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Basic Teachings of the Buddha
In Basic Teachings of the Buddha , Glenn Wallis selects sixteen essential dialogues drawn from more than five thousand Pali-dialect suttas of the Buddhist canon. The result is a vibrant introductory guide to studying Buddhist thought, applying its principles to everyday life, and gaining a deeper understanding of Buddhist themes in modern literature. Focusing on the most crucial topics for today’s readers, Wallis presents writings that address modern psychological, religious, ethical, and philosophical concerns. This practical, inspiring, and engaging volume provides an overview of the history of Buddhism and an illuminating analysis of the core writings that personalizes the suttas for each reader.
“Glenn Wallis brings wisdom and compassion to this work of scholarship. Everyone should read this book.�
–Christopher Queen, Harvard University
“A valuable sourcebook with a good selection of the fundamental suttas enhanced by an eloquent introduction and comprehensive notes–altogether a very useful text.�
–Peter Matthiessen (Roshi), author of The Snow Leopard and Nine-Headed Dragon River
“Glenn Wallis’s new and accessible translations of some of the Buddha’s lectures to his original students, along with Wallis’s elegant guide to the texts, gives twenty-first-century readers in the modern West a fresh chance to learn from this teacher.�
–Charles Hallisey, University of Wisconsin-Madison
“Glenn Wallis brings wisdom and compassion to this work of scholarship. Everyone should read this book.�
–Christopher Queen, Harvard University
“A valuable sourcebook with a good selection of the fundamental suttas enhanced by an eloquent introduction and comprehensive notes–altogether a very useful text.�
–Peter Matthiessen (Roshi), author of The Snow Leopard and Nine-Headed Dragon River
“Glenn Wallis’s new and accessible translations of some of the Buddha’s lectures to his original students, along with Wallis’s elegant guide to the texts, gives twenty-first-century readers in the modern West a fresh chance to learn from this teacher.�
–Charles Hallisey, University of Wisconsin-Madison
240 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2007
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April 22, 2025
This is FANTASTIC.
The author - Glenn Wallis: (a) identifies the essential source material (Suttas - i.e. scriptures or Sutras for all you yogins) informing all the various schools of Buddhism, (b) provides good English translations, and (c) minimal but useful commentary. Priceless!
Of course, when you’re talking scriptural “source� “texts� for Buddhism, it’s important to understand that many of the Suttas were written 2-3 hundred years (or more) after the historical Buddha died. Most of which are actually written versions of an oral tradition. As such, they are simple, and repetitive because they had to be easily memorized and chanted, so that they could be preserved and handed down from teacher to student.
Additionally, the Suttas (and other Buddhist texts) were not intended to be consumed by a general audience. They were (in large part) more like technical manuals. Almost bullet points. Intended to be transmitted from teacher to student. Ware in the teacher would flesh out the meaning of each point for each individual student, based on their particular experience and interpretation.
Additionally, the Buddhist Suttas were originally taught by the historical Buddha in an archaic form of an Indian language (known today is Pali). And then written in a later version of that same language (think of the difference between Shakespeare’s English and today’s English). And then translated into any number of other East Asian languages. And now translated into English.
And.
Well.
That’s a lot of translation.
Given all of the above, the Suttas do not read like anything anyone would write nowadays. And they take an awful lot of context and interpretation in order to be intelligible/useful for a modern reader.
Lastly, Buddhism has been around for like, close to three millennia at this point. It has migrated to pretty much every culture on the globe. And has bifurcated into lots of different schools. Each of which produced original Suttas, and literally millions of pages of commentary on the previous Suttas.
You could literally spend a lifetime studying Buddhist hermeneutics, and you wouldn’t even scratch the surface. In fact, I went to a Buddhist university and I know people who are doing exactly that. And it’s like a HUGE thing.
So anyway.
That’s a little bit of the context for what author Glenn Wallis was working with when he attempted (quite successfully in my opinion) to capture the essence of Buddhism. So that you and I can easily and conveniently cut right to the Chase as it were. Without having to study Buddhist texts for thousands of hours and/or join a Buddhist monastic order (and then only get a tiny little sliver of the broader spectrum of Buddhism).
HOW TO READ THE SUTTAS
Wallis suggests asking the following basic questions in order to fully understand any Buddhist Sutta:
1: What is the text about? If I had to say so in a word, which word?
2: With what major theme or themes is it concerned?
3: How is the text structured? What would an outline of it look like?
4: With which of these dimensions, individually or in combination, is the text concerned: doctrinal, ethical, experiential, mythological, ritual, liturgical, social, institutional? Some other one? How is it expressed?
