Buddhism: The Religion of No-Religion

By Alan W. Watts and Mark Watts

Book Overview

"Although Alan Watts' famous voice and happy laughter are missing now, his penetrating vision of Buddhism remains, and his lectures become brilliant prose in book form." --Publishers Weekly

Buddhism: The Religion of No-Religion presents six powerful essays by Alan Watts, the guru for an entire generation of 20th century thinkers, writers and poets. Watts was an engaging speaker and an icon of America's Beat and Counterculture movements. His friends included Aldous Huxley, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, John Cage and Joseph Campbell.

In this book, Watts explores all aspects of Buddhism--from its roots in ancient India to the explosion of interest in Zen and Tibetan Buddhist thought in the West.

The fascinating topics covered in this book include:
Finding a Middle Way: How a spiritual path to awakening is formed not just by avoiding extreme indulgence but extreme denial as wellThe Religion of No-Religion: How Buddhism eschews any particular dogma and instead acts as a guide to understanding oneselfBuddhism as Dialogue: How Zen teaches us that we are one with the world and so as we learn to navigate the world, we must also learn about ourselves
Watts traces the early beginnings of Buddhism, outlines the differences between Buddhism and other religions, and reviews the Four Noble Truths and The Eightfold Path. Buddhism: The Religion of No-Religion is a valuable reminder of the peace to be found by looking inward.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0804856087
• ISBN13: 9780804856089
• Release Date: June 2024
• Publisher: Tuttle Publishing
• Length: 128 Pages
• Weight: 0.37 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.1" x 7.7"

Customer Reviews

Buddhism without Buddhism

Watts was great about overlooking "religion" to get the essence of something's metaphysics. This offers a portrait of Buddhism without it's overtly religious aspects.

perfect

Well i just recommend all of the works of Alan watts, he is realy the nummber 1 in modern philosophy and extremly good with words, that makes him very easy to undersatnd.

Buddhism clarified

This is a collection of Watts' recorded lectures in which he lays bare with lucid description the most difficult Buddhist concepts.

Best Introduction to Buddhism Out There

Transcribed from recordings of lectures by Alan Watts, this book contains the most dynamic and comprehensive introduction to Buddhism I have yet to read. I have plenty of books that try too hard to attack the novice readers with multiple Zen riddles and the "complexities that are not complex." By the time the curious readers get to the third chapter of such books, a fascinating subject dwindles away. Not so with this book. The credit goes to both Alan Watts ---for his smooth and concise lectures--- and the person/people who edited the transcripts. The result is 98 pages of a keen and precise overview of Zen Buddhism, where concepts of "The Religion of No-Religion" and "The Middle Way" are easily accessible to readers who are going into the subject matter knowing nothing. I especially liked the way Watts explains how the concept "The Cause of Suffering is Desire" is often misunderstood, emphasizing that when translated into English, "desire" might better be represented with words like "craving, clinging, or grasping." He then does an excellent narrative into the paradox of students trying to eliminate "desire" from their existence, only to learn they are still desiring something: not to desire. Watts walks the reader through these way-out riddles in a way few people can. I would go as far to recommend this work above Alan Watts' better known "The Way of Zen" if this is your first venture into Buddhism. After reading this book, "The Way of Zen" is a great follow-up, and the other complex introductions to Zen Buddhism will begin to make more sense. Nothing esoteric here, just straight talk on Buddhism.

The Best (Most Practical) Book I Have Ever Read!

This book explains PLAINLY and SIMPLY what exactly Buddhism actually is. It benefits the reader immediately. No wonder he is the "Master of Communication."While reading this book, studying the "Concepts of Buddhism", they began to settle in my mind, coming through in my meditation. Without the "Concepts", meditation seems like autohypnosis. With these ideas from the Awakened One, meditation starts to have a lasting effect. I have had days of Nirvana without a thought in my head! I did feel as if there were no difference between myself and another. The time passed as if it were a dream. Silence. What a change from the noise that used ot go on. I owe it to Alan Watts. What an amazing man!Used in conjunction with Alan Watts' audio cassette, "Alan Watts Teaches Meditation", this is the most practical and effective book I have ever read!WOW!