Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

How do you write something new and fresh about a topic that has been analyzed down to its toenails? You have to really “get it” and Naoh Rasheta clearly does. Written in an inspired Q&A format, this book really is “No-Nonsense,” which, of course, to the Buddhist means, “It makes all the sense in the world.” I am a proud-to-be-an-American Buddhist philosopher who lived in China for almost a decade. Which means, essentially, that I study the teachings of the Buddha, including the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path. I don’t, however, meditate, although I do contemplate. And there is a difference. The point is that whatever you’ve heard about Buddhism is probably both right and wrong. The teachings of the Buddha are so straightforward (notice I didn’t say simple) as to be very difficult to communicate. And, as such, they can take many forms, as evidenced by the large number of Buddhist sects in existence today. Noah Rasheta, however, does a better job than anyone else I’ve read at pulling it all together. And I perceive he is motivated to do so both because he cares and he appreciates that this lack of discrete definability is precisely what many sufferers in the West need, but which prevents them from finding relief. The language of Buddhism can be difficult, in part, because there are so many exotic terms used in its ancient teachings. But these terms are not exotic so much as they are merely unfamiliar and I suggest you largely ignore them. And Mr. Rasheta will help. He doesn’t ignore them but he does marginalize their importance for native English speakers. I like to explain how by using the example of an old tree sitting high up in a mountainous meadow. The tree is real. I can touch it. I can smell it. I can hear the rustle of its leaves. I could even cut it down if I wanted. I can’t, however, “know” the tree. The tree is a product of the things within itself but it is also the product of the climate, the altitude, the soil, the trees and vegetation around it, and an infinite variety of other variables that contribute to defining that tree, and all of which are constantly changing. I can only know that everything is interconnected; to know the tree is impossible, but the tree is real. Buddhists talk a lot about suffering. And there is plenty of suffering in the world today. But like the tree, we cannot truly know suffering unless we embrace the arrogance that would allow us to think we can truly know it. We all suffer but there is no reason to truly embrace it. And as soon as you don’t, whether it’s in meditation or reading a very good book like this one, you can hold that suffering at a distance. And in its isolation it will dissipate. Buy this book, read it through, and put it on your shelf to read it again. The writing is simple and clear and full of simple wisdom that you can reach out and touch.