5: What does the text demand of me? For example, does it indicate that some sort of practice is required for a thorough understanding? Does it ask me to alter my life in some fundamental way?
6: What limitations do I impose on the text? For example, would I be willing to do the practices that may be required for a thorough understanding of the text? Would I be willing to alter my life in the ways the text is suggesting?
16 (CORE) SUTTAS
Of the literally thousands of Suttas in the Buddhist canon. Wallis selects 16 Suttas as essential. Wallis is quick to note that other Buddhist scholars would very likely choose other Suttas if given the same task. As such, there is a stated personal preference at play in his methodology. However, he contends that he also selected these Suttas based on their thematic relevance to the fundamental principals of Buddhism, and based on their recurrence as citations in other Stuuas and commentaries.
Here are the sixteen suttas included in the book
1: The Hawk (Sakuṇagghi Sutta, Saṁyutta Nikāya 5.47.6) � A parable illustrating the importance of being in one’s natural environment, symbolizing the safety found in the Dhamma.
2: A Brief Talk to Māluṅkyāputta (Cūḷamālukya Sutta) � A discourse addressing the futility of speculative metaphysical questions and emphasizing practical aspects of the path.
3: Threefold Knowledge (Tevijja Sutta) � Explores the path to union with Brahma, emphasizing ethical conduct and meditation over ritualistic practices.
4: Discourse in Kesamutta (Kesamutti Sutta) � Also known as the Kalama Sutta, it encourages critical thinking and personal verification of teachings.
5: The All (Sabba Sutta) � Discusses the entirety of experience through the six senses, emphasizing the importance of understanding sensory experience.
6: Like a Ball of Foam (Phenapiṇḍūpama Sutta) � Uses the simile of a foam ball to illustrate the insubstantial and impermanent nature of the five aggregates.
7: Evidence of Selflessness (Anattalakkhaṇa Sutta) � The second discourse of the Buddha, focusing on the doctrine of non-self.
8: The Burden (Bhāra Sutta) � Discusses the burden of the five aggregates and the one who carries it, leading to the understanding of liberation.
9: Turning the Wheel of the Teaching (Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta) � The Buddha’s first sermon, introducing the Four Noble Truths and the Middle Way.
10: Gotama’s Discourse (Gotama Sutta) � A dialogue emphasizing the importance of direct knowledge and personal experience in the path.
11: Destination (Pārāyana Sutta) � Explores the journey towards the ultimate goal of liberation.
12: Quenched (Nibbuta Sutta) � Discusses the state of nibbāna, the cessation of suffering and the ultimate peace.
13: Signs of the Fabricated (Saṅkhatalakkhaṇa Sutta) � Examines the characteristics of conditioned phenomena.
14: Signs of the Unfabricated (Asaṅkhatalakkhaṇa Sutta) � Contrasts with the previous sutta by discussing the unconditioned, namely nibbāna.
15: Present-moment Awareness with Breathing (Ānāpānasati Sutta) � Outlines a meditation practice focusing on the breath to develop mindfulness and concentration.
16: The Application of Present-moment Awareness (Mahāsatipaṭṭhāna Sutta) � Provides comprehensive instructions on establishing mindfulness in various aspects of experience.
Wallis aim to encapsulate the core teachings of the Buddha by focusing on this pretty tiny sliver of the Buddhist cannon, addressing CORE themes such as suffering, mindfulness, ethical conduct, and the path to liberation.
16 PROPOSITIONS
Wallis offers the following 16 propositions as his keys to understanding each of the 16 corisponding suttas.
These propositions and commentaries provide (super badly needed) additional context and interpretation, making these ancient (and at times inscrutable) texts relevant to contemporary scholars (and more importantly) spiritual practitioners.
Wallis� 16 propositions (each numerically corresponding to the previously listed Suttas) are as follows:
HABITAT
1: We are like ghosts sleepwalking in a desolate and dangerous domain.
DE-ORIENTATION
2: We remain transfixed there, enchanted by pleasure and flamboyant speculation.
3: The most enthralling belief of all is that of supernatural agency.
4: There is a safeguard against this bewitchment: knowing for yourself.
RE-ORIENTATION
5: The means of "knowing for yourself" is immediately available: it is the sensorium.
6: But the modes of perception are miragelike, and the perceived like a magical display.
7: And there is no self, no integral perceiver, behind those modes of perception.
8: To hold on to the miragelike perceiver, the phantom self, is a stultifying burden.
MAP
9: When we reflect on these propositions, four preeminent realities become obvious.
10: As do the emergence and cessation of our incessant "worlding."
