mormonism and oversells my relationship with Buddhism. I do, however, follow many secular Buddhist practices and read several books on Buddhism every year. I try to meditate, but I'm really, really bad at it. I joke that if I could meditate properly for just one minute, I might at that point achieve Nirvana, or at least begin to float a couple inches over my cushion.
  
  Anyway, I've got several books on Buddhism sitting on my shelf to read, but this year I wanted to read a simple overview of Buddhism. Damien Keown's contribution to Oxford's Very Short Introduction seemed to fit the bill perfectly. It summarizes Buddhism and the Buddha, looks at its history, schools (Mahāyāna, Theravāda, etc.), while also giving an overview of karma, the Four Noble Truths, meditation, ethics, etc. Finally, Keown ends the book discussing Buddhism in the West and the possibilities of development and enlightenment as Buddhism grows in a new field.
  
  Anyway, for a book that is limited to less than 150 pages, Keown did a great job and covered a lot of ground. The limits were Keown necessarily needed to leave unexplored a lot of Buddhist teachings (think bullet points of the main concepts).
• 
  مصطفى

  
  " بوذا لم يكن متشائماً على نحو مرضي كما أنه علم بالتأكيد من تجربته الشخصية باعتباره أميراً شاباً أن الحياة يمكن أن تكون بها لحظات سعيدة، رغم ذلك فالمشكلة هي أن الأوقات الجميلة لا تدوم، وعاجلاً أو آجلاً سوف تتلاشى، أو يمل المرء من الأمور التي بدت في السابق جديدة ومليئة بالوعود، وفي هذا السياق فإن كلمة -دوكها- لها معنى أكثر تجريداً وشمولية فهي تلمح إلى أنه حتى عندما لا تكون الحياة مؤلمة فإنها من الممكن أن تكون غير مرضية وغير مشبعة، وفي هذا السياق وغيره، توضح كلمة- عدم الرضا- معنى كلمة-دوكها- على نحو أفضل من كلمة "معاناة"
  
  
  مقدمة قصيرة جداً، حقاً قصيرة، ولكنها مميزة على الرغم من شعو��ك بعدم التشبع وعدم الكفاية أو تغطية شاملة لكافة جوانب الموضوع أو ما لائم توقعاتك، لمحة سريعة عن البوذية بأسلوب أدبي جميل وترجمة مميزة، ولكن تشعر أن طيلة الكتاب مركزية الكاتب الغربية تطل رائحتها من بين الصفحات، ولكنها دراسة في ماهية البوذية جديرة بالقراءة تركز على الخطوط العريضة للديانة، وتفند حقيقة القول بأنها فلسفة وليست دينية، وتوضح نقاط اشتراكها مع ديانات أخرى أبرزها المسيحية، كما أنها أيضاً مفيدة ومليئة بالكثير من الأمور التي تستطيع تطبيقها على حياتك الخاصة وقد تؤثر فيك.
  
• 
  Osama

  يتناول مقدمة قصيرة جدا للبوذية من تأليف داميان كيون مجموعة من الموضوعات الهامة لفهم البوذية بشكل عام وهي: الكارما، تناسخ الأرواح، الأخلاق والمباديء الروحية، التأمل، والآراء السياسية. يبدأ الكتاب بسؤال هل البوذية ديانة أم نمط حياة؟ ثم يوضح تفاصيل شخصية بوذا، مولده، تنويره، أعماله ووفاته. كما يشرح الكتاب طبيعة نصوص البوذية الأولى وتطورها مع مرور الوقت. في فصل آخر يتضح مفهوم درجات تناسخ الأرواح من مستوياتها الدنيا كجهنم والحيوان والأشباح إلى درجاتها العليا وهي النيرفانا وما ورائها. ويخصص الكتاب فصلا لمعنى أخلاق المهيانا كالكرم، الصبر، الشجاعة، الحكمة وغيرها. ويختم الكتاب بالحديث عن أتباع الديانة البوذية في الهند، سريلانكا، جنوب شرق آسيا، الصين والهند والغرب. الكتاب مفيد للتعرف على ديانة واسعة الانتشار ويشوبها الغموض في كثير من الأحيان.
• 
  Canon

  Comparing this to other Very Short Introductions I've read, and bearing in mind what it's worthwhile to expect from a book like this (that is, a book that covers a topic like "Buddhism" in under a couple hundred pages), I thought this was just fine. I found other more in-depth histories of Buddhism, but my interest in getting to primary texts and philosophical treatments of Buddhism sooner outweighed my interest in tarrying with a more comprehensive introduction. In other words, this suited my purposes well enough as a basic orientation to the major schools or divisions within Buddhism, how those differences generally came about, and which texts are prevalent in which traditions, etc. A couple reading projects I have going on currently are (1) reading my way through some of the major texts of Classical Chinese Philosophy and (2) reading The Tale of Genji. Both of these endeavors have made me particularly interested in exploring Tiantai Buddhism, a Mahāyāna school that emerged in 6th century China and that directly influenced Tendai Buddhism during Japan's Heian Period. To this end, I plan to read The Lotus Sutra and Brook Ziporyn's
  Emptiness and Omnipresence: An Essential Introduction to Tiantai Buddhism.
• 
  S.Baqer Al-Meshqab

  3.5
• 
  ولاء شكري

  كتاب بسيط الطرح بعيد عن التعقيد عن البوذية .. تحدث الكاتب عن بوذا و معتقداته و ما يدعو إليه من أخلاق بإستفاضة ثم أنهى الكتاب بالحديث عن انتشارها فى الآونة الاخيرة على الأخص فى الغرب ..
  
