Some Sayings of the Buddha According to the Pali Canon (F.L. Woodward)
Best Book on Buddha’s Teachings
[My 5-star Amazon review (NDA) of“Some Sayings of the Buddha According to the Pali Canon” by F.L. Woodward.]
Ever since I read Edward Conze’s Buddhism: Its Essence and Development and Walpola Rahula’s What the Buddha Taught for an anthropology class on Buddhism at UCSD in 1971, I have devoted myself to studying books on Buddhism and other mystical teachings. Although most of the many books I’ve read on the Buddha’s teachings are good, one stands out head and shoulders above the rest: Some Sayings of the Buddha According to the Pali Canon, by F.L. Woodward.
The fact that no one else has reviewed this marvelous book boggles my mind and is an indicative of the lack of true scholarship in the mystical traditions. This book is outstanding for the following reasons: 1) Woodward’s translation is superb, his writing seamless and inspiring; 2) his selection of sayings, culled from an extensive collection of the Buddha’s words, is ideal, focusing strongly on instructions pertaining to the attainment of Nirvana; 3) the Vipassana, or mindfulness, meditation instructions are the clearest, most concise ones I’ve encountered; 4) Woodward, unlike most Buddhism authors, makes it clear that the Buddha said to “take refuge in the Self,” the transcendental Seer, or Buddha-nature.
Anyone who reads this book and also studies Advaita Vedanta (Shankara, Ramana Maharshi, and Sri Nisargattada Maharaj) will realize that the Buddha’s original teachings, which include the neti-neti (“not this, not that”) practice of disidentifying from one’s body and mind, is the same one taught in Hindu Jnana yoga, and that Buddhist Nirvana (“the end of becoming”) is equivalent to the Hindu Self-realized State of Sahaj Samadhi (natural, effortless Awareness, or Being-ness).
As a spiritual teacher, I recommend that my students read Some Sayings of the Buddha. And my recommendation to you is the same.
[My 5-star Amazon review (NDA) of“Some Sayings of the Buddha According to the Pali Canon” by F.L. Woodward.]
Ever since I read Edward Conze’s Buddhism: Its Essence and Development and Walpola Rahula’s What the Buddha Taught for an anthropology class on Buddhism at UCSD in 1971, I have devoted myself to studying books on Buddhism and other mystical teachings. Although most of the many books I’ve read on the Buddha’s teachings are good, one stands out head and shoulders above the rest: Some Sayings of the Buddha According to the Pali Canon, by F.L. Woodward.
The fact that no one else has reviewed this marvelous book boggles my mind and is an indicative of the lack of true scholarship in the mystical traditions. This book is outstanding for the following reasons: 1) Woodward’s translation is superb, his writing seamless and inspiring; 2) his selection of sayings, culled from an extensive collection of the Buddha’s words, is ideal, focusing strongly on instructions pertaining to the attainment of Nirvana; 3) the Vipassana, or mindfulness, meditation instructions are the clearest, most concise ones I’ve encountered; 4) Woodward, unlike most Buddhism authors, makes it clear that the Buddha said to “take refuge in the Self,” the transcendental Seer, or Buddha-nature.
Anyone who reads this book and also studies Advaita Vedanta (Shankara, Ramana Maharshi, and Sri Nisargattada Maharaj) will realize that the Buddha’s original teachings, which include the neti-neti (“not this, not that”) practice of disidentifying from one’s body and mind, is the same one taught in Hindu Jnana yoga, and that Buddhist Nirvana (“the end of becoming”) is equivalent to the Hindu Self-realized State of Sahaj Samadhi (natural, effortless Awareness, or Being-ness).
As a spiritual teacher, I recommend that my students read Some Sayings of the Buddha. And my recommendation to you is the same.
