Fundamentals of Tibetan Buddhism

by Rebecca McClen Novick

In Tibetan, the word for Buddhist means “insider”—someone who looks not to the world but to themselves for peace and happiness. The basic premise of Buddhism is that all suffering, however real it may seem, is the product of our own minds.Rebecca Novick’s concise history of Buddhism and her explanations of the Four Noble Truths, Wheel of Life, Karma, the path of the Bodhisattva, and the four schools help us understand Tibetan Buddhism as a religion or philosophy, and more important, as a way of experiencing the world.

Genres: Buddhism, Religion, Spirituality, Philosophy, Nonfiction

208 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 1999

Reviews

[Jared]

This was an excellent book. The writing was concise, easy to follow and understand. This book is exactly what it says it is; Fundamentals of Buddhism. It provides a complete overview of all the fundamental concepts within Buddhism, almost every piece of information is boiled down to what is exactly necessary.
This book lacks verticality given it is an overview but has everything elegantly laid out for further deeper investigation.
This book feels ESSENTIAL for the library of anyone interested in Buddhism. I feel like in order for anyone to be knowledgeable and have good understanding of Buddhism, one must commit this entire book's contents to memory. I definitely plan to reread this book again.

[Thomas Anania]

Very straight forward introduction into Buddhist teachings and schools of thought. At times it felt as though Novick went into great detail about certain subjects while glossing over others. Definitely something I'll want to read again as it's so packed full of information that I know I probably glazed over a few things.

[Zach]

A good intro to Tibetan Buddhism.

[Jonas]

The author has admirably succeeded in her goal of setting forth the basics of an intricate and powerful worldview. I don't quite know how she managed it, but the text cogently introduces concepts typically presented to beginners such as the Four Noble Truths, the subject of Shakyamuni Buddha's very first teaching as well as more complex ideas and ritual practices, for example visualizations and tantra. As a result, the book really is a valuable resource for those who are intrigued with the basics of Tibetan Buddhism, those who are studying it more intensively, or those who seek to introduce others to the teachings. I expect to refer to the text frequently, as one of the characteristics of dharma study/practice is that it walks a spiral path, reintroducing basic concepts at more intricate levels as you proceed. In addition, the Buddha was a prodigious list maker it is useful indeed to have a concise reference tool such as this. May all beings benefit from its availability.

[Chris Lemig]

This is another book that I got from the library and am going to purchase for the bookshelf.

Ms. Novick is not in the business of wasting words. This is a very simple and straghtforward explaination of the essential foundations, teachings, practices and history of Tibetan Buddhism. The chapters are generally short but stuffed full of information. A very useful book.

[Nicholas]

Part history, part philosophy, part description of practices. A nice introduction to Buddhism for a curious outsider. One can get lost in the various numbers, Four Noble Truths, Five Paths, 12 Links, Four Powers, Six Perfections, etc... and the attempts to organize this numerical assault were unsuccessful in this book.

[Kate Wutz]

This was so helpful, and a really great basic overview of Tibetan Buddhism in easy-to-understand language.

[Nicole]

A very good introduction to Tibetan Buddhism. It was very informative, but it didn't make the book seem slow or boring in that sense. A good read for anyone who's curious about Buddhism.

[Joshua]

Brief overview of a beautiful and peaceful religion.