DESTINATION
11: Our genuine refuge from this whirlwind of worlding is to be unbound;
12: to eradicate infatuation, hostility, and delusion. Eradicated, quenched, unbound.
13: Binding is concomitant with the fabricated.
14: Unbinding is concomitant with the unfabricated
GOING
15: Cultivation of present-moment awareness is the means to conspicuous unbinding.
16: Application of this awareness in daily life is concomitant with living as a buddha: awakened.
So there you have it.
This is the basic outline of Wallis’s methodology and this actual text.
As overwhelming is all of this might seem. The book is actually really accessible. It’s really well done. Absolutely priceless in my opinion.
HUGE, THANK YOU TO THE AUTHOR.
This book is a TREASURE!
5/5 STARS ⭐️
That concludes this review.
But here is a special bonus.
I’ll include some basic stuff on the three major schools of Buddhism. And the practices associated with those schools.
SCHOOLS OF BUDDHISM:
Following the death of the historical Buddha (ca. 400 B.C.E.)
The three major schools of Buddhism to emerge (in historical order) are as follows:
1: Theravãda (ca. 400 B.C.E - the present).
2: Mahayana (ca. 100 B.C.E. - the present).
3: Vajrayana (ca. 700 C.E. - the present).
NOTE:
The remainder of this post is just ChatGPT junk.
But it’s a nice little resource.
Bullet point breakdown of the major schools of Buddhism, including their main branches and distinguishing features:
�
1. Theravāda (“Teaching of the Elders�)
� Oldest surviving school of Buddhism.
� Predominant in Sri Lanka, Thailand, Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia.
� Canonical language: Pali.
� Emphasizes:
� The historical Buddha (Siddhartha Gautama) as the supreme teacher.
� Personal liberation through the Four Noble Truths and Eightfold Path.
� The ideal of the arhat � one who achieves enlightenment through their own effort.
� Focus on monastic discipline (Vinaya) and meditation (especially Vipassanā).
�
2. Mahāyāna (“Great Vehicle�)
� Emerged around the 1st century CE.
� Emphasizes universal compassion and the bodhisattva ideal � aspiring to enlightenment for the benefit of all beings.
� Includes diverse schools, mainly found in China, Korea, Japan, Vietnam.
� Canonical texts in Sanskrit, Chinese, and Tibetan.
Key Mahāyāna schools:
a. Pure Land Buddhism
� Devotion to Amitābha Buddha and rebirth in the Pure Land (a realm of bliss conducive to enlightenment).
� Popular in East Asia.
� Emphasizes faith and chanting (e.g., “Namo Amituofo�).
b. Chan / Zen
� Chan (China) � Zen (Japan).
� Emphasizes direct experience, meditation (zazen), and non-conceptual insight.
� Uses paradoxical stories (koans) to transcend ordinary thinking.
c. Tiantai (China) / Tendai (Japan)
� Based on the Lotus Sutra.
� Sees all phenomena as expressions of ultimate reality.
� Integrates meditation, ritual, and doctrinal study.
d. Huayan (China) / Kegon (Japan)
� Focus on interdependence and the interpenetration of all phenomena (e.g., Indra’s net metaphor).
�
3. Vajrayāna (“Diamond Vehicle�) / Esoteric Buddhism
� Developed out of Mahāyāna around the 6th�7th century CE.
� Prominent in Tibet, Mongolia, Bhutan, parts of Nepal and India.
� Includes esoteric rituals, mantra, mudra, mandala, tantra.
� Aims for rapid enlightenment by harnessing all aspects of experience.
� Deity visualization, guru devotion, and initiations are central.
� Tibetan sub-schools include:
� Nyingma (oldest)
� Kagyu
� Sakya
� Gelug (the Dalai Lama belongs to this school)
PRACTICES ASSOCIATED WITH EACH TRADITION
Theravāda Tradition
� Vipassanā (Insight Meditation)
� Observes bodily sensations, thoughts, and emotions to cultivate insight into impermanence, suffering, and non-self.
� Often uses mindfulness of breathing and body (satipaṭṭhāna) as a foundation.
� Samatha (Calm-Abiding Meditation)
� Cultivates deep concentration (samādhi) through focused attention (often on the breath or a kasina object).
� Leads to jhānas (states of meditative absorption).
� Metta Bhāvanā (Loving-kindness Meditation)
� Systematically cultivates unconditional loving-kindness toward oneself and others.
� Often expanded to compassion (karuṇ�), sympathetic joy (muditā), and equanimity (upekkhā).