  و ارجع انتشارها فى الغرب إلى افتقادهم للمستوى الاخلاقى و المثل العليا و تدنى قيمة الإنسانية لديهم للحضيض ..فما أن وجدوا فلسفة مثل البوذية أساسها رفع المعاناة عن الناس بالتركيز على الاخلاق الحسنة والفضيلة حتى ألقوا أنفسهم فى أحضانها ..
  
  فالحمد لله على نعمة الإسلام 🤍
• 
  Ahmad Sharabiani

  Buddhism: A Very Short Introduction (Very Short Introductions #3), Damien Keown
  This accessible volume covers both the teachings of the Buddha and the integration of Buddhism into daily life. What are the distinctive features of Buddhism? What or who is the Buddha, and what are his teachings? How has Buddhist thought developed over the centuries, and how can contemporary dilemmas be faced from a Buddhist perspective? Words such as "karma" and "nirvana" have entered our vocabulary, but what do they really mean? Keown has taught Buddhism at an introductory level for many years, and in this book he provides a lively, challenging response to these frequently asked questions.
• 
  Yassmeen Altaif

  البوذية...
  
  
  بداية موفقة يذكر قصة الفيل والعميان، عندما قالوا لهم ماهذا الذي أمامكم؟، فيشرح كلاً منهم الفيل على الجزء الذي مسكه.
  فمن هنا المدخل لفهم ما قد يقال في هذا الكتاب أو حتى أي موضوع بشكل عام.
  
  ولكن قبل كل هذا هناك توضيح بسيط بالخريطة المصورة عن الأماكن الذي انتشرت فيها البوذية.
  
  لفة الكتاب سلسه وسهلة، وهي نوعاً ما غير مملة أي القصد ليست وكأنما محاضر فوق رأسك يتكلم فقط إنما يتفاعل معك بتحديد وتعريف كل تفصيل.
  
  • البوذية دين لا إلهي لأن بالبوذية لا وجود للرب عندهم إنما بوجود آلهة أو أرواح خارقة للطبيعة.
  • مبدأ احترام الحياة لدى البوذيين، بإحترام كل المخلوقات سواء بشر أو حيوانات، وتبنوا مبدأ السلام وعدم الإيذاء.
  • الكائنات ليست مجرد رعاة للطبيعة، بل تخلق الطبيعة إلى حد ما. فالعالم الذي يسكنه أشخاص جهلاء وأنانيون سوف ينهار أسرع من ذلك العالم الذي يسكنه سكان حكماء وفضلاء.
  
  
  الكارما (جيدة وسيئة.. الجيدة اسمى الاستحقاق) في البوذية هي مثل رأس المال الروحي زيادة تجميعها من خلال أعمال حسنة مثل تقديم الملابس والطعام للرهبان، حضور الطقوس الدينية أو التبرع بالمال لصيانة المعابد...الخ.
  أليست مثل الحسنات عندنا نحن المسلمين وكما يمكننا عمل أعمال حسنة بإسم أشخاص آخرون كذللك في البوذية هناك مشاركة الكارما مع الآخرين.
  بغض النظر على إننا نجمع الحسنات لنكون في جنات النعيم ولرضا الرب ولكن بالبوذية تجمع الاستحقاقات ليكون له ميلاد ثاني في حياة ثانية بأفضل من هذه.
  
  الكثير من قوانينهم في البوذية تتشابه نوعاً معنا نحن المسلمين مثل الوصايا الخمسة الذي يمنع القتل، السرقة، الفساد الجنسي، الكذب وتناول المسكرات. هذه بالإضافة الى الوصايا الأخرى نجد ديننا الإسلامي يدعونا لها لعدم الكذب ويحرم الخمر وغيرها.
  والكثير من تعاليم البوذية تتوافق مع تعاليم الجين الإسلامي.
  
  الحقيقة إنه كما أن هناك اقتباسات عجبتني في هذا الكتاب (مرفقة بالأسفل) إنني أعجبت بالبوذية من حيث نشر السلام و إنها لا تدعوا للكراهية، وحتى إنها لا تدعوا للقتل حتى لو أساءوا لك والكثير من التعاليم الهانئة التي تجعلنا نعيش بحب وسلام.
  
  
  "فكل رجل مسن وكل مستشفى وكل جنازة فستظهر قصر وهشاشة الحياة."
  "أن الشخص يمكن أن يحب الآخرين فقط عندما يستطيع أن يحب نفسه."
  "الكراهية لا تهدئها الكراهية أبداً، وبعدم الكراهية فقط تهدأ الكراهية."
  
  
  وفي الأخير الكتاب بسيط وممتاز لفهم معلومات عن البوذية بطريقة سلسلة، سابقاً قرأت شيء بسيط عن البوذية وبوذا في كتابين (أنيس منصور- ٢٠٠ يوم حول العالم، سيدهارتا- هيرمان هسه) ولكن في هذا الكتاب شرح أكثر ومحبب للقراءة.
  هو معرف على أنه مقدمة قصيرة للبوذية، لكن بنظري هذه المقدمة استطاعت توضيح العديد من الأمور.
  
