Philosophies of Asia (H)

by Alan W. Watts

Book Overview

Featuring the edited transcripts of eight talks delivered by Alan Watts from 1965 to 1972, The Philosophies of Asia offers an overview of the major traditions of Eastern thought. Watts addresses the... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0804830517
• ISBN13: 9780804830515
• Release Date: January 1995
• Publisher: Tuttle Publishing
• Length: 106 Pages
• Weight: 0.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.0" x 8.8"

Customer Reviews

Includes a conscise and splendid introduction to Buddhism

There are seven lectures delivered by Alan Watts in this book put together by his son Mark Watts and published in 1995. One is on the relevance of oriental philosophy, one is on the mythology of Hinduism, a couple are on Zen, one is on jnana yoga, which Watts calls "intellectual yoga," one is an introduction to Buddhism, and the seventh is on Taoism. Since Alan Watts died in 1973 his stature as an expert on Eastern religion and philosophy has only grown, partly because of the reprinting of many of his books including "The Way of Zen," "Tao: The Watercourse Way," "Nature, Man and Woman." and others, and party because the memory many people have of hearing him speak. What is particularly attractive about this little tome is the clear sense of the voice of Watts that comes through and the concise manner in which he reveals the scope and intent of the major religious philosophies of Asia, including Taoism, Hinduism, yoga, Buddhism, Zen Buddhism and even some Confucianism. The religions are called philosophies in the title, but it's one and the same because in the East there is little distinction between philosophy and religion. But Watts is more than an expert on Eastern religions. He devoted part of his life to the study of Western philosophy and science so that he would have a greater context in which to view the Eastern ways of life so dear to his heart. And of course Watts was the kind of man people relate to and was deeply loved and is sorely missed. He had a style that cut through the clutter and obtuseness of the subject matter and got to the pure essence within. Here are some examples: "...[T]he stomach's point of view is that the brain is the servant of the stomach to help it scrounge around for food." (p. 7) "...[S]o a great university library is very often a place where people bury themselves and write books about the books that are in there. They write books about books about books and the library swells, and it is like an enormous mass of yeast rising and rising, and that is all that is going on." (p. 63) "You will find constantly...--in psychoanalysis, in Gestalt therapy, in sensitivity training, in any kind of yoga or what have you--that there will be that funny sensation of what I will call 'spiritual greed' that can be aroused by somebody indicating to you, 'Mmmm, there are still higher stages for you to attain. You should meet my guru.'" (p. 70) If you study Eastern religions for any length of time it becomes clear that there are great similarities between the various approaches. "Zen" comes from "ch'an" in China and ch'an from "dhyana" in India, all three words meaning approximately the same thing: "meditation." In the Tao it is written: "To know yet to think that one does not know is best; Not to know yet to think that one knows will lead to difficulty." Watts points to the striking similarity of these words from the Kena Upanishad of Hinduism: "If you think that you know Braham, you do not know him. But if you

These lectures more or less changed my life

I first stumbled upon Watts lectures several years ago, and he is by far one of the best interpreters of Eastern thought. Watts has a gift for lecturing, and his intellect and wit are brilliant. My knowledge of Eastern philosophy was limited before I began listening to these lectures, but I did not have any problem comprehending the lectures, even though I listened to each tape several times to let everything truly sink in. Changed the way I think about everyday life!