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HomeGiftsHomeBuddha: A Story of Enlightenment |
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|  | | | Customer Reviews: | | | Average Customer Review:
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Engaging imagining of Buddha Aug 25, 2010
This book is an accessible imagining of the life of Buddha, in the way Anne Rice's "Christ the Lord" series is an accessible imagining of the life of Jesus.
This is not heavy-duty buddism, it's more vacation reading, and in fact I enjoyed it on vacation. In contrast to some of the more critical reviews here, I enjoyed both the narrative arc and writing style.
2 of 2 found the following review helpful:
 An Interesting Journey into Buddhism Jun 24, 2010
If you're looking for entertaining historical fiction, this may hit the mark. If you're looking to be inspired with how to evolve spiritually as did Siddhartha, into the Buddha, then this is the perfect book for you.
Buddha, who lived in a time of oral, not written tradition, has many differing accounts of his life now in print. Deepak Chopra's historical novel takes the most agreed-upon facts and adds his interpretation of Buddha's emotions and experiences. At once, Buddha becomes a more understandable figure, and the Buddhist philosophy more approachable to the reader.
Chopra reimagines the early life of Siddhartha, who left his princely throne to seek spiritual enlightenment. This novel is replete with evil gods, bloody battles, and a taste of the Indian culture of the time to capture the reader's interest. This tome on the inner thoughts and motivations of Buddha traces each step in the journey that led Siddhartha to cast off his material life and reach enlightenment. In this way, Chopra illustrates, rather than preaches, the principles of Buddhism - that the root of suffering is illusion and belief in the separate self.
At the end of the book, there is an epilogue that explains the basic tenets of Buddhism for those who want to follow this path.
 Buddha, the novel Jun 04, 2010
I immediately began to see that this was written more like a novel than a true story, but Chopra tries to bring us an inside look into what life was like when Buddha was alive and experiencing his transformation to enlightenment.
It was a good story....but the concept of prolonged meditation is not one that would be easy for most people to experience.
I was interested in learning more about Buddha, and for that, Chopra did not fail me.
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
Buddha: A Story of Enlightenment Mar 16, 2010
Initially the story was slow going with details of Siddhartha's early life and childhood, I believe it was narrated for the purpose of suggesting his normalcy given his situation. Overall Deepak's writing style left me a little dry.
The amount of time and the degree of being an ascetic where he was near physical death I had not previously considered, though I am aware this happens on a regular basis for those taking this path.
Fundamental metaphysical understandings such as the Oneness of All that Is and how to reach/attain and then live such an understanding were pretty well presented. That the Buddha was not anyone more special than anyone else might be a challenge for some if they are looking for a spiritual icon. The suggestion that the only thing that is real is not real is of course a brain twister. This refers to the Universe of form and appearance.
Many consider Buddhism a religion. It is nothing but a more philosophical method of experiencing ones life and by implication all methods ultimately are the same.
If the reader is new to such thoughts they may have a hard time with the concepts presented. It is only towards the end of the book where these concepts are presented. I would have liked to read Deepak's impressions of what was really going on in the mind of the young Siddhartha. What kind of questions he had internally about life and its possible purpose.
A friend of mine recently told me of seeing a picture where there was the body of the Buddha with the head of a dog. She's a dog person. Anyway I told her I believe the Buddha would have agreed with such a representation. The Buddha nature resides in All that Is.
I would recommend this book to people who are just starting to more seriously question aspects of their beliefs. Personally I enjoyed Hermann Hesse's "Siddhartha" more.
Beautifully told story Mar 14, 2010
Wow! What a wonderfully told story. Deepak did an awesome job with this work of fiction. The story moves from Siddhartha the prince, to Gautama the monk, to the enlightened being Buddha, in three distinct but intricately interwoven sections -- from glimpses of enlightenment through the fog of delusion, to the tormenting struggle with duality, to complete transcendence of duality and attachment. The character is developed so well that by the time Deepak got to the end of the book, Buddha came alive for me. I absolutely loved the way the story ended. I found myself wanting more, which, for me, makes a great book. Without the primer on Buddhism at the end, the reader gets a full and fundamental understanding of Buddhism just by the way the story unfolds and is told. Loved it!
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