�
Mahāyāna Tradition
� Śamatha-Vipaśyanā Pairing
� Combines calm-abiding and insight practices to realize emptiness (śūnyatā).
� Insight here focuses on the lack of inherent existence in phenomena.
� Bodhicitta and Compassion Meditation
� Cultivates the aspiration to achieve enlightenment for the benefit of all beings.
� Includes “exchanging self and other� and “equalizing self and other� meditations.
� Zazen (Zen Meditation)
� Seated meditation emphasizing posture, breath, and non-conceptual awareness.
� Includes shikantaza (“just sitting�) and koan contemplation.
�
Vajrayāna / Tibetan Buddhism
� Deity Yoga
� Visualization of enlightened beings (deities) to embody their qualities.
� Involves mantra recitation, visualization, and identification with the deity.
� Dzogchen / Mahāmudrā
� Direct insight into the nature of mind as empty, luminous, and aware.
� Emphasizes non-dual awareness and spontaneous presence.
� Tummo & Inner Heat Yoga (Completion Stage Practices)
� Advanced tantric methods involving control of subtle energies (prāṇa, chakras, bindu).
� Used to generate bliss and realize the emptiness-nature of phenomena.
�
Common Cross-Traditional Techniques
� Mindfulness of Breathing (Ānāpānasati)
� Focus on inhalation and exhalation as a means to develop mindfulness and concentration.
� Practiced across all schools.
� Walking Meditation
� Cultivates mindfulness while walking slowly and deliberately.
� Often alternated with seated practice.
The author - Glenn Wallis: (a) identifies the essential source material (Suttas - i.e. scriptures or Sutras for all you yogins) informing all the various schools of Buddhism, (b) provides good English translations, and (c) minimal but useful commentary. Priceless!
Of course, when you’re talking scriptural “source� “texts� for Buddhism, it’s important to understand that many of the Suttas were written 2-3 hundred years (or more) after the historical Buddha died. Most of which are actually written versions of an oral tradition. As such, they are simple, and repetitive because they had to be easily memorized and chanted, so that they could be preserved and handed down from teacher to student.
Additionally, the Suttas (and other Buddhist texts) were not intended to be consumed by a general audience. They were (in large part) more like technical manuals. Almost bullet points. Intended to be transmitted from teacher to student. Ware in the teacher would flesh out the meaning of each point for each individual student, based on their particular experience and interpretation.
Additionally, the Buddhist Suttas were originally taught by the historical Buddha in an archaic form of an Indian language (known today is Pali). And then written in a later version of that same language (think of the difference between Shakespeare’s English and today’s English). And then translated into any number of other East Asian languages. And now translated into English.
And.
Well.
That’s a lot of translation.
Given all of the above, the Suttas do not read like anything anyone would write nowadays. And they take an awful lot of context and interpretation in order to be intelligible/useful for a modern reader.
Lastly, Buddhism has been around for like, close to three millennia at this point. It has migrated to pretty much every culture on the globe. And has bifurcated into lots of different schools. Each of which produced original Suttas, and literally millions of pages of commentary on the previous Suttas.
You could literally spend a lifetime studying Buddhist hermeneutics, and you wouldn’t even scratch the surface. In fact, I went to a Buddhist university and I know people who are doing exactly that. And it’s like a HUGE thing.
So anyway.
That’s a little bit of the context for what author Glenn Wallis was working with when he attempted (quite successfully in my opinion) to capture the essence of Buddhism. So that you and I can easily and conveniently cut right to the Chase as it were. Without having to study Buddhist texts for thousands of hours and/or join a Buddhist monastic order (and then only get a tiny little sliver of the broader spectrum of Buddhism).
HOW TO READ THE SUTTAS
Wallis suggests asking the following basic questions in order to fully understand any Buddhist Sutta:
1: What is the text about? If I had to say so in a word, which word?
2: With what major theme or themes is it concerned?
3: How is the text structured? What would an outline of it look like?
4: With which of these dimensions, individually or in combination, is the text concerned: doctrinal, ethical, experiential, mythological, ritual, liturgical, social, institutional? Some other one? How is it expressed?
5: What does the text demand of me? For example, does it indicate that some sort of practice is required for a thorough understanding? Does it ask me to alter my life in some fundamental way?
6: What limitations do I impose on the text? For example, would I be willing to do the practices that may be required for a thorough understanding of the text? Would I be willing to alter my life in the ways the text is suggesting?
16 (CORE) SUTTAS
Of the literally thousands of Suttas in the Buddhist canon. Wallis selects 16 Suttas as essential. Wallis is quick to note that other Buddhist scholars would very likely choose other Suttas if given the same task. As such, there is a stated personal preference at play in his methodology. However, he contends that he also selected these Suttas based on their thematic relevance to the fundamental principals of Buddhism, and based on their recurrence as citations in other Stuuas and commentaries.
