Buddhism Without Beliefs: A Contemporary Guide to Awakening

Clear, insightful, and well written. A must read for any rational human in search of a comprehensive set of values that does not depend on a leap of faith.

I am so fascinated by the negative reviews of this book. One camp says there was too much Buddhism in it, which is an absurd objection, considering the title. If you didn't want to read a book that had *anything* to do with Buddhism, then this was a poor reading selection and your review shouldn't reflect your stupidity. The other negative camp says Batchelor irreverently strips the substance out of Buddhism, leaving us with his own watered-down version of a spiritual tradition. And while I disagree with this assertion as well, it is at least something logical enough to work with. Prior to reading this book, I always instinctively self-identified as an agnostic, with perhaps a curious interest in Buddhism. I am a psychologist by trade, and therefore a kind of scientist, and I prefer to interact with my environment from the perspective of using the scientific method to filter out things that are not true and clarify things that are slightly less true. I will spare you any unnecessary details about my personal journey from a theistic religion to a kind of nontheistic, optimistic, humanist, agnosticism. I will, however, point out the work of Dr. James Fowler, a kind of hybrid psychologist-theologian, who wrote extensively during his career about the stages of faith, the faith-identity triad, as it parallels to the stages of human development. This is relevant to this book because he outlines six stages of the way a person interacts with faith, and faith here is not necessarily meaning "a religion" or faith in unproven things, but rather the sort of cohesive structure with which each and every person uniquely views the universe and its meaning. Bear with me, this is relevant. As a person progresses along their life, they will evolve along certain relatively predictable stages of personal development. Of course these aren't ranks, or a kind of leveling system like in a video game. The person *has* to integrate certain things in order to move to different ways of integration and this can't be forced, or even taught, but it can be guided. Anyway, how a person interacts with their religious beliefs, or their "faith" in Fowler's sense, is directly related to this stage of personal development. Below is a brief list of the Stages of Faith, and they loosely correspond with age, however a 65 year old person could very easily be a Stage 3. *** The Stages of Faith: Stage 0 - "Primal or Undifferentiated" faith (birth to 2 years), is characterized by an early learning of the safety of their environment (i.e. warm, safe and secure vs. hurt, neglect and abuse). If consistent nurture is experienced, one will develop a sense of trust and safety about the universe and the divine. Conversely, negative experiences will cause one to develop distrust with the universe and the divine. Transition to the next stage begins with integration of thought and languages which facilitates the use of symbols in speech and play. Stage 1 - "Intuitive-Projective" faith (ages of three to seven), is characterized by the psyche's unprotected exposure to the Unconscious, and marked by a relative fluidity of thought patterns. Religion is learned mainly through experiences, stories, images, and the people that one comes in contact with. Stage 2 - "Mythic-Literal" faith (mostly in school children), stage two persons have a strong belief in the justice and reciprocity of the universe, and their deities are almost always anthropomorphic. During this time metaphors and symbolic language are often misunderstood and are taken literally. Stage 3 - "Synthetic-Conventional" faith (arising in adolescence; aged 12 to adulthood) characterized by conformity to religious authority and the development of a personal identity. Any conflicts with one's beliefs are ignored at this stage due to the fear of threat from inconsistencies. Stage 4 - "Individuative-Reflective" faith (usually mid-twenties to late thirties) a stage of angst and struggle. The individual takes personal responsibility for his or her beliefs and feelings. As one is able to reflect on one's own beliefs, there is an openness to a new complexity of faith, but this also increases the awareness of conflicts in one's belief. Stage 5 - "Conjunctive" faith (mid-life crisis) acknowledges paradox and transcendence relating reality behind the symbols of inherited systems. The individual resolves conflicts from previous stages by a complex understanding of a multidimensional, interdependent "truth" that cannot be explained by any particular statement. Stage 6 - "Universalizing" faith, or what some might call "enlightenment." The individual would treat any person with compassion as he or she views people as from a universal community, and should be treated with universal principles of love and justice. *** The reason why this is relevant to this book, and the negative reviews, is that people who find Batchelor to be a heretical Buddhist are roughly at a Stage 3 of personal development. We can all probably call to mind many such Stage 3 people of varying religions. Neither Gautama Buddha nor Batchelor can "force" anyone into their viewpoint (anymore than a psychologist can force someone into another stage of development), and when they read this work, they will most likely be offended, feeling the need to defend their faith-identity triad from a perceived threat. And this is a fairly normal response, to be honest. I'm not suggesting these people are "incorrect" either, but it's interesting to evaluate their defense of the organized religion of Buddhism in light of the understandings that Dr. Fowler contributed, and arguably, that Stephen Batchelor contributed with this work. In this sense I think that it is a wonderful thing that Buddhism has come to the United States, because we are many things, including being generally pragmatic and utilitarian. We are also influenced by the tradition of material realism and the scientific method, some more than others. This at times comes off to traditionalists as being irreverent or flippant, but it comes down to the burden of proof. What is the proof that reincarnation exists? Or that anyone's deity exists, including the deity of the major monotheistic faiths as well as the less acknowledged Buddhist deities... Kwan Yin, the Medicine Buddha, etc.? What is your evidence that karma is some intergalactic referee blowing the whistle and giving you a yellow card? Which is not to say that none of these things exist, but it is to say that we each have the responsibility to be present in our own lives, to be little objective scientists, questioning everything, and choosing to move beyond or remain ambiguous (until better evidence presents itself) about those things that are unproven or have been proven untrue. And this is what this book is about. Building yourself a light. Learning to question your existence with friendly curiosity, and not needing to be bound by the social control valves of religions.

