Some Buddhist Books That Aren’t Written by Stupid Hippies

Buddhist philosophy and practice is fast becoming part of mainstream life in the west.

Buddhism in the US and the UK in particular has for years been lumped in with the drug addled pseudo-mysticism of hippies and new-agers, which is a shame, because its ancient philosophy of thought and action which merits serious study by anyone who is interested in psychology, eastern history, art and culture or religion-although Buddhist ideas are valuable from a secular perspective as well. However, finding good books about Buddhism is still kind of difficult, as there are a lot of the hippies mentioned earlier writing what can only be described as complete crap, dressing it up with some pretty pictures of lotuses and meditating monks with halos and calling it Buddhism. There are also a whole load of charlatans and self aggrandising “Gurus” involved in western Buddhism, whose only objective is to make some cash. With this in mind, here are some books about Buddhism that aren’t written by hippies or rip-off artists (at least I don’t think they are; you’ll have to decide this for yourself.)

“Buddhism” By Christmas Humphreys

Christmas Humphreys was the man who founded the London Buddhist society in 1924, so he definitely knew what he was talking about when it came to Buddhism. This is about the best introduction to Buddhism that I have read, and manages to be extremely comprehensive without being to long. It starts of with the life of the Buddha, and then goes on to give a good history of the various different branches and sects within Buddhism with a fair amount of historical context, especially the bit about the spread of Buddhism in ancient India under the reign of emperor Asoka near the beginning of the book. The amount of detail that Humphreys brings to the book about historical Buddhist sects that are now extinct is probably unnecessary for a beginner’s guide, but the information never gets to dense and the language stays readable. The prose is well written, if a bit gushing in its praise of some of the Mahayana sects (Except the “pure land School” which Humphreys is quite critical of). All in all, this is one of the best introductory books you can read on Buddhism, and is perfect for anyone with a real interest in the subject. 4.5/5


“The Art of Happiness” By Howard Cutler and The Dali Llama

Tibetan Buddhism is probably the best known branch in the west, probably because of the work of it’s Leader, the Dali Llama, who has a high political as well as Religious profile as the leader of the Tibetan government in exile. Tibetan Buddhism is probably one of the more dogmatic and overtly “religious” sects of Buddhism, and contains elements of mysticism and theism entirely absent from the Buddha’s actual teaching. This being said, “The Art of Happiness” is pitched squarely at the western “self-help” market, with Howard Cutler, the real writer of the book, adding some western academic credentials (Cutler is a psychologist). This book is largely an exercise in platitudes, and like all the most successful “Self Help” Books, it’s really about telling the reader stuff they already know, or stuff which is obvious but which for some reason or other they need to see spelt out for them. Cutler’s writing is passable and the structure is sensible, interspersed with anecdotes about his patients, which he uses to illustrate common life problems and which the Dali Llama then talks about. The book is basically a series of question and answer sessions, and as such it serves it’s purpose in helping to answer some FAQ’s about Tibetan Buddhism. Probably the best thing about this book is it’s immense popularity, which makes it a sort of literary “gateway drug” for people who want to learn a bit about Buddhism. 3/5



“Hardcore Zen” by Brad Warner

This is another pop-philosophy title, except this one written with a different audience in mind, specifically punks (contrary to popular belief, punk isn’t quite dead yet.) Warner is able to avoid the potential trap of using an “alternative lifestyle” to make religion seem “cool” that so many god-awful Christian rock bands have fallen into, but only just. Partly he does this by explaining, using funny and insightful examples, all the ways in which Zen Buddhism is different from conventional “organised” religion. Warner himself is an ordained “Roshi” in the Japanese Soto school of Zen and Was also once the Bass Player for the (admittedly not particularly good) eighties hardcore band 0dfx, and as of 2004 he worked in Japan for a company that makes Godzilla-esque monster movies. This strange mixture of backgrounds does give him a unique voice as a writer, but it is not one that everyone will find palatable. Personally, I enjoyed the pop-culture references and humour which Warner brings to the subject, but this is definitely a niche book, and is not made to appeal to the broadest possible audience. When it comes to Zen, Warner fortunately does know his stuff, and strips Zen of it’s traditionally romantic orientallist preconceptions, to reveal a refreshingly simple and direct approach to Meditation, and some of the underlying principals of Buddhist practice. This book is perhaps not as cool as it pretends to be, but it is this that gives Hardcore Zen far more substance than you would expect just from looking at the cover. 4/5

