Buddha: An Enlightened Life

by Kieron Moore, Rajesh Nagulakonda (Illustrator)

In the ancient city of Kapilavastu, a prince named Siddhartha Gautama was born, and a wise man declared that he would grow up to be either a powerful king or a spiritual leader who would end suffering. Though his father kept him sheltered, Siddhartha soon became aware of the pain and disease that plagued the world and so abandoned his noble life in order to find answers. He'd eventually become the founder of a religion which persists today, and which has spread a message of compassion and understanding across the world. It was not an easy journey; Siddhartha faced the temptations of a demon, the outbreaks of war, and rebellion within his own order. Follow his journey from prince to pauper and from beggar to Buddha.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Nonfiction, Biography, Mythology, Comics, History, Religion

160 pages, Paperback

First published July 11, 2017

Reviews

[Jon Nakapalau · Rating 5 out of 5]

The life of Buddha is told in this very accessible GN. Kieron Moore does a fine job of recounting the struggles and doubts Buddha faced as he was preaching his message of salvation. Both those just starting to learn about Buddhism and those who already know the story of how Buddhism spread will enjoy reading this GN.

[Jonathan Maas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great overview of the Buddha and his life, great art.

Characters are heavily Anglicized, which I think had to be an edict from above, so no knock against the author or artist.

Still - just a great tale!

[Ariel Caldwell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great one-book intro to the Buddha's life, and the art is gorgeous. This is great for youth who "just want to know something about Buddhism", and the characters/plot are engaging and understandable.

[S. Wigget · Rating 3 out of 5]

This graphic novel is a really good, basic introduction to the Buddha's life. You could call it an illustrated outline of his life. It's also beautifully illustrated.

If you're up to a more detailed version of his life and teachings, I recommend the novel _Old Path White Cloud_ by Thich Nhat Hanh.

[Joshua · Rating 3 out of 5]

A thin but approachable telling of the life 0f Buddha.

[Yusta · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this graphic novel, even though I wouldn't normally gravitate towards this format.

This was a powerful introduction to the Buddha and his life, filled with many concepts and characters without it being overwhelming or feeling reductionist.

Note: word introduction, as this is a short story of Siddartha's life, it does not encompass many of its aspects.

The illustrations ranged from beautiful to spectacular. I was very impressed. The language was simple, and like Buddha's dharma - clear and easy to understand.

I would gladly recommend this graphic novel to everyone who is able to read.

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

This biography of the Buddha covers his life from childhood until death, and the watercolor illustrations (is that what they are? I actually have no idea, but that's what they made me think of) evoke the mediation and compassion he preaches. I got the sense that the dharma is simplified a lot, so it's not a good introduction to Buddhism, but I liked following the guy through his various mentorships and then again back when he reunites with his family but keeps on with the monk thing.

The drama of his bad cousin's power moves also kept the sense of a plot alive.

[Whitney Kats · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don’t usually read graphic novels, but I am so glad I read this one! It was an easy-to-understand glimpse of the Buddha’s life. The illustrations were beautiful and helped to bring the story to life.

[Vi · Rating 3 out of 5]

rather didactic.

[Tomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was a really enjoyable and beautiful story of Buddha’s life.

[Mark Vukovic · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating look at Buddha. Read in a few hours and realized I knew nothing about Siddhartha. This book wasn't preachy, but just gave me a great overview of this religion and it's origin story.

[Anne Reilly · Rating 4 out of 5]

I never really knew the story of Siddhartha - this was a good read with beautiful art!

[Sammy · Rating 3 out of 5]

A digestible retelling of the Buddha's life.

[Jonathan Hunsberger]

It is a nice, short, straightforward telling of the story and beautifully illustrated.

[Dibyendu Pal · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a book!

Although the story is known by all but the narration and illustrations are top notch which made the reading worthwhile.

A collector's book for sure.

[David Berry · Rating 4 out of 5]

History of Buddha in graphic novel form
Outlines his life in detail.
Lots of details of his travels.
Helped me understand where Buddhism came from.

[Teja Vegesna · Rating 5 out of 5]

short but interesting to know history

[Stephanie Tournas · Rating 3 out of 5]

An able portrait of Siddartha, Guatama Buddha. Some parts are clearly abridged too far, such as the Prelude, which needs more information to make sense to the beginner. However, mostly this is a captivating story of how a pampered young prince, shielded from the world by his father, the king, decides to find enlightenment through his own devices. He abandons his royal family, wife and newborn son, and goes off into the world to make sense of human suffering. The reader learns of Siddartha's trials and triumphs, a bit about the political world in which he lives, and how his wisdom became the basis for a religion. The illustration captures the reality of life in ancient Nepal/India, and the divinity of the budding Buddha.
Criticism: The book makes it look like this ancient region of the world was only populated by white dudes.
 I'd give this to teens or adults who may enjoy an account of Buddha rendered in a popular, action-figure style

[Rick · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a quick entertaining read that tells the Buddha’s life story and presents his teachings in a very engaging format. Great for YA readers - my kids loved it!

[Alisha · Rating 3 out of 5]

The three stars is really for the artwork which is stunningly beautiful (maybe even 4 stars for just artwork). But I was put off by Anglicization of the characters (imho).

(It's similar to the Amar Chitra Katha books, but with a much more modernized style.)

I suppose I expected something more in-depth considering the subject matter, but it is a graphic novel, and provides just a cursory overview. As such, it wasn't very gripping to me - I wasn't compelled by plot or characters to finish it. In that way, it felt more ... informational. It also assumes the reader is familiar with the story already, and does not explain all the foreign language terms used.

(If you're interested in this subject matter and don't mind Anglicization of characters, give the film Little Buddha a shot. It was more compelling. )

Still, this book's artwork is definitely noteworthy.

[Kristen Harvey · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful telling of Buddha's story and one that really told the story instead of just throwing facts and information. I loved the illustrations in this book and it really enlightened me to this story we don't hear often.

[Kamakana · Rating 5 out of 5]

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

200831: history/myths of life. beautiful artwork. slight reference to four noble truths, eightfold path, but buddhism as philosophy/religion/way not needed to appreciate. easy to read intro...