Bad resources

Exploring Theravāda's connections to other paths - what can we learn from other traditions, religions and philosophies?
alan
Posts: 3111
Joined: Wed Sep 30, 2009 12:14 am
Location: Miramar beach, Fl.

Bad resources

Post by alan »

Hi All. Love the resources link at the top of most threads. They have been very helpful.
But some books are not. Just for fun, I would like to ask this question: are there any books you find unhelpful? Some author you would avoid? Not trying to start a war--just thought it would be interesting to see which, if any, books you've rejected.
I'll start with Stephen Batchelor's "Buddhism without beliefs", just to get things rolling.
P.S. I threw it out the window a few years ago, so please don't ask my to quote what it was that bugged me.
Thought this might be interesting.... :coffee:
User avatar
catmoon
Posts: 369
Joined: Sat Oct 17, 2009 1:59 am

Re: Bad resources

Post by catmoon »

I have a nice healthy aversion to about anything by D.T. Suzuki. But that said, he seems to be a highly respected writer for some reason. :shrug:
User avatar
Fede
Posts: 1182
Joined: Tue Dec 30, 2008 10:33 pm
Location: The Heart of this "Green & Pleasant Land"...
Contact:

Re: Bad resources

Post by Fede »

"The secret"
"The Law of Attraction"
Anything at all by Deepak Chopra.
"Samsara: The human condition's heartbreaking inability to sustain contentment." Elizabeth Gilbert, 'Eat, Pray, Love'.

Simplify: 17 into 1 WILL go: Mindfulness!

Quieta movere magna merces videbatur. (Sallust, c.86-c.35 BC)
Translation: Just to stir things up seemed a good reward in itself. ;)

I am sooooo happy - How on earth could I be otherwise?! :D


http://www.armchairadvice.co.uk/relationships/forum/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
User avatar
Monkey Mind
Posts: 538
Joined: Sat Dec 05, 2009 8:56 pm
Location: Pacific Northwest, USA

Re: Bad resources

Post by Monkey Mind »

No Time to Lose: A Timely Guide to the Way of the Bodhisattva by Pema Chodron
"As I am, so are others;
as others are, so am I."
Having thus identified self and others,
harm no one nor have them harmed.

Sutta Nipāta 3.710
User avatar
tiltbillings
Posts: 23046
Joined: Wed Dec 31, 2008 9:25 am

Re: Bad resources

Post by tiltbillings »

Monkey Mind wrote:No Time to Lose: A Timely Guide to the Way of the Bodhisattva by Pema Chodron
Why is it bad?
>> Do you see a man wise [enlightened/ariya] in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him.<< -- Proverbs 26:12

This being is bound to samsara, kamma is his means for going beyond. -- SN I, 38.

“Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?” HPatDH p.723
User avatar
Cittasanto
Posts: 6646
Joined: Tue Dec 30, 2008 10:31 pm
Location: Ellan Vannin
Contact:

Re: Bad resources

Post by Cittasanto »

I don't think I have any bad resources, they are all good for something.
Blog, Suttas, Aj Chah, Facebook.

He who knows only his own side of the case knows little of that. His reasons may be good, and no one may have been able to refute them.
But if he is equally unable to refute the reasons on the opposite side, if he does not so much as know what they are, he has no ground for preferring either opinion …
...
He must be able to hear them from persons who actually believe them … he must know them in their most plausible and persuasive form.
John Stuart Mill
User avatar
bodom
Posts: 7216
Joined: Fri Jan 09, 2009 6:18 pm
Location: San Antonio, Texas

Re: Bad resources

Post by bodom »

tiltbillings wrote:
Monkey Mind wrote:No Time to Lose: A Timely Guide to the Way of the Bodhisattva by Pema Chodron
Why is it bad?
I have enjoyed many books by Pema Chodron. In fact When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times was one of the very first books i read on Buddhist practice. I would recommend her in a heatbeat.

:anjali:
Liberation is the inevitable fruit of the path and is bound to blossom forth when there is steady and persistent practice. The only requirements for reaching the final goal are two: to start and to continue. If these requirements are met there is no doubt the goal will be attained. This is the Dhamma, the undeviating law.

