3.92 · Rating details · 169 ratings · 27 reviews
An essential collection of Stephen Batchelor’s most probing and important work on secular Buddhism
As the practice of mindfulness permeates mainstream Western culture, more and more people are engaging in a traditional form of Buddhist meditation. However, many of these people have little interest in the religious aspects of Buddhism, and the practice occurs within secular contexts such as hospitals, schools, and the workplace. Is it possible to recover from the Buddhist teachings a vision of human flourishing that is secular rather than religious without compromising the integrity of the tradition? Is there an ethical framework that can underpin and contextualize these practices in a rapidly changing world?
In this collected volume of Stephen Batchelor’s writings on these themes, the author explores the complex implications of Buddhism’s secularization. Ranging widely—from reincarnation, religious belief, and agnosticism to the role of the arts in Buddhist practice—he offers a detailed picture of contemporary Buddhism and its attempt to find a voice in the modern world. (less)
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Shelley Schanfield
Oct 11, 2017Shelley Schanfield rated it it was amazing
Batchelor continues his exploration from other books (Buddhism without beliefs and Confession of a Buddhist atheist) on how to make the ancient system of Buddhist thought practical in the modern world. He is skilled at whittling the Buddha's teachings down to their essence and removing the 'religiosity' that sometimes obscures its utter usefulness.
In earlier books, he documents his doubts about teachings on karma and rebirth in the Tibetan and Korean monastic traditions. He touches on them here only to say that despite his doubts, he found Buddhist practices such as generosity, tolerance, compassion, and so forth, were not only compatible with his "post-modern secular worldview" but enhanced it.
A favorite quote that resonates with my own insights during meditation:
"Meditation on impermanence, suffering and no-self, for example, did not—as the Buddha insisted it would —lead me to disenchantment, dispassion, and a resolve not to be born again but to an ever -deepening awareness of life's infinitely poignant beauty..." (p. 157) (less)
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Albert
May 06, 2017Albert added it
Shelves: library-borrow
Batchelor's essays were just the tonic I needed at this juncture in what was becoming a somewhat lapsing practice. I think his notion that study can be a sustaining palliative to sitting is something I needed to hear, and his framing from the perspective of western culture clarifies some subtleties I might have missed or forgotten along the way.
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Lachlan
Jan 12, 2019Lachlan rated it really liked it
While I was perhaps a little disappointed by the brevity of this collection (~250 pages) it was wonderful to see Batchelor develop his secular vision of the Dhamma, and engaging to follow his interests and influences through interviews and research.
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Stephen
Apr 10, 2018Stephen rated it it was ok
I loved his essay on Buddhism 2.0. The title seems to imply a disregard or need to cast off some of the current/past forms of Buddhism but his approach was not that, merely he suggests a framework for a secular Buddhism.
His insight in that essay is looking at the four noble truths from the traditional:
1. Existence is suffering.
2. The origin of suffering is craving.
3. The cessation of suffering is nirvana.
4. The noble eightfold path is the way that leads to the cessation of suffering
to something like
1. Embrace suffering, i.e., experience it fully
2. Let go of the grasping/craving that arises in an attempt to overcome suffering
3. Stop reacting to suffering
4. Act unconditioned by reactivity (by following the eightfold path)
There is more in that essay as well, and it is excellent.
The rest of the essays and interviews seemed uneven and though it was a series of essays and interviews, I didn't follow a thematic thread. I like Batchelor a lot and recommend maybe Buddhism Without Beliefs if you are new to him. This would be a better book later, and allow the reader to skip around to topics of interest (which he does not recommend in the intro). (less)
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Yolanda Blanch Ruiz
Jun 22, 2017Yolanda Blanch Ruiz rated it it was amazing
Shelves: must-read
A must read for anyone interested in a buddhism without religion!!! A masterpiece of thought imho!!!!
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Shelli
Jun 02, 2017Shelli rated it liked it
Recommends it for: Buddhists only
Shelves: nonfiction, dharma-and-general-buddhism, netgalley, to-review-or-comment, checkouts-library
Review to follow.
