The Original Buddhist Psychology: What the Abhidharma Tells Us About How We Think, Feel, and Experience Life

by Beth Jacobs

Drawing on decades of experience, a psychotherapist and Zen practitioner makes the Abhidharma--the original psychological system of Buddhism--accessible to a general audience for the first time.

The Abhidharma, one of the three major text collections of the original Buddhist canon, explores the critical juncture of Buddhist thought and the therapeutic aspects of the religion and meditation. It frames the psychological system of Buddhism, explaining the workings of reality and the nature of the human mind.

Composed of detailed matrixes and lists that outline the interaction of consciousness and reality, The Abhidharma explores the essence of perception and experience, and the reasons and methods behind mindfulness and meditation.

Because of its complexity, the Abhidharma has traditionally been reserved only for academic or monastic study; now, for the first time, clinical psychologist Beth Jacobs makes this dynamic, important text and its teachings available to general readers, using practical explanation, personal stories, and vivid examples to gently untangle the technical aspects of the Abhidharma.

Jacobs’ work illuminates this classic of Buddhist thought, highlighting the ways it can broaden and deepen our experience of the human psyche and offering profound insights into spiritual practice.

Genres: Buddhism, Psychology, Philosophy, Nonfiction, Spirituality

208 pages, Paperback

Published June 27, 2017

Reviews

[Kamakana · Rating 5 out of 5]

if you like this review, i now have website: www.michaelkamakana.com

221203: excellent. looks at subject psychology in completely non-western way. definitively buddhist this clarifies how it is neither philosophy nor psychology nor religion but something of a 'way'. and in great detail, extensive vocabulary and concepts, this 'way' leads of course to liberation from fetters of this world and ultimately to nirvana. that the Abhi (higher) teaching (dharma) explores everything about our awareness, consciousness, intent and action, the title is accurate...

there are khandas (aggregates) essential early knowledge for buddhism, which talks about how we 'construct' our real and endow it with (false) permanence. there is a helpful chart that shows khandas and their relationship to our illusory i... adoption of any of which promotes 'clinging' to the 'doctrine of the self'. this is bad..

there are 'cittas', kind of like original atoms of sense, and 121 kinds are listed at the end of the book , divided pimarily into 21, into 'wholesome' and 'unwholesome' and 'neutral'. these are so microscopic they are not seen. then, slightly larger, compiled of citta, are 'cetasika' another entire dimension of sense. these are recognisable human senses, anger, joy, restraint etc. as there are fifty-two cestikas they are necessarily supported by the 121 cittas. there are a lot of lists and cross-references in this book. this is possibly more for reference than reading through...

there is the 'method of association' first: there are universal cestasikas- contact, feeling, perception, one-pointedness, life faculty, attention- that persists as one learns to mediate. there are occasional cestasikas- decision, energy, desire, initial application, sustained application, zest, that fall off as meditative absorption set in. there is 'the combination method' next: this scheme insists certain cittas and certain cestasikas are always pairs...

the next chapter she wonders how the Abhidharma has no chapters specifically on emotion- then decides the entire text is on emotion! as she notes, the first noble truth is there is suffering. this is where the text comes closest to psychology. 'feelings' are binary: desire to be closer to the which feels good, to be away from that which feels bad. 'emotion' is similar but more complex: adding likes and dislikes of varying intensity and other thought processes. emotions have greater primacy and influence than in the west. the 'gateway to karma (action) and emotion is the essential pivot from past remembrance to future intent...

by this point you have clear idea on what the Abhidharma says, most of the rest of the book are 'applications' and lists. there is an interesting chapter on the huge varying scale in time and space, but this means as much as parallels between neuropsychology and buddhist insight. if you want an accessible book on buddhist psychology this is one...

more
Already Free: Buddhism Meets Psychotherapy on the Path of Liberation
The Art of Living
Innovative Buddhist Women: Swimming Against the Stream
Women in the Footsteps of the Buddha: Struggle for Liberation in the Therigatha
Gender Equality in Buddhism
The Vimalakirti Sutra
Why Buddhism is True: The Science and Philosophy of Meditation and Enlightenment
Buddhism: A Philosophical Approach
What the Buddha Thought
Nietzsche and Buddhist Philosophy
Buddhist Philosophy: A Historical Analysis
Buddhism as Philosophy: An Introduction
Ethics Embodied: Rethinking Selfhood Through Continental, Japanese, and Feminist Philosophies
After Buddhism: Rethinking the Dharma for a Secular Age
What the Buddha Thought
Why Buddhism is True: The Science and Philosophy of Meditation and Enlightenment
Buddhist Philosophy: Essential Readings
Buddhism as Philosophy: An Introduction
Self, No Self?: Perspectives from Analytical, Phenomenological, and Indian Traditions
After Buddhism: Rethinking the Dharma for a Secular Age
Philosophers of Nothingness: An Essay on the Kyoto School
The Kyoto School
Nishida And Western Philosophy
Buddhism: A Philosophical Approach
What the Buddha Thought
Wisdom Beyond Words: The Buddhist Vision of Ultimate Reality
Buddhism as Philosophy: An Introduction
An Introduction to Buddhist Philosophy
Why I Am Not a Buddhist
Why I Am a Buddhist: No-Nonsense Buddhism with Red Meat and Whiskey

[Kurtbg · Rating 2 out of 5]

The target audience is probably already practitioners of Abhidharma. I’m not, and thought this would provide context in the form of comparison and contrast with western (peer-reviewed and mutable) practices of psychology vs a framework created 2000 years ago. The preface supported this, but that’s not what the book is. I found it to be more an introductory to what Abhidharma is: a framework of matrices and numbered sections, paths and constructions to apply a left-brain cataloging of reality. Every approach to define anything is subjected to what the black boxes of understanding are in the respective times. The larger the black box, the abstract and the poetic play a greater role to fill that unknown. I think I would have gained more insight if practical examples were provided to better illustrate the concepts and show value in adopting the belief and practice.

[Enso · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is actually four stars if intricate walking through of lists of mental factors is a thing for you. It is for me but it is a very dry subject hard to make interesting and the author does an excellent attempt at this.

[Andy Gordon-Maclean · Rating 5 out of 5]

An outstanding presentation of one of Buddhism's least approachable texts. A must read for dedicated dharma practitioners.

[Magnus Szubzda · Rating 2 out of 5]

To complicated.

[Joanne McKinnon · Rating 5 out of 5]

A much deeper look at why Buddhist philosophy is so powerful.

[Steven Atkinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such an important subject for everyone.
There are a million books on this subject, this is a good place to start 🕉️

[Teri]

Too dense. I don’t need to get more into my brain

[Luke · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not for beginners. It is probably mismarked in that sense. If I were starting on the path now, I'd be in a different world. I'd have been scared out of my wits. That said, it's a great overview. And usually when a book covers everything, you leave no space to know the author or the subject matter.

I thought it was a good balance for those, like myself, who have a commitment to learn and practice it. And to take the spiritual side for a grain of salt, like most Buddhists, until you actually experience deeper meditation, and can communicate it yourself.