Here are the sixteen suttas included in the book
1: The Hawk (Sakuṇagghi Sutta, Saṁyutta Nikāya 5.47.6) � A parable illustrating the importance of being in one’s natural environment, symbolizing the safety found in the Dhamma.
2: A Brief Talk to Māluṅkyāputta (Cūḷamālukya Sutta) � A discourse addressing the futility of speculative metaphysical questions and emphasizing practical aspects of the path.
3: Threefold Knowledge (Tevijja Sutta) � Explores the path to union with Brahma, emphasizing ethical conduct and meditation over ritualistic practices.
4: Discourse in Kesamutta (Kesamutti Sutta) � Also known as the Kalama Sutta, it encourages critical thinking and personal verification of teachings.
5: The All (Sabba Sutta) � Discusses the entirety of experience through the six senses, emphasizing the importance of understanding sensory experience.
6: Like a Ball of Foam (Phenapiṇḍūpama Sutta) � Uses the simile of a foam ball to illustrate the insubstantial and impermanent nature of the five aggregates.
7: Evidence of Selflessness (Anattalakkhaṇa Sutta) � The second discourse of the Buddha, focusing on the doctrine of non-self.
8: The Burden (Bhāra Sutta) � Discusses the burden of the five aggregates and the one who carries it, leading to the understanding of liberation.
9: Turning the Wheel of the Teaching (Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta) � The Buddha’s first sermon, introducing the Four Noble Truths and the Middle Way.
10: Gotama’s Discourse (Gotama Sutta) � A dialogue emphasizing the importance of direct knowledge and personal experience in the path.
11: Destination (Pārāyana Sutta) � Explores the journey towards the ultimate goal of liberation.
12: Quenched (Nibbuta Sutta) � Discusses the state of nibbāna, the cessation of suffering and the ultimate peace.
13: Signs of the Fabricated (Saṅkhatalakkhaṇa Sutta) � Examines the characteristics of conditioned phenomena.
14: Signs of the Unfabricated (Asaṅkhatalakkhaṇa Sutta) � Contrasts with the previous sutta by discussing the unconditioned, namely nibbāna.
15: Present-moment Awareness with Breathing (Ānāpānasati Sutta) � Outlines a meditation practice focusing on the breath to develop mindfulness and concentration.
16: The Application of Present-moment Awareness (Mahāsatipaṭṭhāna Sutta) � Provides comprehensive instructions on establishing mindfulness in various aspects of experience.
Wallis aim to encapsulate the core teachings of the Buddha by focusing on this pretty tiny sliver of the Buddhist cannon, addressing CORE themes such as suffering, mindfulness, ethical conduct, and the path to liberation.
16 PROPOSITIONS
Wallis offers the following 16 propositions as his keys to understanding each of the 16 corisponding suttas.
These propositions and commentaries provide (super badly needed) additional context and interpretation, making these ancient (and at times inscrutable) texts relevant to contemporary scholars (and more importantly) spiritual practitioners.
Wallis� 16 propositions (each numerically corresponding to the previously listed Suttas) are as follows:
HABITAT
1: We are like ghosts sleepwalking in a desolate and dangerous domain.
DE-ORIENTATION
2: We remain transfixed there, enchanted by pleasure and flamboyant speculation.
3: The most enthralling belief of all is that of supernatural agency.
4: There is a safeguard against this bewitchment: knowing for yourself.
RE-ORIENTATION
5: The means of "knowing for yourself" is immediately available: it is the sensorium.
6: But the modes of perception are miragelike, and the perceived like a magical display.
7: And there is no self, no integral perceiver, behind those modes of perception.
8: To hold on to the miragelike perceiver, the phantom self, is a stultifying burden.
MAP
9: When we reflect on these propositions, four preeminent realities become obvious.
10: As do the emergence and cessation of our incessant "worlding."
DESTINATION
11: Our genuine refuge from this whirlwind of worlding is to be unbound;
12: to eradicate infatuation, hostility, and delusion. Eradicated, quenched, unbound.
13: Binding is concomitant with the fabricated.
14: Unbinding is concomitant with the unfabricated
GOING
15: Cultivation of present-moment awareness is the means to conspicuous unbinding.
16: Application of this awareness in daily life is concomitant with living as a buddha: awakened.
So there you have it.
This is the basic outline of Wallis’s methodology and this actual text.
As overwhelming is all of this might seem. The book is actually really accessible. It’s really well done. Absolutely priceless in my opinion.