Stephen Batchelor has studied in several different countries and Buddhist traditions, but he thinks there is a core of teaching that transcends both the religion and any dogma. "Buddhism Without Beliefs" outlines a spare but elegant way of life and looking at the world that invites humans of every kind into the fold. When Batchelor talks about being “without beliefs,” what he means is separating vital teaching from formal orthodoxy. In the case of Buddhism, he goes so far as to suggest that the notions of rebirth and karma (the idea that our actions influence the course of future lives) may do more harm than good, and that they should be left behind as relics of another time and culture. In place of such creeds, Batchelor focuses on what has always been the heart of Buddhist instruction: the four noble truths, or as he strikingly calls them, the four ennobling truths. These include the fact of our dis-ease with life—what has often been called “suffering” and what Batchelor refers to as “anguish”—followed by the fact of what causes anguish and the fact that there is a way to relieve anguish, and finally a path that allows us to realize and embody that relief. Batchelor also addresses emptiness, the teaching that all people and things are connected in an ultimate sense. "Buddhism Without Beliefs" reminds me of the book of James in the New Testament, in that it is intensely pragmatic, and unsparing in its view of our human faults. It is not, however, without hope; Batchelor is no more upset with his readers than is a doctor diagnosing an illness. Identifying the problem is simply the necessary first step to curing it. The key words in Batchelor’s vision of Buddhism are creativity and freedom. Through practice of the teachings of the Buddha, we seek to obtain freedom from anguish, which is to say, freedom from the wish that the world be other than the way it is. In this freedom, we find the ability to creatively reimagine our lives and produce novel expressions of compassion, among others. This book is short and stark; hardly a sentence in it is without import. (Notwithstanding some of Batchelor’s early fulminating against religious institutions, which goes on just a bit too long.) Many of Batchelor’s insights are startling. He is not proposing something new, but artfully clarifying something very old. Although this book contains a few basic meditation exercises, it is not a book about meditation. And although it makes reference to the life and teachings of a figure called the Buddha, it is, oddly, not a book about Buddhism. It a book about a profoundly human problem, and a solution to that problem that can be embraced by anyone, regardless of age or nationality or faith. To achieve true understanding, of course, would entail leaving behind the need for this book, as one would leave behind a raft after crossing a river. But as long as we find ourselves on the river—which most of us do, most of the time—we need rafts; as long as we are adrift we need guides; and Batchelor is an exemplary one. ~