  إن كنت محب للإطلاع اقرأ هذا الكتاب.
• 
  Sleepless Dreamer

  On the 11th of October, 2017, I picked up this book because I wanted to know more about Buddhism. Usually, this series does an excellent job at getting the basics down clearly. I wanted to know what basic beliefs make someone a Buddhist? What are the most important ideas in Buddhism? How did Buddhism spread the way it did?
  
  True, this book does answer these questions but they are masked in so much terminology that I have to wonder if the intended audience for this book actually is people who don't know anything about Buddhism. The author introduces so many new terms and it's so very hard to follow. It made reading this become a chore. I felt like the effort I put into understanding what was going on just wasn't worth it.
  
  In these three years, I've managed to visit three Buddhist temples (in London, Taipei and Ulan-Ude) and I'm still ashamed to say that my knowledge is far more basic than it should be. I finished this book today, promising myself that there's no way this can stay on my currently reading shelf for another day and yet, even as I sat down and read those last 40 pages, I still feel like I didn't gain nearly enough knowledge.
  
  I haven't read any other books about Buddhism (not counting
  Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry Into Values cause that's about Western Philosophy) so I can't recommend any other book (and would love if you can recommend me some!) but I feel certain in saying that there are better Buddhism books out there.
  
  What I'm Taking With Me
  - In Japan, they host funerals for aborted babies, creating a balance between the loss of life and the decision to abort nonetheless and I don't know what I think about this.
  - The chapters on meditation and Buddhism in the West were really good.
  - I've got to read about Zen, I feel that's another topic that I'm woefully ignorant about.
  
  Uni Adventures- Last week of the semester
  - Guys, I survived an entire semester (almost!) and like, yeah, the exams are coming and that's scary but wow, I'm a sixth done with my degree.
  
  - The exams are so so close and I'm trying not to be scared but it's somewhat hard because ahh, what if I do a terrible job at everything??
  
  - Doing Logics always makes me feel like I'm Athena and it's such a specific mood. If I do logics while listening to the Narnia soundtrack, I literally feel like I'm in a forest, with a sword, solving riddles to find a hidden treasure.  
  
  - I hung out with some law students the other day and man, they are terrifying. Seriously, I don't understand how they don't get more hate, how can everyone dislike PPE majors when Law
  students exist? 
  
  - I went to a panel about returning Israeli prisoners of war and realized that yeah, activists literally see students as political power and that it's terrible to realize that if you advertise free pizza, quite a few people will show up for that. 
  
  - On the topic, I had a really nice conversation about prisoner exchanges with a guy from my degree and I feel even more lost about my own opinions because yes, Marshall would say we hold a responsibility towards citizens, even when they cross the border into Gaza and was it the poverty and racism that led an 18 year old to cross into Gaza? But in the same breath, I think we have a god given ability to ruin our lives and that's not the government's job to correct us.
  
  - The urge to travel is really growing and like, I know I can travel cheaply enough for me to be able to afford it and I'm so tempted, someone needs to stop me. 
  
  - I've always had the hunch that I could do a good job when working with angry costumers and well, now I know that there is something so satisfying about dealing with an angry person and calming it all down. 
• 
  Eman Ash-shamekh

  مقدمة وافية جدًا
• 
  Omar Elsafty

  قراءة مثمرة
• 
  Yara abdelkarim

  كتاب جميل جدا في عرضه و تركيزه علي أفكار البوذية الاساسية ، لاهو بيتفرع لأمور تهم المتخصصين اكتر،
  ولا هو قدمها بشكل سطحى و سريع
  
  .
  من ناحية تانية ممكن نقول ان البوذية ديانة (بالحد الادني لمعنى كلمة ديانة او دين )واقعية و واقعيتها دي ممكن نلخصها في نقطتين :
  
  
  النقطة الاولى انها بتأكد علي الاستقلالية ان جاز التعبير، بمعني ان الانسان لا بيعتمد علي إله ولا قوة عليا او اي سلطة خارج نفسه ممكن انها تنقذه او تقدمله العون ، لا بيعبد اي قوة ولا بيطلب منها خلاص ولا في اي عون هيجى من برا نفسه. وان كان حصل بعد كدا ان الناس الهت بوذا فدا شيء تاني.
  
  
  النقطة التانية بتبان فى أعتبارها ان المعاناة و الالم حقيقة ثابتة في الحياة حتى المسرات فيها مؤقتة و زائلة و هي نفسها مصدر تعطشنا و خيبات امالنا و هي مصدر مشاعر الحسرة و اليأس و الحزن ..الخ و الخلاص الوحيد ممكن لو تخلصنها من رغباتنا و عطشنا للدنيا.
  
  اعتقد دول اهم فرضين عندها عن العالم بشكل مختصر بعيد عن الجوانب المتعلقة بالتناسخ و التعاليم والاخلاقيات وغيره.
  