5 Classic Hardcore/ Punk Records (In No Particular Order)

I’m not really in the habit of making lists of things, as it’s generally a fairly pointless and anal thing to do. That being said, here’s a few hardcore punk albums that you should listen to. We’re talking real hardcore here, from the eighties, and not the floppy-haired, angsty, screamo crap which seems to have taken over the scene. In the eighties, hardcore exploded in the US, when for some reason loads of teenagers “got” punk and started their own bands, a year after the UK scene had started fizzling out commercially. Musical skill wasn’t the priority, but energy, speed, volume and attitude were, with most songs being a-bit over-a-minute-long storms of guitar noise punctuated by yelling and incredibly fast but simple four-four drum beats, which people were encouraged to jump around to like a bunch of complete nutters. Sounds fun doesn’t it? As a genre of music, people generally love or hate hardcore punk, because it’s not a style that has any time for people who aren’t really into it and it makes no compromises for the sake of the listener. In fact, in order to really appreciate it, it’s something you have to be involved in. So why not start a band?

Minor threat: Discography

This one’s a no brainer. Ian Mackay’s horse-voiced shouting concealed some surprisingly intelligent and sensitive lyrics about the pressures of being expected to conform to a “scene,” something which Minor Threat actively rebelled against. The band is tight, the songs minimal but catchy and filled with a genuine anger, energy and focus. This compilation is even more impressive when you consider that the band was only active for three years and its members were only between sixteen and nineteen, making them literally minors. Stand out tracks: “Minor Threat,” “Seeing Red,” “Out of Step,” “Straight edge.”



Black Flag: Nervous Breakdown

Black Flag’s first release, before Henry Rollins, their best known lead singer joined the band. This is also Black Flag’s most “old school” sounding record, and one of the first hardcore presses alongside other pioneers of screaming loony-music the Germs’ single “Forming/Sexboy.” The whole record is probably about five minutes long, if that, and every song is a near perfect explosion of deranged guitar thrashing, courtesy of the band’s founder, Greg Guinn and lyrics about getting completely bloody smashed and the resulting mental illnesses, with titles like “Wasted” and “Nervous Breakdown.” Not a subtle record by any means, but a memorable one with four genuinely classic punk tracks.



Angry Samoans: Back from Samoa

The Angry Samoans started with the amusingly brain-dead lyrics of bands like the Circle Jerks and the Germs and took them four of five step further- “Lights Out,” for example, is a song about poking your own eyes out with a fork, and is also one of the best songs of the genre, albeit not one of the most highbrow or lyrically complex. Obviously, the lyrics on this album are not to be taken seriously, as is evident from the homophobic rant “Homosexual” or “Steak Knife”- a song about chopping one’s own penis off with a-you guessed it. The tunes themselves are compact and proficiently played, with more of a surf or garage influenced sound, not unlike the Dead Kennedys, lots of crunchy riffs and memorable hooks. Stand-out tracks: “Lights Out” “They Saved Hitler’s Cock” “You Stupid Jerk.”