I received an advance electronic copy of this book via NetGalley, courtesy of publisher Yale University Press, in exchange for my honest feedback and review.
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Alex Jehu
Dec 18, 2019Alex Jehu added it
6 notes & 45 highlights
It was great to read this book by Stephen Batchelor as it highlighted to me the dynamics of translating from one language into another, and the difficulties in doing this; namely in relation to capturing the full essence/meaning of a word originally written in Pali or Sanskrit. It has really made me respect the fact that 'all translation is interpretation'. I suppose Batchelor uses this reasoning (amongst others) to justify his presented version of a secular Buddhism which reconfigures the Four Truths for the Nobel and the Eightfold Path.
A rewarding aspect of reading this book was his explanation for agnosticism towards certain ideas found within Buddhism, namely reincarnation. I feel that I was committing to an 'either or' before, but now having understood the agnostic position, and how it can help one focus more on practicing Buddhist methods (namely mindfulness), I am more comfortable in loosening my grip on what reincarnation. This has brought me some relief though I sometimes have to remind myself of the agnostic attitude and that it doesn't mean I can't hope that something is true. I guess belief is faith whilst knowing is experience.
I found the later part of the book, where Batchelor goes into detail about his collage art interesting but at times felt like he should perhaps write a separate whole other book on the topic given his very apparent enthusiasm. Nevertheless, I resonated with his art in that I often like to pay attention to objects that I think the world completely overlooks. It does feel like a gift sometimes, perhaps this is because you feel like you're the only one who is doing the act of paying attention. Like being the only person on top of Everest, no one else in the entire world has your perspective in the moment you're up there. But come to think of it, we have these moments everyday without any deliberate effort I think.
I understand that Batchelors desire is to present Buddhism as a practice above anything else, and to inform people that the reincarnation ideas were a product of the time the Buddha was in and the world in which he grew up. (less)
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Bohdan Pechenyak
Jun 30, 2020Bohdan Pechenyak rated it it was amazing
Shelves: philosophy, psychology, spirituality-religion
A fascinatingly relatable, for me personally, and wonderfully fresh synthesis by Stephen Batchelor, building on his previous efforts to formulate a “secular Buddhist” approach to practice and living. An attempt to modernise Buddhism, to adapt it to the challenges and needs of contemporary Western society, and, in so doing, to go back to the basic, stripped-down teachings of the Buddha. A collection of essays and articles written earlier plus several new chapters, this book examines how life, art, and meditation practices all fit seamlessly together into something he calls “Buddhism 2.0”.
Some key themes include the story of Nanavira Thera and his life in the Sri Lankan jungle, immersed in translating and adapting Buddhist texts into English; Buddhist agnosticism and it’s limits; what a mindful nation might look like; discussions of what comes “after Buddhism” - secular Buddhism? Buddhism 2.0? Something else entirely?; and how art and imagination are similar with and different from meditation practices; closing the book on the consideration of an “aesthetics of emptiness”. (less)
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Jeffrey
Jul 21, 2018Jeffrey rated it really liked it
I came into this book expecting some sort of wishy-washy, watered down form of Buddhism. This book is certainly not that. Batchelor's project here is similar to Bultmann's demythologization of Christianity. He seeks to liberate the Buddha's teaching from ancient Indian soteriology, to find the underlying "kerygma" of the Buddha. Unlike Bultmann, Batchelor's deconstruction leaves him with a functioning, valuable and reverent approach to Buddhism. One which does not reject the four Noble Truths, Conditioned Arising or the Pali Canon.
I was also pleased to find that Batchelor railed against the Western Buddhist tendency to focus on practice and reject study. Batchelor emphasizes the necessity of studying the Pali Canon, and Buddhist Philosophy. Batchelor is a scholar, and he does not fall into the trap of sentimentalism.