  العجيب و الغريب بق انه بقدرة قادر وبعد تعديلات و تحولات كتيرة للبوذية لحد ما وصلت الغرب بقت شيء متفائل بيصور الحياة جنة و خطاب التنمية البشرية المهتم بالنجاح و السعادة و جذب المال و الممتلكات معتمد علي البوذية و التراث الصوفي و الديني في الشرق .
• 
  David

  Indulging my hobby of The Search for Ultimate Meaning recently, I was for a while captivated by Buddhism. It seemed the answer to all my problems, until - through a defect in my spiritual understanding or the application of common sense - I fell from grace and my vision clouded over.
  As a result of a string of more or less bitter disappointments, I am very wary of any form of enthusiasm I might experience on the Quest for Meaning front, because they all seem to be followed by a disappointment that is more severe than the short-lived euphoria of enlightenment. There are all sorts of reasons promulgated by the various creeds regarding this state, of course, and indeed any self-respecting religion has built-in safeguards against potential lapsers. Take it or leave it, they say, but leave it and you’ll go to Hell, or at the very least be returned to the endless cycle of death and rebirth, and it will be all the worse for you for having been shown the light and rejected it.
  My particular problem with Buddhism was that it failed the ‘If Everybody Acted Like This’ test. There are loads of anecdotes concerning Buddhist masters expounding on the fragility of life and the importance of the present moment over future and past. There is no point in making plans, because your heart may stop in the next second and your plans will come to nothing and you’ll be caught unprepared. One renowned master up-ended his drinking cup every night before retiring to bed, and when his faithful disciples dutifully asked why he did so answered that he might die that night and have no further need of it. Take that down.
  All very commendable, and something to meditate long and hard on, no doubt – but what if everybody took that attitude? The masters would have nowhere to meditate themselves, and in fact they wouldn’t have time to meditate, because they’d be dead. Some unenlightened ignoramus has to prepare their food and drink, their shelter and their bed, not to mention manufacturing the ink and writing materials and the paper they commit their timeless thoughts to (if they can be bothered), and if that ignoramus starts meditating too then you can see what’s going to happen.
  Same goes for the ancient Greeks and early Christians. It’s all very well living in a barrel or on the top of a column, but some poor sod is going to have to feed and water you.
  All these high-minded thinkers depend on a substratum of ignorant toilers to support them, and it quickly comes to look less like a search for meaning and truth and more like an extreme case of self-indulgence brought on by too much time on your hands. You can almost start to sympathise with the Chinese communists for thinking that enough is enough and that these people should get a proper job and make some sort of a contribution to society.
  Every actor needs props, and the enlightened ones are no exception. Even Jesus, who famously packed in carpentry to follow his true calling, needed someone to carry on with the trade to make everything come together at Calvary, and hundreds of extras to follow, clothe and feed him in the meantime.
  I sympathise with Pilate and Judas. Pilate, according to the eventual winners, was a rough, sadistic brute without an iota of culture in him. But if you’ve been put in charge of pacifying Palestine then that must surely have been a pre-requisite of the job: no willowy David Bowie look-alikes need apply, and I suspect that even Kojak would not in reality have got a look-in. We’re talking more Ratko Mladic on a bad day. Pilate also has the best line in the book: ‘What is truth?’ Talk about a spanner in the works…
  And as for Judas Iscariot, I’m reminded irresistibly of a story by Jorge Luis Borges. The upshot of it is that if God is really going to suffer for mankind, He’s going to incarnate not as Jesus of Nazareth but as Judas. Suffering on the cross is a doddle if you know you’re heading in a relatively short time for heavenly bliss. But what if you know you’re going to be damned for all eternity, and be universally vilified into the bargain, in order for the Divine Plan to be accomplished? Now that’s what I call a real sacrifice. Judas also managed to hold down a proper job as self-respecting freedom fighter, something that got Caractacus and Spartacus plenty of plaudits just a few years earlier. Judas must be the supreme example of someone being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
  So I’ve had to abandon my ambition of achieving Nirvana for a bit, having scratched the surface of wishful thinking and found the substance wanting. I can’t believe, somehow, that such a rich array of well-meaning supporting actors are only there to project a few effeminate dossers into blissful eternity, like the scaffolding and booster rockets of Apollo flights, and then spend centuries clearing up the mess in religious wars. I’d rather be left behind to scrape an honest living in the real world than go swannying around in the clouds with the self-appointed masters, hanging on their every vapid utterance.
  Perhaps it’s simply that, like old Woody, I’m constitutionally incapable of belonging to any club that would accept someone like me as a member.
  Or then again, maybe I’m just jealous. I have plenty of brilliant insights concerning the nature of reality, but they all come to nothing because I end up having to get on with eating, drinking and socialising. Come to think of it, perhaps I could demonise my friends and colleagues for blocking the Light. All I’d need is a few disciples who’d follow anything that moves, and there are always plenty of them around.
  
• 
  Nick Imrie

  This is pretty much a perfect introduction to Buddhism. Although short, it's very concise and packs in a load of information and, even better, tells you when severely summarising so that you can do your own further reading - and, yes, there is a bibliography! What more could inquiring yet impatient minds want?
  
