Buddhist Book Reviews

Buddhist Book Reviews and Recommendations

Manual of Insight

Written by Buddhist Books

Manual of Insight is a hefty and exquisitely-presented hardback volume of around 700 pages in which Mahasi Sayadaw presents a comprehensive and detailed guide to the theory and practice of vipassana, or insight meditation. It is thanks in no small part to the teachings of Mahasi Sayadaw that insight meditation has become so popular in the West, and this book contains many of those teachings in English, and in their full context, for the very first time.

The culmination of fifteen years of work by the Vipassana Metta Foundation Translation Committee, Manual of Insight takes the reader on a journey from the most basic foundational principles of insight meditation right through to a detailed exploration of the insights that are realized at the end of the path.

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All of this takes place over seven huge chapters, which are broken down as follows:

The first chapter discusses Purification of Conduct, and explains how one can establish an ethical foundation for the practice. The code of conduct for monks is described here, but the primary focus is on the principles which should be adopted by the laity and on how conduct can be purified with meditation.

Purification of Mind is the topic of the next chapter, and this is divided into two main sections – one which deals with Mental Purification in broad terms, and another that discusses Mental Purification for Those Who Take the Vehicle of Insight to Enlightenment. As in all chapters of this book, Mahasi Sayadaw balances his presentation of theoretical principles and concepts with plenty of practical instruction, enabling the reader to actually apply what is being taught.

A chapter on Absolute and Conventional Realities follows, and here Mahasi Sayadaw begins by looking at the question: What is Reality? before discussing The Two Meanings of Activity, Two Kinds of Insight and Lessons to Learn from Those Who Take the Vehicle of Tranquillity to Enlightenment.

The Development of Mindfulness is divided into seven sections, which are: Checking Meditation Against the Pali Texts, Contemplation of the Body, Contemplation of Feeling, Contemplation of Mind, Contemplation of Mental Objects, Mindfulness of the Four Noble Truths and The Benefits of Mindfulness.

A chapter entitled Practical Instructions comes next, and here Mahasi Sayadaw delivers his teachings on The Basic Practice, Insight and The Experience of Nibbana. The depth of teaching that is provided in each chapter of Manual of Insight is tremendous, and this chapter is no exception, with the practice of meditation, and of the author’s famous ‘noting technique’, being described in great detail.

Stages of Insight Knowledge provides rich descriptions of the stages of insight that a practitioner will progress through on his or her journey, from Insight Knowledge that Discerns Mental and Physical Phenomena all the way to Nibbana.

The final chapter in the Manual of Insight focuses on The Eighteen Great Insight Knowledges, and provides discussion on The Seven Main Contemplations and The Remaining Contemplations, followed by Mahasi Sayadaw’s Closing Words.

Manual of Insight is an extraordinarily comprehensive work, and it is therefore no surprise that it also contains plenty of additional material in the last 150 pages or so. This extra material includes a section of Notes, a Pali-English and English-Pali Glossary, Bibliography and Index. There is also a Removable Insert in a pocket inside the back cover which provides a number of charts and tables outlining The Progress of Insight, Planes of Existence, Mental Factors Present in Each Consciousness, and more.

It is no exaggeration to say that Manual of Insight is a volume which all serious meditators will benefit from immensely, and those who specifically practice insight meditation (vipassana) are likely to find it quite indispensable. It is a book to learn from, refer to and treasure for a lifetime, and we applaud everyone who was involved in making these teachings of Mahasi Sayadaw so readily available.

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The Mindfulness in Plain English Collection

Written by Buddhist Books

The Mindfulness in Plain English Collection is a stunning hardback volume which brings together three classic titles on mindfulness by Bhante Gunaratana. Those titles are: Mindfulness in Plain English, The Four Foundations of Mindfulness in Plain English, and Beyond Mindfulness in Plain English.

This collector’s edition from Wisdom Publications runs to 640 pages and provides the reader with comprehensive instruction on the practice of mindfulness, from beginner to advanced. It lays the groundwork with Mindfulness in Plain English, which we have reviewed previously. First published in 1994, this title guides the reader step-by-step to developing greater levels of mindfulness by practicing vipassana meditation.

