DJ Strouse

My Goodreads Rating: 2 of 5 stars

Reading this book was a bit like listening to my grandpa rant about LBJ’s foreign policy decisions – he’s probably right, but without the background to appreciate his frustrations, all I can do is listen and squirm awkwardly in my chair.

Batchelor’s book is a polemic against the modern transformation of Buddhism into something as dogmatic and unquestioning as Western religions. He points out that Buddhism is a personal practice of continual awareness and questioning, not a set of beliefs, commitments, or rituals. His insights into Buddhist practices were thought-provoking but being a man of science (and therefore atheist, culturally bankrupt, anti-humanities of course), I didn’t have the religious or historical background to appreciate many of his complaints about the disfigurement of Buddhism.

This short book is meant to be read slowly. Each chapter offers ideas worth taking the time to reflect upon and some also suggest particular meditations. Unfortunately, I was borrowing this from a friend at university and had to power through it in two evenings before leaving for the summer.

I likely won’t return to this book again though, because my interests in Buddhism are related to cultivating continual awareness, not in defending it against a deplorable watering down for the masses.

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