Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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28 of 29 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
This is the best introduction to Buddhism I've ever found., 19 Sep 1997
By A Customer
I CANNOT RECOMMEND THIS BOOK HIGHLY ENOUGH!
For those new to Buddhism, this slim volume is the best concise, non-sectarian, comprehensive introduction I've found in twenty years.
Answers the "basic" questions about such topics as: morality, training the mind in concentration, "what causes unhappiness?", "what is Mindfulness meditation?", "how can it help me?". No history or cultural baggage, just the fundamentals.
- I literally buy this book in volume quantities several times a year so I can give it away to people who are curious about Buddhism!
(For more detailed info on meditation theory and instruction, I highly recommend "Mindfulness in Plain English" by Venerable Henepola Gunaratana).
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
To Talk About the Book, You Have to First Talk About the 10-Day Course, 5 Jun 2007
First, a very wee bit about me: before learning the meditation technique taught by the Indian-Burmese meditation master S. N. Goenka, I'd practiced in other traditions for more than 15 years and completed many long retreats. Initially, I only attended a Goenka course because the 10-day retreat was offered for free (I'm a frugal sort of guy). But I left with a priceless gift, convinced this type of meditation truly works better than other kinds.
To call it a "Goenka course" is actually a little misleading since it suggests that Goenka invented this type of meditation. He didn't. He learned it in Burma, where it is believed that over the millennia Burmese monks and meditation teachers have preserved the exact method the Buddha himself used. Whether or not this meditation technique is truly the Buddha's original practice, doesn't really matter much; once you try it, it is so powerful, you're likely to see how this approach can truly free us from negativity.
Spread almost solely through word of mouth, Goenka's courses are now offered on every inhabitable continent on the globe. According to the independent Buddhist magazine Buddhadharma, each year an estimated 100,000 people take a Goenka course. This means he has probably taught more people Buddhist meditation than anyone in history--including the Buddha himself! (Admittedly, the comparison is a bit silly since the Buddha wasn't able to offer retreats via audio and videotape.)
It's worth noting, that although a layman, Mr Goenka, who is independently wealthy, has never made any money from teaching Buddhism. As already noted, his famous ten-day meditation courses are offered for free. After finishing a course, students may give a donation (to the nonprofit foundation that takes care of the expenses of running a meditation center), but contributions are totally voluntary and there is never any pressure to give.
Goenkaji, as his students call him, has a beautiful voice, a delightful accent, a grandfatherly warmth, and a terrific sense of humor. These qualities work well to balance his passion and seriousness of purpose. During a course, he gives a clear and accessible framework for understanding Buddhism and how to do this type of meditation. Through collaboration with the assistant teacher Bill Hart, The Art of Living faithfully presents Goenka's teachings from his 10-day course--minus the meditation instructions and, naturally, the sound of his lyrical voice.
The book's strength's are those of Mr. Goenka's: clarity and accessibility. Most of his explanations are illustrated with a traditional Buddhist parable or with a story from his extensive teaching experiences. The book's weakness is that Mr. Goenka's charisma is diminished in print. Like any great teacher or storyteller, the book can't recreate his uncanny sense of timing and his animated voices. Perhaps this weakness isn't apparent to those who read the book before taking a course (I took a course before reading the book). Calling this a "weakness," though, is not to dis' The Art of Living, which is a valuable resource in its own right. It is helpful to have Mr. Goenka's presentation written down and the book includes some Q & A not presented during a course (Mr. Goenka, who was born in 1924, and now has compromised health has retired from active teaching).
The Art of Living is generally read by two types: someone who has recently finished a ten-day Goenka retreat or by someone considering taking a course. For the first group or "old students", the book is a great refresher and offers details you may have missed on the video or audio tape. For the total newcomer, there is a minor dilemma: is it best to know what to expect before you go or to go fresh so you get the full impact of his words when you hear them "live." Since I took my first course before reading the book and had a powerful experience, that's what I'd recommend. But if you haven't made up your mind that you're definitely going to a course and you want more info, then by all means read the book first. The important thing is to get yourself to a course (yes, I know 10-days is a long time-except if you try to remember what you did over the last week and a half and it seems to have gone by in a flash).
If I could be immodest for a moment, the book I wrote--Beyond the Breath: Extraordinary Mindfulness Through Full-Body Vipassana Meditation (Tuttle Publishing)--is also likely to be of interest to anyone who has taken a Goenka course or who is considering taking one (and it is also likely to be of interest to anyone interested in meditation or Buddhism). While the book stands on it's own, in many ways it complements The Art of Living. To help explain why this meditation method works so well, Beyond the Breath is much more apt to refer to scientific research than a traditional parable. For instance, Beyond the Breath explains why Goenka and the Buddha's advice to live a moral life makes so much sense based on what we now know about evolutionary psychology; it also explains the essence of Buddhist practice on an easily understood biochemical basis. So while The Art of Living offers wonderful stories and great homespun analogies that make good common sense, Beyond the Breath, will be especially helpful for those who want to know WHY this method (and Buddhist practice in general) works so well. Such insight isn't just an intellectual exercise; greater understanding leads to greater confidence in actually doing the practice.
But whether or not you read either book, I encourage you to take a course. If you want to check out more about Goenka's organization and courses, go to www[dot]dhamma[dot]org.
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12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
a modern classic exposition of an ancient technique, 18 Feb 1998
By A Customer
This meditation can free you from migraine, as the teacher S.N. Goenka's own experience proves the happiness one may benefit from the meditation practise. It encourages you to attend a practical 10 day course which is well organised and charges no amount from the student. A spirit motivated by conviction in dhamma and an international academy in bombay establishes itself to be a professional body in offering courses in vipassana and dhamma. If one visits the main centre in bombay, one can meet the principal teacher S.N. Goenka and see that his work is really commentable. One can sense his compassion and sincerity in his efforts to help people, and you can feel immeasurable happiness in seeing how he helps immates , prisoners who suffers so much mental agony by introducing meditation and how they are transformed after the noble dhamma is taught and practised. They return to society to become good people The art of living mindfully, by focusing on one's breathing and comtemplation of feeling are just some of the foundation of mindfulness so much exphasized in ancient buddhist texts. It is not a book written to just impress the general reader of any of its organised theory, but one of direct experience and aim at to encourage practical aspects of meditation. This book has no sectarism and it brings you to realise the nature of your own physical and mental structure, by observing ones bodily sensations. It is said that one can understand the emotional aspects of human and attain wisdom and compassion when one penetrates the true nature of ones aggregates, through mindful introspection . For example, a meditator contemplating of the sensations of his body experiences pain, happy and neutral sensations. In understanding this, he realises all beings by nature experience this and would not cause pain to any beings, such as pouring hot water to a rat or beating animals, hurting people etc. Finally, in the world of today, this book introduces one to its courses which teaches the practise of loving kindness meditation, such more in need of demand in midst of the samsaric conditionings of the world such as war, poverity and disaster, may all beings practise insight meditation and reach to true happiness, true liberation. May you read this book and attend a 10 days course taught by s.n. goenka or his assistants and derive benefit. Your in the truth Asoka lai hoe peng singapore feb 1998
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