Where Dharma Meets Practice

Buddhism is a practice tradition. It aims at achieving the cardinal skills of virtue, wisdom, and maturity. The awakened person has perfected these skills, much as the master chef and the virtuoso pianist have perfected theirs. The Dharma is a guide for Buddhist practice, much as a cookbook is a guide for haute cuisine. From this perspective, this book presents a concise, readable, and practical introduction to the Buddha's Dharma. Moreover, it is uniquely based on the earliest stratum of Buddhist texts. These sources are extensive, coherent, and bring us as close as we can get to what the Buddha taught during his lifetime. Its perspective is at the historical root of all of the schools we know today.We discover that the Buddha's Dharma is radical in any culture. This book gives particular attention to bringing these ancient teachings to life for those trying to navigate our troubled modern times.