Not Just For BuddhistsNovember 27, 2007 1 out of 1 found this review helpful
One of my favorite books of all time (that's saying a lot), I loved this practical, insightful and inspiring look into ourselves. The Dalai Lama discusses happiness and how to truly find it. The book goes far beyond that. Don't expect the usual psychological jargon here, just the simplest of things that we so often overlook...and some things we've always known but never been truly aware of. If you're interested in an idea of what Buddhism is about (practical rather than religious in this book), if you want a more "natural" approach to finding your own happiness or if you just want a very fascinating read - this book is for you. I rather enjoyed the dialogue between the Dalai Lama and the writer.
Review for Art of Happiness by The Dalai Lama and Howard CutlerNovember 20, 2007 1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Review of: The Art of Happiness by The Dalai Lama and Howard C. Cutler
This book is considered a handbook for living that contains possible solutions to many problems in life such as how to deal with anger, sorrow, and remorse and many other negative feelings. Howard C. Cutler in this book poses a number of questions people generally have and paraphrases the responses of the Dalai Lama and also gives his own opinion on the solution. The Dalai Lama believes that the goal and purpose of life is to be happy and he offers many simple solutions to overcome negative feelings and achieve a state of happiness through practicing Buddhist philosophies. On a more general scale, Howard C. Cutler talks about the science behind those techniques and what he as a psychiatrist do to help his patients achieve a happier life. Basically, he paraphrases what the Dalai Lama says into a more understandable format. This is claimed to be a "handbook for living", but there are no simple lists of procedures of how to achieve happiness. If you are expecting simple instructions to become more happy, then this is NOT the book for you. This book contains simple Buddhist principles given by the Dalai Lama in which Howard Cutler paraphrases and applies psychology to the principle to break it down. However, there are a few meditation exercises in which the Dalai Lama walks you through. Supposedly, with practice, you can achieve happiness by being able to see things from another perspective. Aside from that, most of the book is Howard Cutler talking about his opinion and his own experiences after every interview with the Dalai Lama. Coincidently, most of what he experiences closely coincides with what he talked about in his interviews. There is not much Dalai Lama sections in this book aside from a few quotes here and there. However, those quotes contain so much depth that they balance off the small number of them. Although Howard Cutler talks for most of the book, the profound philosophy of the Dalai Lama somewhat brings the content of the book to an equilibrium. A little bit of deep Buddhist principles and a whole lot of common psychology theories. You as the reader must then do the reading and digest the exchange of ideas between Cutler and Dalai Lama in order to really understand the principles and theories. The most fascinating part about this book is the few times when the Dalai Lama tells a story about his past experiences. There are a few chapters in which it starts by having the Dalai Lama tell a story and Howard Cutler finishing it off with his own experiences and views. At some points, don't be surprised that you are skimming for quotations from the Dalai Lama and sections dedicated to the Dalai Lama for his words. The way Howard Cutler talks about the Dalai Lama's principles is like when you listen to a song when you recorded it from a radio. The quality suffers drastic loss and even if it is the exact same material, it just sounds bad. Simply put, Cutler paraphrases the Dalai Lama, but does not add to the ideas and actually cause a loss of depth to what the Lama said. I mean, he included the parts where the Dalai Lama's assistant hint that time is up for the interview. Maybe to imply that he had limited time and that is the reason why the book may not contain a lot of dialogues by the Dalai Lama. In all the repetition of information by Cutler, the Dalai Lama is actually able to reach the audience through his limited dialogue. I guess this is a natural ability of the Dalai Lama to be able to talk to people on all different levels of trying to achieve happiness. Cutler's dilution of the dense Buddhist beliefs may not be such a bad thing after all. You will notice that when you read, but ultimately, the amount of digested and regurgitated information he gives actually equals to what the Dalai Lama is trying to tell the audience. I would recommend this book despite the limited amount of the Dalai Lama. However, the amount of whoever talking in the book does not matter, it is the knowledge you get from your read. I myself, who had no idea WHAT HAPPINESS was prior to reading this book, learned a great deal about HOW TO achieve happiness. If you don't mind reading about a guy's personal opinion on the Dalai Lama's Buddhist principles, then this is a good starters for your quest to achieve happiness.
Listening to the BookOctober 5, 2007 1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I listened to the audio book, and it was both calming and uplifting, and very inspirational.
The right answer to unhappinessSeptember 28, 2007 2 out of 2 found this review helpful
This book is all about the wrong feelings we get when our minds are still focus on the wrong objectives or the bad intention.
This man describe the right way to get away from all those thoughts which keep us into bad mood and drive us through bad decisions.
His solution is far away from religion or any other bad medication. He just explain what is going bad in our mind and how to feel better. And all this has nothing to do with any god.
He is a kind of spiritual guy I trust and his philosophy is the best religion that has never existed.
You will be converted as soon as you start reading this book.
A Light Discussion On HappinessAugust 13, 2007 This book is a dialogue between psychiatry (Cutler) and Tibetan Buddhism (Dalai Lama). Despite claiming to be a "handbook" it is not full of 'how-to-do-it' gems. It is more a philosophic exchange on the subject of happiness. As it is written for a western audience some of the metaphysical elements of Buddhism, such as karma and reincarnation, receive only a brief mention. Compassion, however, receives a lengthy treatment, as does living in the moment and dealing with anger. There are a few meditation exercises included.
The book is very readable and maintained my interest all the way through. If I have a criticism it is that the book does not contain enough psychiatry or enough Buddhism. Some how it seems to fall between the two disciplines. It reads like a first contact encounter between East and West, rather than a well developed, deeply contemplated thesis.