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The Four Foundations of Mindfulness comes next, and that title is based on the Satipatthana Sutta, which teaches mindfulness of the body, of feelings, of mind and of Dhamma. In this book, Bhante presents the teachings in his trademark plain-English style, clarifying and expounding points for a modern western audience.

The third book in this collection is Beyond Mindfulness in Plain English, which Joseph Goldstein described as ‘a straightforward and pragmatic guide to deepening levels of concentration and insight.’ As the title suggests, in this book Bhante goes beyond mindfulness to discuss the ‘jhanas’. These are states of meditation that really have to be experienced to be fully appreciated, but which are often discussed in terms of being joyous, powerful and incredibly calm.

Having all three of these classic Bhante Guaranta titles together in a beautiful single-volume collection is a real privilege, and The Mindfulness in Plain English Collection should serve as an inspirational and indispensable guide for everyone who embarks on the path of mindfulness.

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Inner Pilgrimage

Written by Buddhist Books

Inner Pilgrimage: Ten Days to a Mindful Me by Raji Lukkoor is a personal account of the author’s experience on a ten-day vipassana meditation retreat. It is not written as a Buddhist book, per se, and the author writes in her preface that she had no Buddhist background when she embarked on the retreat. This makes the title very useful for anyone who wants to find out more about the vipassana retreat experience, whatever their background, because as the author learns about the practice of vipassana, so does the reader.

The ten-day retreat that is described in this book was led (via video instruction) by S. N. Goenka, and anyone who has already experienced a retreat such as this will find Inner Pilgrimage to be a very useful summary of the main concepts that are taught. Those who are merely curious about how this kind of retreat works – or who have been thinking about taking part in one but are unsure about what to expect – will get an excellent first-hand account from someone who knows.

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Inner Pilgrimage is split into 13 chapters. In the first chapter, Day Zero, the author says goodbye to her family and makes her way to the retreat centre. Here we learn why she decided to take the retreat and what it will involve. We are with Raji every step of the way as she checks in, finds her accommodation and sits on her assigned cushion for the very first time when she attends the introductory session.

The next ten chapters take us through the retreat day by day, and throughout the book the author writes not only in the first person, but also in the present tense. This gives her writing a great sense of immediacy and puts the reader firmly in the middle of the experience. Perhaps even more importantly, the author writes with complete and utter honesty throughout, describing not only external activities but also her internal thought processes. As you might expect, the author found quite a few things to mentally grumble about during the first day or so, and her train of thought initially switched tracks with alarming regularity, but as we read on we get to see that her entire attitude softened and changed as the retreat progressed, and so we witness – as far as possible via the written word – a genuine transformation.

Raji learned a great deal on her ten-day retreat, and by covering all of the main points in some detail she has ensured that the reader is able to learn alongside her. All of the important concepts taught on the retreat are very well explained in a way that makes them easy to understand even if you have no prior knowledge of vipassana, and that makes Inner Pilgrimage an excellent introduction to the subject, and one that will no doubt motivate you to find out more.

A brief chapter entitled Homecoming covers the author preparing to return home, and the final chapter, The Afterlife, tells us how she felt about the ten-day retreat some eight months later. Here we learn how the retreat has improved her life in a variety of ways, and whilst the author is quick to point out that she didn’t grown a halo of light around her head or experience angelic visitations of any kind, it is clear that the ten day retreat has changed her life quite substantially, and all for the better.

In summary, Inner Pilgrimage is a book that we recommend highly to anyone who has any level of interest in vipassana, and we thank the author for putting her very personal experience in writing for the benefit of others.

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The Dhamma Brothers DVD

Written by Buddhist Books

The Dhamma Brothers is a multi-award winning documentary film by Jenny Phillips, Anne Marie Stein and Andrew Kukura. Yes, you read that right, we’re reviewing a movie, and for good reason – The Dhamma Brothers is a documentary that demonstrates just how transformative the practice of Vipassana can be, and it is therefore one that everyone who visits this site should make an effort to see at least once. The Dhamma Brothers is available on DVD for home viewing, and if you get as much out of it as we did, it is film that you are likely to watch several times over.