  The opening chapter is a very good framing chapter: what is religion and how does Buddhism fit? In Asia, Buddhism is not known as Buddhism exactly, more usually it's something like the teachings of the Buddha. It's really not a monolith - there are different interpretations of Buddha's teachings, and each country has its own native religions and philosophies which are often integrated with one or another Buddhist sect, so you end up with lots of different ways of practising; in Japan they have a saying: 'Born Shinto, Die Buddhist'.
  Apparently lots of people from more Abrahamic faiths doubt that Buddhism is a religion, given that it can be non-theistic (aside: I didn't know this but apparently it can also be very theistic because Buddhist cosmology includes whole realms of gods and spirits and as well as that many Buddhists still worship local gods and spirits). Keown comes down on the side of 'yes, it is a religion' because it fits Ninian Smarts seven dimensions of religion: it has practices and rituals, it provides myths and stories to help understand the world, it has doctrines and philosophies, it has ethical systems, it has social functions and institutions, it has an experiential dimension (especially important in Buddhism with its spiritual practises like meditation) and a material aspect (like art and architecture).
  
  I learnt a little about the different branches of Buddhism. Speaking very broadly Buddhism breaks down into Theravada and Mahayana which are the biggest branches like Protestant and Catholic in Christianity or Sunni and Shia in Islam. Theravada roughly translates as 'Doctrine of the Elders' and considers itself the original, authentic Buddhism. A more simple, austere Buddhism it places emphasis on acheiving enlightenment as a personal responsibility and sticking to the original words of the Buddha. The Mahayana translates, more or less, as 'The Great Vehicle' because its the way to salvation. It places emphasis, not just on acheiving enlightenment yourself, but also on working selflessly to lead all living things to nirvana. Mahayana also has a much more complicated cosmology and 'Buddhology' with theories about Buddha having three bodies in three different dimensions, a prophecy of a second Buddha, Maitreya, who will usher in a utopia, and lots of new and inspired scriptures which of course means a lot of different sects and even a few messianic cults.
  
  There's a very interesting history of how Buddhism spread from Northern India where the Buddha preached across Asia, carried by travelling monks or encouraged by Kings, occasionally beaten back by barbarian hordes. It's sad to think that what is now Pakistan and Afghanistan were once prosperous Buddhist centres of trade and learning.
  Keown is also cautiously aware that his reader is most likely to be Westerner unfamiliar with Buddhism except as practised by western hippies. He highlights some of the more conservative aspects of Buddhism, such as the refusal of Buddhist authorities in many countries to allow female ordination, and the existence of Buddhist monks who have supported wars. In the chapter on Buddhist ethics there's an interesting discussion of the fact that Buddhism has mostly existed in feudal societies (Tibet was a medieval theocracy until about 70 years ago). So it often has a lot of useful advice if you're, say, a lord considering the best treatment of your serfs, but it doesn't have any language analogous to the Western concept of 'human rights'.
  
  Altogether, this is a very intersting book that does a great job of putting Buddhism into context as a global religion. I haven't dwelt on it here, but needless to say, there's also some great chapters on the basics of Buddhism: four noble truths, eightfold path, five precepts, and the ideas of karma, dharma, nirvana, and the practice of meditation.
  
• 
  Shaheed

  الدين هو ما يفعله المرء في عزلته
• 
  Aya Ibrahim

  يبدأ الكتاب بسؤال هل البوذية دين أم نمط حياة؟ ثم يوضح الكاتب البوذية بأبعادها السبعة.
  تناول الكتاب عدة فصول منها تاريخ البوذية ونشأتها، لمحة عن حياة بوذا بنشأته وتنويره وأعماله ووفاته. البوذية بعد وفاته، والتعاليم الاساسية فيها، ومواضيع مثل الكارما والنيرفانا وتناسخ الأرواح والتأمل، كما يتناول مفهوم تناسخ الأرواح من مستوياته الدنيا والعليا، وانتشار البوذية في الهند وبلاد شرق آسيا والغرب.
• 
  Farah

  هذه أول تجربة لي بقراءة الأديان غير الإسلامية وقد نالت إعجابي بحيث أنها كانت وافية وتثقيفية بمعرفة بدايات وكيفية ظهورها وتطورها إلى يومنا هذا
• 
  Jan-Maat

  It is true that I am the kind of person who often starts to read newspapers - note to younger readers - newspapers were an analogue means of communicating news and opinions obtained from physical vendors in exchange for actual coins from the back to the front, and early in life I was reading trilogies of books out of order, so unsurprisingly I began on a whim listening to podcasts about Buddhism a couple of years ago with no particular background in the subject, waves of unfamiliar concepts washing over my head.
  
  My floundering about could have been spared had I read Keown's book sooner. I'm sure a reader with a fuller knowledge could take issue with the choice of material to include, the amount of space given over to discussing abortion, about four times that given over to Human rights, struck me as a good indicator that Keown has either written or was in the process of writing a journal article on the subject.
  
  There are a lot of ways that one could cut this particular cake. Keown offers up a little bit of almost everything with chapters on the Buddha, Rebirth, The Four Noble Truths, The Mahayana, Buddhism in Asia, Meditation, Ethics, and Buddhism & the West. Since this is a very short introduction to the subject then if your interest is in Korean Buddhism or militant Buddhism and the recent long running civil war in Sri Lanka then you are best advised to look elsewhere.
  
