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9 votes
Accepted

I would like to become Buddhist

I've heard that they don't believe in any god. It depends on what you mean by God. Buddhism does not have the concept of a almighty, creator (deism), sustainer, creator plus sustainer (theism), ...
Suminda Sirinath S. Dharmasena's user avatar
7 votes

I would like to become Buddhist

You don't believe in any God. Ok. You don't believe in rituals. Ok. Very likely you already don't. So why Buddhism? I'd like to make an important point here stating that Buddhism is anything but a ...
esh's user avatar
  • 2,234
6 votes

Accurate translation of "Satipatthana Sutta"

In my opinion, one of the best translations is the one in Analayo Bhikhu's "Satipatthana: The Direct Path to Realization". see https://www.buddhismuskunde.uni-hamburg.de/pdf/5-personen/analayo/direct-...
Andriy Volkov's user avatar
  • 58.3k
4 votes
Accepted

Is there any authenticity to the book 'The Deathbed Sutra of the Buddha: Or Siddhartha's Regrets'?

I'm the author of the Deathbed Sutra, so I can assure you that it's fiction. It was intended as a work of philosophical fiction which examines some problematic aspects of the Buddha's teachings in ...
gcadams1's user avatar
4 votes

Accurate translation of "Satipatthana Sutta"

If you are looking to most accurate and reliable the best translations are by Piya Tan: Mahasatipatthana Mahasatipatthana Trilinear Edition An Introduction to the Satipatthana Suttas Satipatthana ...
Suminda Sirinath S. Dharmasena's user avatar
4 votes

I would like to become Buddhist

You don't need to join any community to become a buddhist. You can start by taking five precepts. To abstain from evil (Sila - Morality) To do good (Samadhi - Concentration) To purify the ...
4 votes
Accepted

Interpretation of Siddhartha by Herman Hesse

The paper titled "Between reverence and revolt: Hesse and the two faces of religion" suggests that Hesse was primarily a (Christian) Protestant. It says for example that in his 1921 diary he wrote: ...
ChrisW's user avatar
  • 46.3k
4 votes

A beginner facing Culadasa

"If you meet the Buddha on the road, kill him." Err... not literally... The point of this quip is that attachment to a teacher is itself something that must be overcome. Even if you are lucky enough ...
Ted Wrigley's user avatar
  • 5,015
4 votes

Seeking a specific book on Buddhism

Did some googling. The Buddha Way by Harper San Francisco https://www.thriftbooks.com/w/the-buddha-waya-folding-screen-book_harper-san-francisco/2596039/item/13174882/#isbn=0062511394&idiq=...
Danny's user avatar
  • 395
4 votes
Accepted

Seeking a specific book on Buddhism

My best guess: What the Buddha Taught, by Walpola Rahula. It's early enough (published in '59, and revised in '74), and is widely respected as an introductory text. If I were going to put something in ...
Ted Wrigley's user avatar
  • 5,015
4 votes
Accepted

Is there a compendium of enlightenment stories (about Arhats and/or Bodhisattvas)?

Yes. For the Theravada tradition's stories of the elder monks and nuns, please see the following books of the Khuddaka Nikaya (the minor collection): Theragatha (Verses of the Elder Monks) or here ...
ruben2020's user avatar
  • 37.4k
3 votes

Interpretation of Siddhartha by Herman Hesse

Siddhartha asks Govinda to kiss him on the forehead. As he does so, for Govinda "a certain contempt for his friends's words conflicted with a tremendous love...for him ." Govinda then goes through a ...
Swapnil's user avatar
  • 2,174
3 votes

What is the best introductory (but comprehensive) book on SECULAR Buddhism?

I would then recommend reading the Suttas at www.accesstoinsight.org .
3 votes

What is Nirodha?

I think it's originally from the Visuddhimagga It's used before that, e.g. in the first sutta, it's in the definition of the third noble truth: Idaṃ kho pana, bhikkhave, dukkha·nirodhaṃ ariya·...
ChrisW's user avatar
  • 46.3k
3 votes

Where to get the Pali Canon in Pali?

Digital Pāli Reader provides two editions of the Pāli Canon: one from Myanmar and one from Thailand. This is the best Pāli reader that I've come across. It can recognise inflected words and analyse ...
michau's user avatar
  • 2,710
3 votes

Where to get the genuine e-book on "Jataka Tales" in English?

See: The Jataka by Robert Chalmers ed. E.B. Cowell in www.sacred-texts.com. The index is found here.
Suminda Sirinath S. Dharmasena's user avatar
3 votes
Accepted

Which is a good book to read about history of Buddhism?

Buddhism: Its History and Literature, by T.W. Rhys Davids Buddhist India, by T.W. Rhys Davids Early Buddhist Monachism (600 B.C. - 100 B.C.), by Sukumar Dutt History of Buddhism in Ceylon: The ...
Suminda Sirinath S. Dharmasena's user avatar
3 votes

Pro's and cons of Buddhist books

I think there is no perfect formula for a book. Different approaches apply to different target audiences for different objectives. Even some of Ajahn Brahm's non-technical books of humor and ...
ruben2020's user avatar
  • 37.4k
3 votes

Help writing a Buddhist book?

I have written two books on Buddhism, as you already know. I will help you write your book for free. I self-published my books through FriesenPress who provided excellent editing services and cost ...
Ronald Cowen's user avatar
3 votes

Feeling a strong connection to Buddhism, but feeling lost on how to continue forwards

I will address a couple of things - but leave the journey to you. Kelsang Gyatso was trained in the Gelugpa, which itself is a major school of of Buddhism from Tibet. All Tibetan Buddhism is Mahayana....
Konchog's user avatar
  • 610
2 votes

To what extent is Theravāda followed in Japan?

Check this book: The Life of Nyanatiloka Thera: The Biography of a Western Buddhist Pioneer. He was in Japan in the 1920s. There were apparently two Theravadan Monks at that time.
sandeepani's user avatar
2 votes

What is Nirodha?

Extract from - The Teaching of No Person: Only Dhātus by Ajahn Buddhadāsa Interpreted into English by Santikaro Bhikkhu A Dhamma talk given at Suan Mokkh on 4 August 1991 So we can say that there is ...
terry's user avatar
  • 21
2 votes

What is Nirodha?

Nirodha is the cessation of feeling and perceptions. The first Nirodha people will experience is when they first realized the way, in a split second everything stops and they will see the links of ...
LomX's user avatar
  • 399
2 votes

Looking for a book that covers the biography of the Buddha's life

There are many books on this topic, my favorite one is "Gotama Buddha: A Biography Based on the Most Reliable Texts" by Hajime Nakamura. It is based on a very thorough, I would even say fanatical, ...
Andriy Volkov's user avatar
  • 58.3k

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