HUGE, THANK YOU TO THE AUTHOR.
This book is a TREASURE!
5/5 STARS ⭐️
That concludes this review.
But here is a special bonus.
I’ll include some basic stuff on the three major schools of Buddhism. And the practices associated with those schools.
SCHOOLS OF BUDDHISM:
Following the death of the historical Buddha (ca. 400 B.C.E.)
The three major schools of Buddhism to emerge (in historical order) are as follows:
1: Theravãda (ca. 400 B.C.E - the present).
2: Mahayana (ca. 100 B.C.E. - the present).
3: Vajrayana (ca. 700 C.E. - the present).
NOTE:
The remainder of this post is just ChatGPT junk.
But it’s a nice little resource.
Bullet point breakdown of the major schools of Buddhism, including their main branches and distinguishing features:
�
1. Theravāda (“Teaching of the Elders�)
� Oldest surviving school of Buddhism.
� Predominant in Sri Lanka, Thailand, Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia.
� Canonical language: Pali.
� Emphasizes:
� The historical Buddha (Siddhartha Gautama) as the supreme teacher.
� Personal liberation through the Four Noble Truths and Eightfold Path.
� The ideal of the arhat � one who achieves enlightenment through their own effort.
� Focus on monastic discipline (Vinaya) and meditation (especially Vipassanā).
�
2. Mahāyāna (“Great Vehicle�)
� Emerged around the 1st century CE.
� Emphasizes universal compassion and the bodhisattva ideal � aspiring to enlightenment for the benefit of all beings.
� Includes diverse schools, mainly found in China, Korea, Japan, Vietnam.
� Canonical texts in Sanskrit, Chinese, and Tibetan.
Key Mahāyāna schools:
a. Pure Land Buddhism
� Devotion to Amitābha Buddha and rebirth in the Pure Land (a realm of bliss conducive to enlightenment).
� Popular in East Asia.
� Emphasizes faith and chanting (e.g., “Namo Amituofo�).
b. Chan / Zen
� Chan (China) � Zen (Japan).
� Emphasizes direct experience, meditation (zazen), and non-conceptual insight.
� Uses paradoxical stories (koans) to transcend ordinary thinking.
c. Tiantai (China) / Tendai (Japan)
� Based on the Lotus Sutra.
� Sees all phenomena as expressions of ultimate reality.
� Integrates meditation, ritual, and doctrinal study.
d. Huayan (China) / Kegon (Japan)
� Focus on interdependence and the interpenetration of all phenomena (e.g., Indra’s net metaphor).
�
3. Vajrayāna (“Diamond Vehicle�) / Esoteric Buddhism
� Developed out of Mahāyāna around the 6th�7th century CE.
� Prominent in Tibet, Mongolia, Bhutan, parts of Nepal and India.
� Includes esoteric rituals, mantra, mudra, mandala, tantra.
� Aims for rapid enlightenment by harnessing all aspects of experience.
� Deity visualization, guru devotion, and initiations are central.
� Tibetan sub-schools include:
� Nyingma (oldest)
� Kagyu
� Sakya
� Gelug (the Dalai Lama belongs to this school)
PRACTICES ASSOCIATED WITH EACH TRADITION
Theravāda Tradition
� Vipassanā (Insight Meditation)
� Observes bodily sensations, thoughts, and emotions to cultivate insight into impermanence, suffering, and non-self.
� Often uses mindfulness of breathing and body (satipaṭṭhāna) as a foundation.
� Samatha (Calm-Abiding Meditation)
� Cultivates deep concentration (samādhi) through focused attention (often on the breath or a kasina object).
� Leads to jhānas (states of meditative absorption).
� Metta Bhāvanā (Loving-kindness Meditation)
� Systematically cultivates unconditional loving-kindness toward oneself and others.
� Often expanded to compassion (karuṇ�), sympathetic joy (muditā), and equanimity (upekkhā).
�
Mahāyāna Tradition
� Śamatha-Vipaśyanā Pairing
� Combines calm-abiding and insight practices to realize emptiness (śūnyatā).
� Insight here focuses on the lack of inherent existence in phenomena.
� Bodhicitta and Compassion Meditation
� Cultivates the aspiration to achieve enlightenment for the benefit of all beings.
� Includes “exchanging self and other� and “equalizing self and other� meditations.
� Zazen (Zen Meditation)
� Seated meditation emphasizing posture, breath, and non-conceptual awareness.
� Includes shikantaza (“just sitting�) and koan contemplation.