Absolutely loved this book. Strips away the superstition, smoke and mirrors, the lies of organized religion, its overt hostility to self and indivualization and enforced conformity to mass belief, manipulation and totalitarianism and reveals both the simplicity of the Buddha's revelation, its availability to everyone, his humanity (and lack of divinity). Buddha is not a god, nor is there any god. The universe and the self at macro and micro levels are far more complex and fascinating than the limited mind numbing concept of god and kingship or even ideology allow. Buddha and his teachings are an example to reflect upon and to serve as an inspiration of growth of self, but not to worship or pray to. Meditation and the practice of Dharma (not an "-ism", not a belief) is focused inward on self-growth and betterment which projects to a better life, here and now for all, along with an acceptance of what is and that emptiness provides a fertile foundation for clarity. Prayer, by contrast, is focused outward, a submission to powerlessness of self and a surrender to the forces of a conceptual supernatural entity envisioned before science, before medicine in a violent uneducated society. Where human progress in science expands, the Dharma and Buddha's teaching will likewise grows and maintain relevance while religion remains stuck in a distant past shackled by dogma and manipulation by others. Dharma thrives in self not indoctrination or intellectual bondage. Bravo, as others have stated in reviews, this is truly the book I have been waiting my whole life to read.

This was the exactly the type of book on Buddhism that I was looking for: the basics that I can apply on the cushion and in daily life but stripped of things I thought I needed to belief in (reincarnation, karma, etc.) I dock two stars for the way the author seems to go out of his way to express simple concepts in an abstruse, flowery, or wordy way. This runs through the entire book, so I will just note a few. Regarding the trappings of religion (titles, uniforms/robes, etc.) the author states, "They [these trappings] endorse the assumption of the existence of an elite whose explicit commitments [what???] grants them implicit extraordinariness." And then I guess he gets tired of just saying "meditation," so he says, "meditative discpline." And instead of just "awareness of bodily senses/sensations," he says, "awareness of the sensory array of the body." So for me, though the thoughts/concepts were spot on (not just because I agree with them, but because they make sense logically and I don't have to try to believe things I just don't/can't), the pretensious and wordy writing distracted from the message. Also, why no chapter numbers? At any rate, if you aren't bugged by his writing style, this book has a lot to offer a secular buddhist.

As it should be

Originating in Northern India some twenty five hundred years ago, the teachings of the historical Buddha Sakyamuni have spread across many countries: south to Sri Lanka, south and west to Burma, Thailand, and Vietnam, across the Himalayas to Tibet and China, and West to Korea and Japan. In each case, the country as been changed by the teachings, and the form of the teachings has been changed by the country, by the particular circumstances, the history and temperament of the people. As the historian Arnold Toynbee wrote, "The coming of Buddhism to the West may well prove to be the most important event o the twentieth century." This book is not an introduction to Buddhism, a Buddhism 101. If you're looking for an overview of the beliefs and practices of Buddhists, there are many more appropriate texts available. My personal recommendation would be Lama Surya Das' Awakening the Buddha Within : Tibetan Wisdom for the Western World. In contrast, the book under discussion is a provocative attempt to reinterpret and (re)introduce the core of the Buddhist teachings to the west, in a form easily understood and assimilated by the western student. Just as Christ wasn't a Christian, the Buddha Sakayamuni was not a Buddhist: he was a teacher, a spritual friend. His teachings have been filtered through thousands of years of history an individual cultural circumstances. This is one more take. The book resonates strongly with me. Perhaps it will with you, too.

I found this to be a helpful addition to my studies in Vipassana meditation and Buddhist psychology. If you are less concerned with ritual and lineage and more-so with an understanding of the human condition which Buddha succinctly documented, I recommend Buddhism Without Beliefs. This is a small-ish volume which emphasizes how Buddha himself would tell us to question and test every theory laid forth in the name of Truth. As such, if you agree with the Buddha's findings, you don't lay claim to 'beliefs', but rather you do things according to a path that ultimately leads to your liberation (from the human condition of "something's not right" that inevitably pervades the journey through adulthood). The author frames this path you choose to follow as the treatment to the ailment that Buddha had described many times over in the talks he gave during his 40 years of awakened teaching. In particular, Batchelor's interpretation of the Four Noble Truths was refreshingly helpful: "The four ennobling truths are not propositions to believe; they are challenges to act... *Understand* our habitual relationship to anguish... *Let go* of craving by allowing it to be itself... *Realize* the cessation craving... Henceforth, *resolve to cultivate this path* - unwavering yet entirely natural." Throughout the text he utilizes powerful metaphors and stories to bring the Buddha's words into the grasp of the current, general (Western) population.