Adrienne Howley

A charming guide that demystifies Buddhism and shows how we can apply its teachings to our lives in useful and meaningful ways
Although a widely observed and respected practice in America, Buddhism is still difficult for many seekers to thoroughly grasp. Now, Adrienne Howley--personally ordained by His Holiness the Dalai Lama and one of the highest ranking Buddhist nuns in the world--writes in a warm, simple, and engagingly humorous style that illustrates the life, ideas, and teachings of the Buddha and the religion and philosophy that he inspired. This charming guide demystifies Buddhism and shows how we can apply its teachings to our lives in useful and meaningful ways. Howley covers who Buddha was and how he came to formulate his philosophy, the three main Buddhist traditions, what ordinary Buddhists believe and practice today, and meditation: how and why. There are also answers to questions most commonly asked by non-Buddhists, including: How can Buddhism make me happy? How can I always practice generosity? and How can I move away from greed and hatred? The Naked Buddha is an accessible, down-to-earth introduction to this ancient Asian religion and a valuable addition to the literature on Buddhism.… (altro)

Structured in a basic Q&A format, Adrienne Howley's "The Naked Buddha" is a fairly good introduction to the basic tenets of Buddhism, although I felt like she was biased a bit towards the Theravada variant. Like countless other "book Buddhist" works for a middle-class Western audience, it provides the basic teachings while assuring the reader that they don't need to shave their head or live in a cave in order to learn the dharma. Not bad but not really a diamond lightening bolt either. One part I found really fantastic, however, was her insights on the generosity of mind and how to determine right speech/right action.… (altro)

This is a short introduction to Buddhism that is not an attempt to cover the main tenets, but is rather intended to answer some questions and whet the appetite. The most interesting part is the first section which gives a brief biography of Siddhartha Gautama and his teachings. The longest section are two chapters dedicated to answering questions about Buddhism.

Howley is at pains to indicate that Buddhism is different from other religions--that it may not be a religion at all. In doing so, she seems to have an axe to grind over all theistic religions and anything that resembles faith. She says that her main point is that the reader should take no one's word for the beliefs of Buddhism, but should analyze them for him or herself. However, she also indicates at several points that a "right thinking" person would come to the same conclusions as her.

Ultimately, though, I was disappointed by the lack of depth. Howley clearly has enormous knowledge, but this book did not do much to convey that knowledge. I hope the "Suggested Reading" at the end of the book offers some books with more depth.… (altro)