Minutemen: The Punch Line

The Minutemen were a genuinely unique band; Their sound was more eclectic than any of their contemporaries and clearly informed by jazz and funk influences. This is their first record, and even though many of the songs are far less than a minute long and none of them have a conventional song structure, this is still an accessible and enjoyable record. The lyrics are weird “spiels” that often neither rhyme or scan and vary between abstract poetry and obvious and sometimes slightly earnest political diatribes like “Song For El Salvador” or “Warfare.” The standard of playing on this album would be impressive in any genre and is especially so for hardcore. Mike Watt’s melodic and funky bass guitar often seems like the lead instrument and George Hurley’s drumming manages to be both frantic and precise, although D. Boon had yet to evolve into the accomplished front man and lead guitarist he would later on in the band’s career. A landmark album.



The Dicks: Kill from the heart

There were quite a few hardcore bands to emerge from Austin, Texas in the eighties. Like other kick-ass bands from Austin like MDC and The Big Boys, The Dicks moved to California to be part of the punk scene in and around San Francisco, in part because of the more progressive atmosphere and the success of other bands like the Dead Kennedys. Randy “Biscuit” Turner was a flamboyant front-man with a yowling, Southern accented bellow and a serious grudge against Nazis, the police and the KKK. The songs are rumbling blues influenced garage rock played at double speed, with a bizarrely compelling lead guitarist who sounds like he’s trying to play his solos with webbed hands. This album is seriously underrated, and is in my opinion the equal of anything similar bands like the Dead Kennedys ever did. (Unfortunately it’s also quite difficult to get hold of at the moment.)

Why Can’t Jacqui Smith Just F**K off! (part 1)

This is the first part of what I think is likely to turn into an ongoing series, the title of which pretty much speaks for itself. Today the home secretary, Jacqui Smith, announced that she was going to revise her plans for a centralised database detailing all communications on the internet- in order to protect us, the law abiding public, from the bad and nasty people who threaten our yadayadayada- and announced instead that the government would pay individual online companies to do it for them. Not only was the original idea an appallingly draconian one which could potentially threaten virtually all of our civil liberties, but now the government is going to outsource it to dozens of private companies, and probably make it even more expensive for taxpayers. Here’s what the BBC says:

“The Home Office...will instead ask communications companies - from internet service providers to mobile phone networks - to extend the range of information they currently hold on their subscribers and organise it so that it can be better used by the police, MI5 and other public bodies investigating crime and terrorism.
Ministers say they estimate the project will cost £2bn to set up, which includes some compensation to the communications industry for the work it may be asked to do.”

Now, read between the lines. The two billion estimate is probably well below what it will actually cost, for the simple reason that the government nearly always gets these sorts of estimations wrong. Secondly, they are effectively asking for companies to spy on their own customers, which is clearly immoral. Consumers, like citizens generally should at least have the option not to be spied on, even if in practice we submit ourselves to surveillance all the time as a matter of course. This law would deny even the possibility of people not having their communications monitored and categorized. The most worrying thing about these new proposals, however, is that I know from experience that the government and the police just cannot be trusted with that kind of information. For one thing, they’ll probably lose half of it on the train, but also, having seen firsthand the police tactics used at the g20 protests, it is clear that the government would use the information to stifle legitimate protest and alternative movements. This sort of thing is typical of both an unelected government which is so power crazed that it thinks it can get away with destroying people’s basic freedoms, and the new Labour tendency to sell everything out to the private sector without consideration of expense or value for taxpayers. So, in conclusion, Jacqui Smith should just F**K off.

Giving up Alcohol, Tobacco and Fun

I'm a person just like you
But I've got better things to do
Than sit around and fuck my head
Hang out with the living dead
Snort white shit up my nose
Pass out at the shows
I don't even think about speed
That's something I just don't need