�
Vajrayāna / Tibetan Buddhism
� Deity Yoga
� Visualization of enlightened beings (deities) to embody their qualities.
� Involves mantra recitation, visualization, and identification with the deity.
� Dzogchen / Mahāmudrā
� Direct insight into the nature of mind as empty, luminous, and aware.
� Emphasizes non-dual awareness and spontaneous presence.
� Tummo & Inner Heat Yoga (Completion Stage Practices)
� Advanced tantric methods involving control of subtle energies (prāṇa, chakras, bindu).
� Used to generate bliss and realize the emptiness-nature of phenomena.
�
Common Cross-Traditional Techniques
� Mindfulness of Breathing (Ānāpānasati)
� Focus on inhalation and exhalation as a means to develop mindfulness and concentration.
� Practiced across all schools.
� Walking Meditation
� Cultivates mindfulness while walking slowly and deliberately.
� Often alternated with seated practice.
April 10, 2019
What is the all? The eye and forms, the ear and sounds, the nose and scents, the tongue and tastes, the body and tactile objects, the mind and thoughts. This is called the all.
This is a short, concise and surprisingly effective introduction to Buddhism.
It is very easy to get snowed under by the shere volume of books and information about Buddhism available these days. There's also the divisions between the different methods of the practice that appeared as time moved on. A lot of people encounter it through Tibetan or Zen Buddhist texts. But it is always good to go back and read some of the original Pali suttas. They were written long after Siddhartha Gautama's death, almost five hundred years in fact, but they do offer, through methods of memorization and oral transmission, a source close as one can come to the original teacher and his teachings.
I don't like paraphrasing and others explaining to me the meaning of original sources. I like to encounter them myself. I would also suggest that the Buddhist notion of knowledge, which is highly sceptical of truth claims, means it is impossible to follow the path without directly contemplating the Buddha's word. And then using them. Not believing them, but using them. If they do not work, through your own personal testing of them, then discard them. That is the extent of dogma in Buddhism. What a relief.
One word of warning, these writing are austere and demanding. This is not the odd power of positive thinking Buddhism lite message that you encounter in many texts written for a North American audience. If there is a life teaching that demands you "pick yourself up by your own bootstraps" it is surely the Pali Buddhist texts. Self liberation. The real deal. But it ain't easy. What it is for me is something very solid with little to no patience for metaphysical speculation or the seeming human need to self delude.
I bought this for someone else, who had voiced some interest in the Buddhist worldview, and ended up reading it front to back myself. To get back to basics. That's always a good idea, and in the consumerist culture we live in it even applies to Buddhist writings. There's some very esoteric stuff out there which, I think, is aimed at those who want to claim to be followers of the dharma while pretty much acting like they always have. As far as I can see, the more esoteric a belief system the less it has to say of any real import or use.
The book is a glass of cool, spring water. Taste it, you might discover it offers something you need. Then find a quite corner and learn to count your breath. Simplify, simplify, simplify.
This is a short, concise and surprisingly effective introduction to Buddhism.
It is very easy to get snowed under by the shere volume of books and information about Buddhism available these days. There's also the divisions between the different methods of the practice that appeared as time moved on. A lot of people encounter it through Tibetan or Zen Buddhist texts. But it is always good to go back and read some of the original Pali suttas. They were written long after Siddhartha Gautama's death, almost five hundred years in fact, but they do offer, through methods of memorization and oral transmission, a source close as one can come to the original teacher and his teachings.
I don't like paraphrasing and others explaining to me the meaning of original sources. I like to encounter them myself. I would also suggest that the Buddhist notion of knowledge, which is highly sceptical of truth claims, means it is impossible to follow the path without directly contemplating the Buddha's word. And then using them. Not believing them, but using them. If they do not work, through your own personal testing of them, then discard them. That is the extent of dogma in Buddhism. What a relief.
One word of warning, these writing are austere and demanding. This is not the odd power of positive thinking Buddhism lite message that you encounter in many texts written for a North American audience. If there is a life teaching that demands you "pick yourself up by your own bootstraps" it is surely the Pali Buddhist texts. Self liberation. The real deal. But it ain't easy. What it is for me is something very solid with little to no patience for metaphysical speculation or the seeming human need to self delude.
I bought this for someone else, who had voiced some interest in the Buddhist worldview, and ended up reading it front to back myself. To get back to basics. That's always a good idea, and in the consumerist culture we live in it even applies to Buddhist writings. There's some very esoteric stuff out there which, I think, is aimed at those who want to claim to be followers of the dharma while pretty much acting like they always have. As far as I can see, the more esoteric a belief system the less it has to say of any real import or use.
