Buddhism: The Essence

by David Tuffley

The distilled essence of Buddhism in plain English. Contains the essential truths that you can apply in your life.

Genres: Nonfiction, Spirituality, Buddhism

Nook

First published October 6, 2010

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Reviews

[Deviant-Muse · Rating 5 out of 5]

It may seem strange for me to give such a high rating for a book that is only 33 pages. I do have my reasons.

First of all, this book is a simple introduction to bits of Buddhism. It is not meant to be a full explanation. It is simply a taste of what can become a full way of living. Second, it is only 33 pages. What do you expect to get from a short book?

Anyone looking for a lengthy explanation, this is a never-read.

It shows you "The Essence" of Buddhism. It also does not claim to explain it in its entirety or as much as one could explain something like this.

If you are looking for something new or different for what ever reason you are looking, this is a must-try. It is short enough to hold your attention and explains quickly the basics of this belief/way of living.

To see this review and others, please visit: http://deviant-muse.blogspot.com/

[Martin Pepe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nice to have the tenets of Buddhism put so succinctly.

[Kaylani · Rating 4 out of 5]

As someone who doesn't have much knowledge of Buddhism as a whole, I thought this book definitely lived up to its title. It was the essence, the bare backbones, of Buddhism. It was a fast, and interesting read. It has made me want to learn more and I am glad I picked it to read.

It was well written, and although I saw a lot of criticism for how basic it is, everyone has to start learning about something somewhere. If I had jumped into a really hard thick book about Buddhism I don't know that I would have the enthusiasm I have right now regarding learning more.

[Bororo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book explaining the essence of Buddhism. free to download on ibooks and quite easy to read on the bus or train or even a traffic jam... I know you shouldn't but its only like 30 pages... at one point I thought it was incomplete but no really it is just like 30 pages... but in all it delivers what it promises a basic introduction to the essence of Buddhism

[Don · Rating 2 out of 5]

I downloaded this on my Kindle as it was a free book, just thinking it would be nice to get back into some reading on Buddhism. What I didn't know was that the book was only about 30 pages, and is very, very basic. I imagine it might serve as a nice introductory primer on Buddhism that has no exposure to it. But as that is not me, it was a little underwhelming personally.

[Rashad · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you are looking for a short read (approx 19 pages); a crash course in Buddhism, if you will; then this book is for you. I would recommend it to anyone who is interested in learning about the core tenets of Buddhism.

It also has a section in the back which teaches you proper meditation techniques, as well as a link referring you to a more thorough guide on meditation.

[JCousins · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm finished with Buddhism: I thought it was quite enlightening for such a short read, which provided a semi-little dose of insight into Buddhism. For me, I was curious to learn more about Buddhism or at least a little about it, and well this book sure did that. I can definitely say I will be reading more on this topic.

[Nancie Lafferty · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short and succinct. Excellent introduction for someone wondering, "What the heck is Buddhism about?". Short and worth your while to expand your whole knowledge a bit - and maybe give you cause to delve a little deeper.

[Gerald · Rating 3 out of 5]

I guess I wanted a little more essence, didn't notice it was 30 pages in length when I got the free Nook version - less a book and more a pamphlet.

[H.R. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not bad and it is full of good lessons, but written more as tips. Started reading the other night because I wanted something small to read before diving into another two or three-hundred page novel.

[iGravity™ · Rating 3 out of 5]

A brief brief description into the surreality of Buddhism

[Tracey- Jo · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very short 30 page guide to Buddhism and meditation. The meditation chapter is interesting and advises you on how to start meditation and how to continue meditating throughout your life span.

[James Mcgarry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Realy enjoyed this and look forward to reading more of Davids stuff.

[Marsha · Rating 3 out of 5]

A brief perspective of Buddhism

[Luna · Rating 3 out of 5]

With only 30 pages, this book was a little too basic for me.

[Kyle Lynch · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simple and basic. This book (free iBook) states and explains the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path. An easy but powerful read.

[Carlene · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was short and to the point. what a peaceful way of life.

[Suzette · Rating 2 out of 5]

First 20 pages were good.

[Corey Pace · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written and put in very simple terms. A great overview of an interesting religion.