If you like american hardcore punk, you’ll know that these lyrics are from “Straight edge” by Minor Threat , a band who came out of D.C in the early eighties, who didn’t like drinking, smoking or doing drugs. They spawned an entire scene, the so called “Straight edge” punks who followed the lifestyle of their favourite bands by abstaining from, well, pretty much everything apart from the music, which is so fast and angry it makes bands like the sex pistols or the clash seem like wimps. Anyway, I’m thinking of following their example and giving up smoking and drinking (even though I REALLY enjoy doing both.) I’ve been trying to give up for a while, and at the moment I’m trying to scare my self into doing it. If you want to try a similar strategy, by the way, look up “Lung Cancer,” “Emphysema” or “Heart disease” on Wikipedia- If you’re naturally a bit of a hypochondriac like me you might find it helpful. I’m teetering on the brink of smoking another cigarette now, so there is a pretty good chance that this attempt will not be successful. Last time I did it, I managed it for about 3 months, which seemed like a very long time. But there’s another reason why I’m thinking of giving up again. Recently I’ve been wondering how much people are defined by the things they do, rather than their actual personalities. For example, If you drink and smoke, then you probably choose to hang around with other people who drink and smoke, and you might even think that people who don’t drink and smoke are a bunch of boring prudes. Similarly If you don’t drink or smoke, then most of your friends probably don’t either, and you might think that people who do are idiots for risking their health. I don’t think that this is universally true however, and I hope that it’s not true of me, which is why I’m going to give up.

The All Important First Post

So, here we are, or at least here I am, at the birth of another blog. I’ve started this one with the intention of combining all my different interests into one big amorphous whole. So, that’s Anarchism, Poetry, Music, Zen Buddhism, News, stuff about me and my friends, and a whole load of other things. Generally my online writing has been pretty much a vanity project, which is not to say that I haven’t put a lot of work into it, but is probably rather an indication of it’s success (or lack of it.) At the moment, my writing is all over the place and of wildly different quality-and my sojourns into internet publishing have been similarly patchy. The first thing I did was a geocities website when I was thirteen which distributed the anarchist cookbook; A sort of guide book for would-be suburban terrorists and weird pornography for generations of screwed-up teenagers who entertain fantasies of blowing things up, hacking into the pentagon or “getting even” with the bullies at school. At the time, I didn’t really have any Idea what anarchism was, and my overriding emotions were either of anger or confusion with no real outlets (which is of course not uncommon, although when you are that age it makes you feel special to imagine it is.) When I grew up a bit more, I did some reading about anarchism and discovered a philosophy completely different from what I had imagined, one that involved considerable amounts of personal responsibility and self-discipline. This probably also accounts for anarchism’s immense unpopularity with the majority of people, as if there are any two personal traits universally considered to be f**kin boring by virtually everyone, it’s those two. That and the bad rep that it’s got from little buggers like me, age thirteen, distributing how-two guides telling people how to pipe-bomb their neighbour’s wheelie-bin, under the false impression that that sort of idiocy constitutes a working political theory. Part of my objective here is to dispel a few of those misconceptions and undo a bit of the damage I might have caused- even though I doubt anyone even read any of that stuff in the first place.
My other interests are kind of varied; I’m the sort of person who probably has too many hobbies, most of them things which most people know little about or have no interest in. I expect this is down to some kind of lack of fulfilment or sexual frustration or something, but if this is my way of compensating then it works fine for me. I make music and try to play about five or six different instruments with varying degrees of success but a lot of enthusiasm. I write, generally about current affairs or politics, but I sometimes dabble in poetry. When I was writing about the last US election I got really in to it and correctly predicted Obama’s victory in the general election months before he even had any kind of lead in the democratic primary (although that was probably more down to luck than judgement.) This would have been great, except I wrote about it on MySpace and no one read it, which is another reason for this blog; hopefully I can get a few more people reading.
As for my other aforementioned thing that I’m into, Zen Buddhism is something that I have been learning about for the last three or four years. I’m not a Buddhist, I don’t regularly meditate and I Like drinking and smoking, but I’ve been thinking about taking it more seriously (the Buddhism, not the smoking and drinking, although at the moment it go either way.) I’m also thinking about writing a treatise about the parallels between Soto Zen and anarchism, and whether or not those two things are even compatible, so it’s something that I’m doing a fair amount of research on at the moment.
Well there you go, I’ll probably post some more tomorrow.

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