  It is a book written from a "Western" perspective, the last paragraph The Historian Arnold Toynbee described the encounter between Buddhism and the West as 'one of the greatest collisions of the twenty-first century'. To this confluence of cultures Buddhism brings a sophisticated psychology, techniques of meditation, a profound metaphysics, and a universally admired code of ethics. The West brings a sceptical empiricism, a pragmatic science and technology, and a commitment to democracy and individual liberty. If the history of the spread of Buddhism to other cultures teaches any lessons it is that a genuinely new and distinctive form of Buddhism will be born from this encounter (p125) suggesting that we should see something special arising from the encounter. Perhaps though rather than chauvinism it suggests a cunning ploy, rather as the wise father, to steal an image from the Lotus Sutra, seeing that his children do not flee their burning home, lures them out with the promise of amazing toys, to tempt Westerners to cease their rushing about and to sit down and meditate in order to participate in the most amazing syncretism.
  
  And maybe it was a conscious nod on Keown's part to the patriarchal nature of religions that the default person in this book, as I started to notice in the chapter on meditation, is always a man. That struck me as a literary choice unusually lacking in mindfulness for contemporary non-fiction writing. But then again at least the book uses BC and AD rather than the inane BCE and CE.
  
  This volume, it seemed to me, appeared to have more illustrations than other volumes I've come across in the Oxford University Very Short Introduction series. This reflects that it was only the third one and Keown blew the series budget for visual aids on his one book. Everyone will have to decide for themselves if all the charts and pictures represent money well spent.
  
  However reading this book I was pleased to find out that I had been doing Insight meditation - clearly though more practice is required since I hadn't realised, and I enjoyed the diagram showing that the ability to fly, to be clairvoyant, or to recall past lives, were not the end results of meditation but skills that you might pick up on your way before getting on to the really difficult things such as appreciation of pure form or pure formlessness.
  
  Still I was also pleased by his passing mention of Tina Turner being a Buddhist which I first heard about
  here - worth listening to also for the sad tale of Steven Seagal.
• 
  Edward

  Buddhism: A Very Short Introduction provides information about the history, beliefs and practices of the various branches of Buddhism. In addition, it contains chapters on the Buddha's life and meditation. It is an informative book and my favourite chapter was about the influence Buddhism has had on Western culture.
• 
  Scott

  another oxford very short introduction that does the job without fanfare or any particular panache, but the job of introducing in a very concise way does get done.
• 
  Dean

  A nice little introduction to Buddhism, from an objective, academic point of view. It covers most of the larger traditions and also the early life and thinking of the Buddha. I particularly like the treatment of ethics and Buddhism moral principles throughout the book, in addition to a focus on mind discipline and understanding.
• 
  Ömer Faruk

  Budizm hakkında hemen hiçbir şey bilmeyerek bu kitabı okudum ve bana temel kavramlara aşina oldum diyebilirim. Öğrenilmesi gereken her şey var mıydı bilmem ama giriş seviyesi için gereksiz sayılabilecek çok az bilgi vardı. Amerikadaki budist örgütlenme isimleri gibi. Ortadoğulu bir okur için anlamsız ama bunlar çok azdı. Kitabın içeriğini şöyle bir özetlemek gerekirse,
  
  Bir grup insana bir filin belli yerlerini göstermişler ve ne olduğunu söylemelerini istemişler. Hepsi farklı bir şey söylemiş. Budizm hakkında konuşanlar da böyle. Budizmin belli bir yerini çalışıyor, görüyor ve bütünsel Budizm hakkında yanlış bir genellemeye varıyorlar.
  
  Budizmim zaman ve mekan düzleminde farklı cephelerini genelleme yanılgısına düşmemeliyiz, önyargılara kapılmamalı, o konuyu incelerken görmek istediklerimizi gören bir eğilime girmemeliyiz. Batılı bakış açısıyla farklı kültürleri stereotipleştiren; kendi kültürümüz, yerleşik davranış kalıplarımıza ve varsayımlarımız ile değerlendiren bir körlüğe kapılmamalıyız.
  
  Bu yanılgı rotaları daha ilk soruda kendini gösterebilir. Budizm bir din midir. Peki din nedir: yaratıcı, dünyaya müdahale eden bir tanrıya ve onun söylediklerine inanmak? Bu açıdan budizm bir din olmadığı gibi böyle bir tanrının olmadığını savunur. Ama diğer yandan insanüstü bazı varlıkların olduğunu da kabul eder. Yani semitik dinlere benzemediği gibi ateizmden de farklıdır. Batılı kavram setlerimiz ve önyargılarımız Budizmi doğru anlamamızı önlemektedir.
  
  Tanrısız bir din tanımı mümkün mü sorusu tartışıldı ve dedi ki din kavramını bir cümleyle tanımlamak yerine yedi boyutta incelemek ve budizmin bu yedi boyutta incelenen ve her boyutta bir araya gelen özlerin toplamı olarak değerlendirilmekte. Boyutların ilki;
  
  Pratik ya da ritüel boyut: budizmde de belli ritüeller mevcut. Keşiş olurken saçların kazınması, ayda iki defa ve yılda bir kez yapılan ayinler mevcut. Rahipler düğüne veya çocuk doğumuna karışmaz. Uhrevi değil ailevi bir olay olarak görülür. Daha sonra kutsanmaya gidilebilir. Ama cenazelere katılırlar çünkü ölüm halinde zihnin durumunun yeniden doğuşu etkilediğine inanırlar.
  
  Deneyimsel ve duygusal boyut: meditasyon ve aydınlanma kavramları bu boyutu açıklamaya yerer
  
  Öyküsel ve mitik boyut; Buddha’nın önceki hayatlarını anlatan yahut menkıbevi hikayerle bezeli çokça anlatı mevcuttur.
  
