Divan Thomas Jones reviewing Analayo's book commenting on Stephen Batchelor

"In the ‘preamble’ to his more recent book, The Art of Solitude (2020), Batchelor writes, “I do not consider The Art of Solitude to be a Buddhist book”.[3] He describes (on p.146) how, in the midst of an ayahuasca ritual, he feels that he vomits up Buddhism, and is reborn no longer wanting to be a combatant in the “dharma wars”. Nevertheless, those earlier books have been the inspiration – and were surely designed to be the inspiration – for a movement, called ‘secular Buddhism’, not unconnected with Bodhi College, the Buddhist study programme run by Batchelor and friends." (Some Gentle Buddhist Polemics)

Stephen Batchelor quote

"I see the aim of Buddhist practice to be not the attainment of a final nirvana but rather the moment-to-moment flourishing of human life within the ethical framework of the Eightfold Path here on earth." from Tricycle.

That is in part based on his rejection of rebirth, of which he states: "Given what is known about the biological evolution of human beings, the emergence of self-awareness and language, the sublime complexity of the brain, and the embeddedness of such creatures in the fragile biosphere that envelops this planet, I cannot understand how after physical death there can be continuity of any personal consciousness or self, propelled by the unrelenting force of acts (karma) committed in this or previous lives."

Also in article:

Edward Conze drew the conclusion that “Buddhism hasn’t had an original idea in a thousand years.”

And

"Western enthusiasm for things Buddhist may still be a Romantic projection of our yearnings for truth and holiness onto those distant places and peoples about which we know the least."

And

"It [secular Buddhism] is neither a reformed Theravada Buddhism (like the Vipassana movement), a reformed Tibetan tradition (like Shambhala Buddhism), a reformed Nichiren school (like the Soka Gakkai), a reformed Zen lineage (like the Order of Interbeing) nor a reformed hybrid of some or all of the above (like the Triratna Order, formerly the Friends of the Western Buddhist Order)"

And

"It is in this sense that my secular Buddhism still has a religious quality to it, because it is the conscious expression of my “ultimate concern”—as the theologian Paul Tillich once defined “faith.”"

There's much more in the article, but I've quoted enough. Quite appealing to me.

Long Direct Quote from Living with the Devil by Stephen Batchelor

One moment we are "pathing," only in the next to find ourselves "stuck" and "blocked." We may not have lost our sense of purpose and direction, but feel incapable of making any headway. It is as though a barrier has been placed across our path and we can find no way to surmount it. We feel hindered, trapped, frustrated. The more we struggle to be free of the obstacle, the more we seem to bang our head against the wall. It is as though Mara deliberately puts immovable objects in our way to frustrate our aspirations. We find ourselves paralyzed by an obsession or fear, we meet with accidents and calamities, we are debilitated by disease and the ravages of aging.

Progress along the Buddhist path to awakening is said to be "obstructed" by the devil of compulsions. A compulsion is any mental or emotional state that, on breaking into consciousness, disturbs and captivates us. Whether inflamed by anger or inflated by pride, we feel ill at ease and hemmed in. A compulsion encloses us within its boundaries. When overwhelmed by depression, not only are we inwardly sunk in despair but whatever we see, hear and touch is abhorrent.

Shantideva compares compulsions to "bands of thieves" who lie in waiting for an opportunity to invade us and "steal the treasures" of our minds. As soon as there is a lapse in self-awareness, a compulsive thought or image is liable to erupt, triggering a torrent of longing or despair that leaves us rattled and bewildered. As creatures of Mara, compulsions act as if they were autonomous forces. We suffer anxiety or panic "attacks" and feel overwhelmed by unwelcome thoughts. We are seized by feelings and images that we cannot seem to shake off.

The depiction of Mara as autonomous being who argues with Buddha illustrates how such drives feel as though they happen to one. I do not choose to be lustful, lethargic, conceited, or deluded; I find myself feeling that way. I do not decide in advance to think a thought; it comes to me as a ready-made phrase. I talk of "my" desires, "my" fears, and "my" doubts as though I somehow owned and controlled them. But when I try to let go of them, I find that it is not so much I who have them, but they who have me.

Happy Birthday

Today is Stephen Batchelor's Birthday.

I appreciated his Buddhism Without Belief and read it a few times. It's a manifesto for people who don't feel like adding in weird entities to their belief system and still be a Buddhist. I reread Alone With Others recently enough; It is a synthesis of modern thought, including Hegel, with Buddhism.  I was eying Living With The Devil yesterday, I'm going to reread that soon. And his latest book is another good read, Confessions of an Atheist Buddhist. He's written also an interesting book about Buddhist movements, called Awakening Of The West. Faith in Doubt is an early memoir, probably encompassed in his last memoir, but maybe more detail about his break with the Tibetans because he's not feeling reincarnation. He also has a translation of the Bodhicaryavatara, and Song of the Profound View by Rabten, Geshé. There are other books, but I haven't read them.

Thank you for the amazing unique voice in Buddhist writing!

Rereading: Alone With Others

I've really been enjoying rereading this book by Stephen Batchelor:  Alone With Others.  I've read everything of his  on Buddhism, some of his translations, but not his books his Ancient Greek for Dummies, Medieval History for Dummies and Tibet Guide.  I've reread Buddhism Without Belief.  And now I felt this book call to me from the bookshelf, and I've been thoroughly enjoying it.  It's short too, you could absorb it over a day.

Confession of a Buddhist Atheist

"To steady one's gaze on the finitude, contingency, and anguish of one's existence is not easy; it requires mindfulness and concentration."

Stephen Batchelor in Confession of a Buddhist Atheist

I'm reading it on a kindle, so no page reference.

I'm thinking of developing a puja from some of his writings.

I am enjoying this book. I like the intellectual tour de force. I've read his other books. I like his freedom of thought. He's more into confrontation than consolation. He dislikes other power. He does not discuss sangha much, mostly in terms of disagreement. When I met him he said the other star Buddhists he hangs out with are his sangha and the editorial staff at Tricycle, but I thought that wasn't really a satisfactory answer. He was quite gracious to meet with the FWBO NYC sangha. He gave us a signed book, which was very generous. (Give it back Andrew!) Nevertheless this was an awesome book in many ways, and I really like him as a writer. I highly recommend all his works, and this latest is another sterling book that I quite enjoyed. An excellent blend of the personal and thoughts, practice and experiences.

Pathing

Stephen Batchelor's book, Living With the Devil, is really good. He's talking about the metaphor of the path, and notes that in other languages you can say "pathing" as a verb.

He write, "The art of creating a path is to do neither too much nor too little." There are many great quotes about path. Tomorrow I go on a sangha hike with Alyssa and Maria, so the term path is even more poignant. I might xerox some pages to read while we're on the hike.

We were lucky enough for Batchelor to agree to meet with the NYC FWBO sangha, when he was in town promoting the book, and he was generous enough to give our sangha a copy of the book. I never got my hands on it, even though I was generous enough to share it when he handed it to me. I broke down and bought a copy for myself. He's one of my favorite Buddhist authors. I highly recommend his books, and especially this one.

Also of note, there are some good talks of his on the Upaya web site, in the podcasts. He also share some talks on his site.

The incomparable Bodhipaksa reviews Batchelor's most famous book Buddhism Without Belief on Wildmind. I couldn't help but add my 2 cents reading his review...