The book is a glass of cool, spring water. Taste it, you might discover it offers something you need. Then find a quite corner and learn to count your breath. Simplify, simplify, simplify.
December 10, 2012
Despite its title and being only 240 pages long, this book is no light weight and no easy ride. Wallis demands that the reader think hard about the topic matter and isn't afraid to leave questions unanswered for the reader to ponder on their own. He also isn't afraid to treat the reader intelligently and delve into the details long after I assumed he had already made his point. Look elsewhere if you're after "basic" teachings of the Buddha reduced to a basic level. This is worth coming back to time and time again.
December 18, 2009
As another reader says - a small but powerful book. Glenn Wallis translates the Suttas and stories with an eye to making them easily understandable but very effective.
A book I borrowed from the library initially but I own a copy now as the mindfulness described needs to be re-read and applied constantly. I also now own The Dhammapada by Glenn Wallis. These books will be on my Currently Reading List forever...
A book I borrowed from the library initially but I own a copy now as the mindfulness described needs to be re-read and applied constantly. I also now own The Dhammapada by Glenn Wallis. These books will be on my Currently Reading List forever...
December 26, 2015
This book is an exceptional book if one wants to understand the skill of the Buddha's teaching, and also the method of putting into practice the self-inquiry which the Buddha taught to all who wished to achieve liberation from suffering. If you read no other book on Buddhism, this book, a collection of sutras chosen carefully by Wallis to present the full and fundamental teaching of the Buddha, is the one you should read along with commentary in the back.
November 21, 2008
This book is full of carefully chosen excerpts from the Buddha's teachings. It is well translated and contains lots of essays and footnotes to help you digest and understand the significance of the passages. Good for a beginner.
November 1, 2008
I plan to read this over and over again. Each time I read the same sutta, I learn something new. It's all about self-discovery and asking yourself questions about how you want to live.
January 20, 2010
Very small powerful book which includes new translations of what may be the nearest thing to 'original ' texts . I have been reading/rereading this book for over a year.
June 22, 2017
Overall a well explained basic description of Buddhism, it got me more familiar with the religion and it took me in new directions.
Wallis is knowledgeable about the subject and his view was very useful. At times however I felt like he was adding himself too much, although his thoughts were very constructive. I felt a strong existentialist interpretation, however, he stated his subjectivity at the beginning, and thus it is fine.
I was surprised by how much Buddha avoided religious questions, stating that they were both nonsensical and outside his jurisdiction. It made Buddhism seem more like a philosophy than a religion.
The idea of present moment awareness I found very enlightening, and how delight can come through an awareness of the self.
Although clearly different from the stoics, I am concerned about awareness in all aspects. Will it be possible to lose oneself in art through this method? I doubt it.
Wallis is knowledgeable about the subject and his view was very useful. At times however I felt like he was adding himself too much, although his thoughts were very constructive. I felt a strong existentialist interpretation, however, he stated his subjectivity at the beginning, and thus it is fine.
I was surprised by how much Buddha avoided religious questions, stating that they were both nonsensical and outside his jurisdiction. It made Buddhism seem more like a philosophy than a religion.
The idea of present moment awareness I found very enlightening, and how delight can come through an awareness of the self.
Although clearly different from the stoics, I am concerned about awareness in all aspects. Will it be possible to lose oneself in art through this method? I doubt it.
November 13, 2024
Was assigned as a course reading but I actually really enjoyed the teachings from the book, and the western explanations help to describe the sutta in a more digestible way for western readers, or for those who are unfamiliar with Pali!
September 22, 2017
Decent intro, not the best
January 24, 2024
I am beginning to understand.
March 21, 2010
Excellent sourcebook for either a beginner or a long-time practitioner. Recommended for those who want a seriously academic-style read. This is not a self-help-type book like Pema Chodron's work, or even a primer like some of Robert Aitken's books, but a delicious text, over half of which are footnotes and thought-provoking questions and observations.
December 21, 2008
Wallis' translation is productive and his commentary is practical and insightful. His conversance with contemporary European literature and philosophy is a bonus.
April 6, 2009
It was ok, but too much knowledge vs. teacings
August 12, 2009
This book provides the reader with a broad introduction to the roots of buddhism and several basic teachings derived from ancient lessons in the oral tradition.
February 11, 2010
The author gives his own commentary of some portion of the suttas, it seems a good one. He keeps it simple and expound the core teaching of Siddharta Gautama.
August 7, 2010
Great overview. The notes were really useful; don't skip them :)
January 27, 2016
Very easy to read, very straight forward. It teaches all the basic ideas of Buddhist practice.
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