  Doktrinel ve felsefi boyut: dharma, yani doğanın düzeninden ve insanın uyması gereken kurallar bütününden bahseden öğretiler bütünü ile dört asil hakikat çerçevesinde zengin bir felsefi öğreti sistemi mevcuttur.
  
  Etik ve yasa ile ilgili boyut: budizmin etik anlayışı görevlerle belirlenmiştir. Görevler de yasaklarla tanımlanır. canlıya zarar vermemek, güç kullanmayı reddetmek, doğa ile uyum en temel etik kuralıdır.
  
  Sosyal ve kurumsal boyut: din toplumsaldır, toplum yaşayışına sirayet eder. Budizmde diğer dinler gibi papavari bir yaşayan lider yoktur. Hiyerarşik sisteminden ziyade kuralı kaidesi belirli bir manastır düzeni vardır. Hatta dünyadaki ilk rahibeler (nuns) grubu da budizmde mevcut.
  
  Maddi boyut: budizmde ikonalar, resim, heykel, tapınaklar, kutsal hac alanları da önemli derecede dini hayatın içindedir.
  
  Budanın kısa yaşam öyküsü
  
  Buddhanın hayatı hakkındq bilgi az. Bildiğimiz ve naratife dayanan; bir prens olarak sarayda doğdu. Tatminsizlik neticesinde arayışa çıktı. İki üstaddan meditasyonu öğrendi ve o ilimde en tepeye çıktı. Daha sonra bir ağacın altında aydınlandı ve nirvanaya ulaştı. Hayatının sonuna kadar da bu öğretiyi yaymak için gezdi. Hayatının önemli dönemeçleri; doğum, aydınlanma, ilk vaaz ve ölüm şeklinde sıralanır. Bu dönemeçler elbette birtakım olağanüstülüklerle bezelidir.
  
  Budist öğreti Dharma neleri kapsar temel kavramları nelerdir.
  
  Budaya göre varlık çok tüketmek ile kendini oruca çekmek arasında orta yolu bulmalıdır. Çünkü buda her ikisini de tecrübe etmiş ve ikisinden de verim alamamıştır. Budist öğreti temelde zamanı bir döngü olarak görür. Kozmolojik bağlamda, batının lineer akış düşüncesinin aksine, dünya sistemlerinin doğup yok olduğu bu sürecin sonsuz sayıda sürekli yenilendiği bir anlayış hakimdir. İnsan doğası da bu döngünün içinde; nirvanaya ulaşıp acıyı sona erdirene kadar doğum-ölüm- doğum reenkarnasyon döngüsündedir. İnsan mevcut hayatının devamında ve özellikle ileriki reenkarnasyonlarında yaptığı iyi-kötü işlerin karşılığını alır. İşte bu da “karma” felsefesidir. İnsan ne kadar iyiyse bir sonraki hayatında o kadar iyi şarta doğar. Hatta varlığın en üst beş katından sonraki tanrısal katlar en iyi insanların tabiri caizse cenneti olarak karmanın ödülleridir. Ama bu dahi kurtuluş değil çünkü bu katlarda da ölüm ve yeniden doğuş mevcuttur. Budanın orta yol öğretisi burada da kendini gösterir ve bu cennetvari katların rahatlığı kişiye rehavet olarak dönüp onu aydınlanmadan uzaklaştırabilmekte ve yeniden doğuş döngüsünğ uzatabilmektedir.
  
  Budist kozmolojiye göre varlık 6 alem, 31 kat, 3 sahadır. Bu 31 katın ilk 11i arzu algısı sahası, 12-27 arası saf form sahası, 28-31 arası ise formsuzluk sahası olarak bölünür.
  
  4 soylu hakikat
  
  Budist öğretinin temelidir. Buddhaya göre hayat acıdır. Bu acıdan kurtulmak için hayatın nihai amacı nirvanaya ulaşmaktır. Bu şu 4 hakikat ile sistematize edilir. 1. Hayat acı çekmektir. 2. Acı arzudan kaynaklanır. 3. Acı sona erebilir. 4. Bu sona ulaşabileceğimiz bir yol mevcuttur. Budizm bu yol için özetle iyi insan olmayı, zarar vermekten kaçınmayı öğütler.
  
  Aslında bu acı dediğimiz kavram “dukkha” acıdan ziyade tatminsizlik kavramına daha yakındır. Çünkü acının sürekliliğine karşın hayatta bazen acıdan geçici de olsa uzak anlar vardır. Bu mutluluk anları mum ateşi gibi gelir ve geçer, sürekli mutluluk ve huzur yoktur. Bu da tatminsizlik getirir.
  
