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Ex-monk Stephen Batchelor has stirred up controversy in the past by
marrying Buddhism to secular agnosticism. Now he goes right to the greatest
Buddhist sage after Sakyamuni, Nagarjuna, for corroboration. In this translation
of Nagarjuna's seminal work, Verses from the Center, we see Nagarjuna
turning a skeptical eye to all dogmatic beliefs. But Batchelor, through
his emphasis on the poetics of the work, moves away from polemics to experience--experience
of the emptiness that pervades existence and teaches deeper truths. Verses
from the Center is an extended meditation on the implications of emptiness,
and thanks to Batchelor's limpid rendering, it prompts a meditative reading.
Batchelor's opening essay, half of the book, is one of the best introductions
you'll find on Nagarjuna's notion of emptiness, emphasizing that emptiness
ultimately brings us back to face the world. In a chapter called "Acts,"
Nagarjuna says:
My acts are irrevocable
Because they have no essence...
Where are the doers of deeds
Absent among their conditions?
Imagine a magician
Who creates a creature
Who creates other creatures.
Acts I perform are creatures
Who create others.
--Brian Bruya
Book Description
The bestselling author of Buddhism Without Beliefs turns his
attention to the Buddha's central insight into the nature of reality, arguably
the most enigmatic and intriguing vision in all of human history. The publication
of Buddhism Without Beliefs brought to the fore one of the world's
most sensitive and intelligent writers on Buddhism. At the center of the
tradition is the enigmatic vision of the sublime upon which the Buddha
was to achieve his own enlightenment. This concept of the true nature of
reality is one of the most difficult, intriguing, and paradoxical expressions
of human thought. Stephen Batchelor brings his unique qualifications as
scholar, teacher, translator, and former monk to the exploration of this
vision. He also provides the reader with translations of the most important
poems ever written on the subject: those of the second-century philosopher-monk,
Nagarjuna. This is the first time these poems have been translated into
English. Verses from the Center promises to become a seminal contribution
to the understanding of Buddhism as well as a book to live by.
About the Author
Stephen Batchelor is a former monk in the Tibetan and Zen traditions
and the author of Buddhism Without Beliefs. His books include Shantideva's
A Guide to the Bodhisattva's Way of Life, Alone with Others,
The Faith to Doubt, The Tibet Guide, and The Awakening
of the West. He conducts meditation retreats worldwide, is a contributing
editor of Tricycle, and is Director of Studies of the Sharpham College
for Buddhist Studies and Contemporary Enquiry in Devon, England. |
