Review: A Short Walk on an Ancient Path, by Brian Ruhe
Review: A Short Walk on an Ancient Path, by Brian Ruhe |
| Review: A Short Walk on an Ancient Path, by Brian Ruhe Posted: 12 Feb 2012 08:00 AM PST  Good books on the Dharma are not that easy to come by, unfortunately. Sure, there are a plethora of publications and websites that are about Theravada Buddhism, for example, but most are riddled with platitudes or misconceptions, even about basic Buddhist ideas like karma and rebirth (see below). Ruhe's book A Short Walk on an Ancient Path is a refreshing antidote to much of these somewhat poisonous misrepresentations of the Buddha's teaching. And, as it states in its subtitle, it is A Buddhist Exploration of Meditation, Karma and Rebirth, some of the essential doctrines of Buddhism. Ruhe is a Theravada Buddhist, having spent some time in the mid-Nineties as a bhikkhu (ordained monk) in Thailand, and now teaching Buddhism and meditation. He is based in Vancouver, Canada, and teaches groups and individuals covering topics such as Mindfulness edition for Well-Being, and Meditation to Reduce Physical Pain. He has also written two books, the first of which was Freeing the Buddha, and the second being the subject of this review. The book is a little over two hundred pages, and is crammed with black and white photographs from the world of Theravada Buddhism, primarily Thaila! nd. For a relatively short book, A Short Walk' covers the essential teachings and meditation practices extremely well. It is organized into nine chapters which cover The Four Noble Truths, Karma and Rebirth, and, most interestingly, Buddhist Cosmology. These are more on the theoretical, doctrinal level of Dharma, but the author also manages to include practical meditation instruction too, in the chapters How to Meditate, Opening the Heart, and The Five Hindrances. So, Ruhe starts at the beginning of all Buddhist teachings with The Four Noble Truths. He is clearly comfortable at explaining these concepts and introduces them in easy-to-understand language, without ever dumbing down to the point of inanity. He contrasts the Buddha's teachings with Christian ones, a device which he explains allows a western readership to more easily grasp Buddhist ideas. Here a sample of the author's technique in this area: "In the Bible, the emphasis is on a later time, at death. At death you will be rewarded for your patience go to church on Sundays, and you will get to go to heaven if you've been good. Buddhists are taught to be like the Buddha, to imitate the Buddha, and eventually become an arahant, as the Buddha was. Christians are not taught to be Jesus Christ, and they are not taught to realize their own godhood." (A Short Walk on an Ancient Path, p.4) In the chapter Karma and Rebirth, Ruhe introduces us to his own med! itation teacher Ajahn Sona, a western monk form the Thai forest tradition who is abbot of Birken Forest Monastery in Canada. A long and stimulating essay on the subject written by the ajahn opens this part of the book. In contrast to many modern-minded (perhaps postmodern-minded!) Buddhists, both the ajahn and Ruhe believe in karma and rebirth as traditionally taught in Buddhism. Alongside them, the well known monk Bhikkhu Bodhi also contributes to this chapter, which also contains references to many case studies regarding rebirth. Now, whilst basically neither believing in the entirety of these subjects as traditionally taught, this reviewer tends to veer towards a somewhat modernist, psychological interpretation. Nevertheless, Ajahn Sona, Bhikkhu Bodhi and Ruhe himself present their thoughts in an engaging and persuasive manner, enabling even the most skeptical of readers to open up to at least the possibility that we are reborn according to our actions as Buddhism has long insisted. The author writes the following. "Karma and rebirth is not just a religious belief. From a Buddhist view there is evidence all over the place. Look at your tendencies, your talents and abilities and your phobias. Some of this may have been carried over from a previous life. Even though the vast majority of people don't remember their previous lives, past life memories are implicit, not explicit." (Ibid. p.96) Another challenging chapter mentione! d earlie r is called Buddhist Cosmology, and contains much that many of those (post-)modernists would frown upon. Ruhe's view is that the heavenly and hellish realms, deities, ghosts, hell-dwellers, and the like that appear throughout the Tipitika - the Theravada Buddhist scripts, also known as the Pali Canon - are literally true. The reason people do not see them is "the lower concentration of our minds" that most of us possess. Deep states of concentration are an important skill developed in Buddhist meditation, which the Buddha is said to have perfected, hence the scriptures contain many instances where he converses with deities. Talking of meditation, it is important to note that unlike many introductory books on Buddhist teachings, A Short Walk' also contains several meditation instructions. The main meditation methods