- BB
User avatar
zavk
Posts: 1161
Joined: Tue Jan 20, 2009 12:04 pm
Location: Melbourne, Australia

Re: Bad resources

Post by zavk »

Fede wrote:"The secret"
"The Law of Attraction"
Anything at all by Deepak Chopra.
:thumbsup:

I wouldn't call them 'resources' but 'bad', yes. :)
With metta,
zavk
User avatar
Prasadachitta
Posts: 974
Joined: Sat Jan 10, 2009 6:52 am
Location: San Francisco (The Mission) Ca USA
Contact:

Re: Bad resources

Post by Prasadachitta »

zavk wrote:
Fede wrote:"The secret"
"The Law of Attraction"
Anything at all by Deepak Chopra.
:thumbsup:

I wouldn't call them 'resources' but 'bad', yes. :)
If they are not being used as a resource then there is nothing bad about them. :tongue:
"Beautifully taught is the Lord's Dhamma, immediately apparent, timeless, of the nature of a personal invitation, progressive, to be attained by the wise, each for himself." Anguttara Nikaya V.332
User avatar
withoutcolour
Posts: 105
Joined: Sun Dec 13, 2009 7:53 pm

Re: Bad resources

Post by withoutcolour »

Awakening the Buddha Within by Lama Surya Das.

Not only was I really turned off by the mention of levitating within the first few pages, written under the title is "Eight steps to enlightenment," like there's an Alcoholics-Anonymous style list that one can go through and check off, easy as that. I am also turned off by the Tibetan tradition in general, no offense to the Vajras who may frequent this site, it's just not my cup of tea is all. :coffee:
I read the whole book and it was useful as somebody who is a critical reader of Buddhist literature(which, thankfully I was at the time I read it) , but for someone new to the subject, this would seem like mystical new age crap and is not particularly informative in terms of the basic beliefs of Buddhism.

I am also turned off to Suzuki's writing. Makes my brain melt.

-wc
สัพเพ สัตตา สุขีตา โหนตุ
sabbe sattā sukhita hontu
User avatar
Jechbi
Posts: 1268
Joined: Thu Jan 01, 2009 3:38 am
Contact:

Re: Bad resources

Post by Jechbi »

Manapa wrote:I don't think I have any bad resources, they are all good for something.
:goodpost:
it's about how we relate to the words we encounter, and what practical use we make of it
Rain soddens what is kept wrapped up,
But never soddens what is open;
Uncover, then, what is concealed,
Lest it be soddened by the rain.
User avatar
tiltbillings
Posts: 23046
Joined: Wed Dec 31, 2008 9:25 am

Re: Bad resources

Post by tiltbillings »

Manapa wrote:I don't think I have any bad resources, they are all good for something.
Maybe being a doorstop, or balancing the wobbly table
>> Do you see a man wise [enlightened/ariya] in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him.<< -- Proverbs 26:12

This being is bound to samsara, kamma is his means for going beyond. -- SN I, 38.

“Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?” HPatDH p.723
User avatar
Jechbi
Posts: 1268
Joined: Thu Jan 01, 2009 3:38 am
Contact:

Re: Bad resources

Post by Jechbi »

tiltbillings wrote:Maybe being a doorstop, or balancing the wobbly table
Sure. Sometimes we're not yet capable of finding value in points of view that challenge our own. So we make the best use we can, and that might involve propping up wobbly things or making sure doors stay where they belong.
Rain soddens what is kept wrapped up,
But never soddens what is open;
Uncover, then, what is concealed,
Lest it be soddened by the rain.
User avatar
tiltbillings
Posts: 23046
Joined: Wed Dec 31, 2008 9:25 am

Re: Bad resources

Post by tiltbillings »

Jechbi wrote:
tiltbillings wrote:Maybe being a doorstop, or balancing the wobbly table
Sure. Sometimes we're not yet capable of finding value in points of view that challenge our own.
That is assuming a bad book challenges my point of view. Some books are just poorly written, poorly researched.
So we make the best use we can, and that might involve propping up wobbly things or making sure doors stay where they belong.
I just cannot bring myself to burn them or givie them away.
>> Do you see a man wise [enlightened/ariya] in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him.<< -- Proverbs 26:12

This being is bound to samsara, kamma is his means for going beyond. -- SN I, 38.

“Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?” HPatDH p.723
User avatar
Jechbi
Posts: 1268
Joined: Thu Jan 01, 2009 3:38 am
Contact:

Re: Bad resources

Post by Jechbi »

tiltbillings wrote:I just cannot bring myself to burn them or giving them away.
Giving them away is actually kind of fun. I gave a bunch to the local public library a few years ago. That was an interesting experience, after having hoarded books since childhood. Then I gave away the bookshelves. Come to think of it, those books really did have value in the end.
;)
Rain soddens what is kept wrapped up,
But never soddens what is open;
Uncover, then, what is concealed,
Lest it be soddened by the rain.
Post Reply