  İkinci hakikat olan acının kaynağının arzu oluşu önemlidir. Çünkü arzu bir ateş gibidir. Arzu edilen elde edildikçe ateş beslenir. Ateş beslendikçe büyür etrafını yakıp kavurmaya yok etmeye başlar ve bir süre sonra söndürülemez hale gelir. Bu ateşle baş etmenin yolu arzudan vazgeçmektir. Arzu sona erdiğinde nirvanaya ulaşılır. Bu da üçüncü hakikattir. Nirvanadan sonra ne olacağı ise basitçe bilinmemektedir. Ateşin sönmesiyle enerjinin ortadan kalkması ama enerjiyi meydana getiren bileşenlerin varlığını sürdürmesi gibi. Farklı bir formsuzluk haline geçilir şeklinde var olan bilgi özetlenebilir
  
  4, hakikat nirvanaya ulaşma yolunu açıklar. Sekiz katlı yol denilen yol ile bu yol doğru bakış açısı, doğru çözüm, doğru konuşma, doğru hareket, doğru neşe, doğru çaba, doğru zihin açıklığı ve doğru meditasyondan müteşekkildir. İlk ikisi bilgelik, 3-4-5. katlar ahlaklılık ve 6-7-8. Katlar ise meditasyon bölümüne tabidir.
  
  Budizm zaman geçtikçe doğal olarak ilk çıktığı halinden farklı olarak gelişir ve değişir. İlk büyük ayrılık gelenekçiler ve yenilikçiler olarak trzahür eder. Gelenekçiler Elder tradition olarak isim alır; yenilikçiler ise bir çok okulun katkısıyla mahayana olarak günümüze kadar gelir. Mahayananın özelliği yeni bir vurguya sahip olmasıdır. Bu vurgu kurtuluş ile ilgilidr. Mahayanaya tabi olanlar nirvanaya ulaşmaktan vazgeçip kendilerini feda ederler. Bunlar kendilerini başkalarını nirvanaya ulaştırmak için araç olmaya kurtarıcı olmaya feda ederler. Bu kişilere de literatürde bodhisattvayana denir. Mahayana mezhebi ilerleyen yüzyıllarda yeni yazmalar bulut ve bu yazmaları buddhanın ruhani varlığının yazdırması vasıtasıyla buddhaya atfedip kutsiyet yüklerler. Mahayana der ki buda öğretisini ortaya koydu, ama tamamlamadı. İlkokul çocuklarına calculus anlatamayacağı için dört işlemi anlatıp öldü, öğretiyi biz tamamlayacağız der.
  
  Budizm asyada büyük etkilere sahip. Öğretilerinin yerleşik hint inançlarıyla çok fazla ortak motif paylaşması önemli. Yine mühim figürlerinden biri kral Ashoka. Bu hint kralı budizmi kabul edip dört bir yana dini elçiler gönderiyor ve dini yaymaya çalışıyor. Hindistan ve etrafında etkindir. Çinde yine konfüçyusizm ve taoizmin ardından üçüncü büyük inanç sistemidir.
  
  Meditasyon budizmin ahlak ve bilgelikle beraber üç sac ayağından biridir. Buda bile aydınlanmadan önce meditasyon ilminde ustalaştı ve bir meditasyon esnasında aydınlanmaya erdi. Meditasyon farklı bir zihin durumudur. Meditasyonun nefes farkındalığıyla başlar. Bedeninin senden bağımsız yaşadığını, senden bağımsız öleceğinin farkına varırsın. Her nefeste kaşıntılar, ağrılar, seğirmeler hissedilir. Bunlara engel olamazsın, ağrıyan yerini ovmak, kaşınan yerini kaşımak istersin. Buna itilirsin. Bu arzuya engel olmaya çalışırsın. Buna direnip bedeninden uzaklaştığın an kendini gözlemlersin. Bu noktada zihninden düşünceler akar. Buna da engel olamazsın. Sen bizzat kendi zihninden uzaklaşıp bilinç akışını izlersin. Sen bilincin bile değilsin. Bilincini bile uzaktan izleyebilirsin.
  
  Madem meditasyon bu kadar önemli, buda neden iki hocasına sırt çevirdi. Çünkü meditasyon daimi bir kurtulış sağlamaz. Geçici olarak huzura ulaştırır. Acıyı dindirmez, bir süre unutturur.
  
  Budist etik
  
  Dharma görevler ve erdemler şeklinde etiği düzenler. Beş ilke, öldürmeyi, çalmayı, cinsel aşırılığı, içki içmeyi ve yalan söylemeyi yasaklar. Bunlar görevlerdir. Haklar konusuna baktığımızda ise anakronizmden kaçınmamız gerekir. Buda çağında hak kavramından hele insan hakkı kavramından söz etmek abestir. Ama başkasının görevi, bir diğerinin hakkı şeklinde düşünürsek hak meselesini de çözmüş oluruz. Bütün insanların öldürmeme görevi var ise, yine bütün insanların yaşama hakkı mevcuttur gibi. Budizm insanlığın üstünlüğü fikrini, yalnızca insanların aydınlığa ulaşabilme yeteneğiyle temellendirilir.
  
  Budizmin batıdaki akisleri modern dönemde belirgindir. Budizme ilgide ivmeli bir artış söz konusu. Bu doğudan amerikaya olan göçle beraber başlayan tanınırlığın çeşitli sebeplerle medyaya taşınmış olmasından kaynaklı. Bunun yanında en başta değindiğimiz tanrısız bir din olması, seküler liberal değerlerle nispeten barışıklığı, zorunlu tutulan ritüel ve ibadetlerin azlığı, felsefeye yakınsaması gibi sebepler budizm ile batı insanı arasındaki ilişkiyi kolaylaştırıyor.
• 
  Asif Syed

  Just what I was looking for. An extremely accessible introduction to Buddhism for anyone and everyone.