used in Theravada Buddhism are all here: meditation on breathing (two methods as taught by Ajahn Sona and Thanissaro Bhikkhu), meditation on loving-kindness (as taught by Ajahn Sona), and walking meditation (as taught by Ajahn Kusalo). The author also includes his own extensive commentaries on these methods, as well as useful tips on how to utilize them in our everyday lives. "When walking down the street you shouldn't use the usual walking meditation technique. You are moving faster and you need to be on the lookout fir cars and people but you can still practice mindfulness. Usually our minds are all over the place when we're walking around in the city and we don't pay much attention to sensations in the body…We walk so often, even close to home so this is a true opportunity to practice dhamma." (Ibid. p.47) In the final chapter of the book, Ruhe explores another important aspect of Buddhist practice not often examined that closely in books on Buddhism: the five hindrances. As he writes, "The five hindrances are the cause of delusion." (Ibid. p.177) The author states that it is through mindfulness that delusion can be seen and understood, and that this is the path to nirvana. He egos into a lot of detail on each of the five hindrances, but unfortunately there's not the time or space to examine them here, but this reviewer recommends that you purchase the book to study this subject more closely…it would be well worth your while! So, overall, Brian Ruhe has written an excellent introduction to Theravada Buddhism; its central teachings are found in the book, and there are extremely useful meditation guides as well. And it is all presented in a clear and precise manner, which makes it all immensely accessible to both longterm Buddhists and newbies. I sincerely believe that this book can assist its reader to develop the insight and skills necessary to enlightenment, and, as he has an excellent website as well, Brian Ruhe is available for further advice on the ancient path of the Buddha. (See the links below.) If this recommendation isn't enough for you, however, let's finish by looking at what that famous and highly-regarded Buddhist monk Ajahn Brahm has to say about it: "When even the CIA can't decipher many Buddhist books on meditation, this clear yet profound handbook of teachings stands out from th! e rest. Moreover, it introduces the Dharma teachings of great North American Forest Monks to the general readership for the first time. If you are serious about Nirvana, get this book!" (Ibid. back cover)  
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| Posted: 12 Feb 2012 06:00 AM PST I appreciate individuals, and groups, who stir to express themselves through artistic endeavour. I appreciate the, for want of a better word, the passion which has anybody opening up their doors and windows to allow themselves out into the public domain. Out there for scrutiny, open to scrutiny. To sustain that personal vulnerability over perhaps a life-time there must be something quite deep going on. I struggle to appreciate what that might be but perhaps the common theme is a wish to better understand ones own evolving inner process of thoughts and ideas. Whether it is giving our inner world expression through so called high art or everything else it doesn't much matter to me. And it is the everything else which has my attention. Even if I don't really understand what is being conveyed on the surface level, I can appreciate something deeper. So what about these videos composed by a chap who practices within our Soto Zen tradition. I asked him how do I describe what you do. He said, after some thinking about it, abstract geometrical landscapes. I've picked out Japan Crossing because of the overt Buddhist connections as well as the connection with travel and especially travel by train. There are a whole bunch of these abstract geometric landscapes. Give them a go why not. The videos called Bloodline of the Buddhas has a very direct link in with our spiritual roots.
Some years back this video was shown at a video festival (or what ever one calls such events) in Tokyo. This post was inspired by an event I attended last evening. I'd cooked 'tea' for the main speaker and his wife so obviously I'd support the event, especially since it was just around the corner from where I am staying. The subject of the talk was a local Heritage Railway. I'd joined a room full of railway enthusiast, the steam era specifically. The emotion in the room on seeing photographs of trains in full steam was something to behold! Everything else, in terms of creative human endeavor covers a lot of ground. Steam train fever, ice fever, knitting fever, philosophic ponderings, meditation? Passions can morph into obsessions of course. Along the way hopefully - deep personal fulfillment. Moments at least. Chris maintains a personal blog where he posts photographs and links to his videos. There are recent images of snow in Norfolk. Weather again! The next passionate endevour will be about knitting. Read More @ Source
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