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The Dhamma Brothers shows how a ten-day Vipassana retreat changed the lives of prison inmates at Donaldson Correctional Facility in Alabama, and it’s important to note that few of the prisoners who participated in this groundbreaking retreat had any previous experience of meditation in any form. On the contrary, many of them went into the Vipassana program feeling doubtful that they would get any benefit at all. Not because they necessarily doubted the value of meditation in general, but because they viewed themselves as being ‘extreme cases’ who probably couldn’t be helped by any kind of program.

That initial reservation is understandable, because the Donaldson Correctional Facility isn’t an open prison for guys who were caught stealing candy bars or flipping the bird at traffic cops. The prisoners here are serving anything from six months to life for crimes that include common assault, aggravated assault and murder. The idea that any kind of program could help these inmates to let go of their anger, hostility and fear… well, it just sounds far-fetched.

What makes The Dhamma Brothers so compelling is that it shows us how the practice of Vipassana enabled the participating inmates to face themselves and their lives and with openness and honesty, perhaps for the very first time. The program participants learned to take full responsibility for their crimes and accept their past whilst at the same time drawing a line under all of that and experiencing genuine peace of mind. Yes, many of the participants are still incarcerated – in fact many are resigned to being behind bars for the rest of their lives – but through the Vipassana program they learned a way of giving themselves a spacious sense of freedom that transcends bars.

The Dhamma Brothers not only shows us how the Vipassana retreat affected the inmates at the time, but how some factions of the Bible-belt community responded to it (clue – not very well). The documentary also revisits the Donaldson Correctional Facility several years after the ten-day retreat to see how the program helped inmates over the longer term.

We could write about The Dhamma Brothers for hours and we still wouldn’t be able to do it justice, so allow us to summarise by saying that this film is truly inspirational. If you already practice Vipassana then The Dhamma Brothers will make you want to get straight back to your meditation cushion, and if you don’t yet practice Vipassana, The Dhamma Brothers will make you think very seriously about doing so.

Note: A Collector’s Edition of the DVD is available which contains an hour of special feature material as well as the documentary itself. The Collector’s Edition is recommended for its extended conversations with the Dhamma Brothers, their families and the meditation teachers involved.

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Mindfulness in Plain English

Written by Buddhist Books

Mindfulness in Plain English by Bhante Henepola Gunaratana (affectionately known as ‘Bhante G’) is one of those rare Buddhist books that will be of great benefit to non-Buddhists, new Buddhists and seasoned practitioners alike. It’s the kind of book that you will refer to again and again, and every time you turn to it you will discover something new that you didn’t appreciate in quite the same way previously.

As the title suggests, this book is a plain English how-to guide to developing greater levels of mindfulness by practicing vipassana meditation. Whether you are brand new to the subject, have tried meditating before on your own but come unstuck, or would simply like a fresh perspective that can help you to improve and deepen your practice, Mindfulness in Plain English delivers the goods.

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The first chapter sets the tone very nicely with Meditation: Why Bother? Here the author explains the various benefits of meditation and by the time you have finished the chapter you will be thoroughly motivated to get started. The next three chapters debunk commonly held misconceptions about meditation, provide an accurate explanation of what meditation really is, and discuss the kind of attitude that you should adopt for best results.

After laying that foundation, the author moves on to focus on the practice of meditation itself. Every aspect of mindfulness meditation is discussed, including what to do with your body, what to do with your mind, how to structure your meditation and how to deal with problems and distractions.

In addition to all of that information, the author then presents a good discussion about mindfulness and how it relates to concentration. The final two chapters focus on Meditation in Everyday Life and What’s in It for You, and there is also a chapter-length afterword entitled The Power of Loving Friendliness that talks about mindfulness in relation to the development of metta.

A 20th Anniversary edition of Mindfulness in Plain English was published in 2011, which says a lot about how popular this book is. Jon Kabat-Zinn has described it as ‘a masterpiece’ and we echo that verdict wholeheartedly.

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