While I am not a Buddhist, I found this to be a great read. (less)
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Kevin
Apr 25, 2018Kevin rated it really liked it · review of another edition
I think I won’t finish this. It’s fascinating, and I learned a lot about what a secular Buddhism might look like, and I like it. I’m very attracted to Buddhism. But I’ve lived my entire life in a Christian world. I think it will be more fruitful for me to begin working on what my version of a secular Christianity might look like, rather than try to jump ship to an entirely foreign practice system. I will find a way to incorporate mindfulness work into my secular Christianity, though, for sure. Maybe it will be my version of prayer? Anyone have any suggestions on where I might start reading about secular Christianity? Or maybe it’s for me to construct for myself. Weirdly, Quakerism probably comes close, especially those Quakers who do not consider themselves Christian. But right now, I’m in a position in which it’s not possible for me to attend Meeting. 😣 (less)
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Kevin Maness
May 11, 2018Kevin Maness rated it really liked it
Didn’t actually read the whole thing, but I did find it helpful. After a while, I started to realize that, as much as I admire Buddhism, I’ve grown up Christian, and that’s my culture, more or less. Although I’ve become increasingly secular in my understanding, I still appreciate the core values of Christianity and know that they have shaped my own defining values. I also realized the obvious: that my current placement in Quakerism is ideal because it freely borrows from the practices of Buddhism while being based in Christian mythology. It’s my ideal spiritual home. If only I could attend Meeting for Worship! (less)
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Annette
Aug 04, 2018Annette rated it it was amazing · review of another edition
An interesting perspective
I found much to contemplate within this book. I've never considered myself a student of any particular flavor of Buddhism because there was always one thing or another about them that didn't make sense in the worldview of my western upbringing. Mr. Bachelor has convinced me that I'm not alone. I don't particularly like the term Buddhism 2.0, but I do like his argument for change.
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Dave
Feb 17, 2020Dave rated it liked it
I enjoy all of Batchelor's work, but this read more like a collection of unrelated essays than a coherent vision about the author's journey first into Buddhism and then into a secular version of it. That said, it was worthwhile to witness aspects of that journey in the individual essays, but I would only recommend this to someone who has already read and deeply enjoyed Batchelor's other work on secular Buddhism.
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Kristin Topping
Jul 13, 2020Kristin Topping rated it really liked it
Overall a good read. You can feel the authors struggle to reconcile his desire for communal, spiritually-based living and his non-belief of several key tenets of the traditional Buddhist faith (namely, reincarnation, karma and the attainment of enlightenment) from start to finish. Secular Buddhism is the way the west will be won - mindfulness through a science-based reality, and an encoded philosophy, ethics and values that has enduring for decades
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Paul
Sep 15, 2018Paul rated it liked it
Shelves: buddhism, religion
Selected writings by a man who is interested in helping to define a new "Western" approach to Buddhism. He's serious, knowledgeable, and writes well, but some of his ideas give this Buddhist pause; I think there may be quite a bit of baby in the bathwater he wants to throw out. The collection ranges over a wide field and is not really unified around a single theme.
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Chula Watugala
Apr 04, 2019Chula Watugala rated it it was ok
Shelves: buddhism
At one point, the author admits he cherry-picks from the Pali Canon and that is fair criticism. The problem isn't just that, it's that he misinterprets even the suttas he does pick. I appreciate anyone trying to understand the early Buddhist texts, but what he does here is intellectually dishonest.
+1 star for the Nanavira essay that has some good original research behind it.
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Charlotte
Sep 01, 2018Charlotte rated it liked it
Interesting collection of essays representing Stephen Batchelor's philosophical journey from traditional Buddhist practice (he trained as a monk for many years) to a form of secular Buddhist practice.
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Clayton
May 27, 2018Clayton rated it really liked it · review of another edition
Good compendium, but not the place to start
I found almost all of these essays illuminating, but I don’t think this book is the place to go to understand Batchelor’s interpretation of Buddhist thought.
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Edward Taylor
Aug 07, 2019Edward Taylor rated it it was amazing
Shelves: psychology, philosophy
Stephen Batchelor has always gotten my attention with his clear, concise, and human explanations of what Buddism is (a philosophy) and what it is not (a religion) (less)
