Teachings of the Buddha

Revised and Expanded

By: Gil Fronsdal - editor, Jack Kornfield - editor

Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini, Jack Kornfield

Length: 3 hrs and 37 mins

Publisher's Summary

This treasury of essential Buddhist writings draws from the most popular Indian, Tibetan, Chinese, and Japanese sources. Among the selections are some of the earliest recorded sayings of the Buddha on the practice of freedom, passages from later Indian scriptures on the perfection of wisdom, verses from Tibetan masters on the enlightened mind, and songs in praise of meditation by Zen teachers. The audiobook also includes traditional instruction on how to practice sitting meditation, cultivate calm awareness, and live with compassion. Jack Kornfield, one of the most respected American Buddhist teachers, has compiled these teachings to impart the essence and inspiration of Buddhism to listeners of all spiritual traditions.

A Dedication and Editor’s Preface are included, narrated by Jack Kornfield.

©1993, 1996 Jack Kornfield (P)2014 Audible Inc.

A book that necess focus

A book that necessitates focus. I listen to books at my media job, and I found myself easily distracted and needing to rewind often. A narrative you can catch up with through context, but the teachings come in small pieces and I may have missed some great content. That which I did take away was very beautiful and set me on the path to enlightenment.

Powerful Words

What did you love best about Teachings of the Buddha?

It's a collection of pithy sayings that can distend one's mind. They can be read in minutes but can nurture thoughts that span days.

Which scene was your favorite?

The story of the goddess that swaps identities

Any additional comments?

This book goes straight to what it advertises to be about. It doesn't have extraneous comments and feeds you teachings that can reorient many of your approaches to and understanding of life and/or yourself.

It's needless to say that this is a book to be listened to several times. It is a great collection of inspirational ideas.

Tedious to listen to.

Jack Kornfeld usually does excellent work. This is put together for the sake of having another title on his resume. Shame on him..

Pace of narrator

A few other reviews have mentioned the pace of narration is slow and hard to listen to, while listening it’s easy to be distracted... I recommend increasing the reading speed to 1.2x and at the same time, remember not to rush, patience is in part of the way.

Content good - but narration disappointing

The contents of this book are essential and core to Buddhist teachings and understanding. Mr. Kornfield has found some really outstanding translations of original Buddhist texts, and writings from other Buddhist scholars.
But - I was really disappointed in the narration. Mr. Ballerini seemed to be speeding through the texts. He did not slow down and emphasize any of the important parts, and he did not pronounce the old sanskrit and pali correctly.
I wanted better!

Basics of Humanity

It is simple entertaining informative. Every person should listen to it once at least once.

Excellent, Deep Material

The books is a compilation of many texts, writings in general of Buddhistic teachings, I would say its very deep with valuable info, however I don't think it's for everyone, as you are forced to think through deeply the messages behind the text.

If you like this type of dynamic and have an Intuitive thinking personality, this will be for you.

If you gravitate toward sensing personalities
These abstract concepts might be hard for you to grasp.

Hard to Listen

I’m sure this book has a ton of wisdom and insight, but unfortunately I felt it to be all over the place. The language used isn’t very easy to understand on a first listen, and when you have a narrator rush through it, it’s hard to grasp the points and even understand what’s being said. The table of contents is only split into 3 chapters too, so it’s a bit difficult to find a section you want to relisten.

Good content not well read.

The book is good. Clearly this book has a lot of wisdom to share.

Unfortunately the reader is oddly annoying for my taste. It is read coldly and indifferently, almost like a computer.

When reading about the Buddha, you would expect a more peaceful, differentiated, and lyrical performance. I guess the best way to describe it is that it sounds like the reader is impatient and just wants to get it over with.

The diction is clear and the voice itself is pleasant enough.

Tangie C

If you gave not read this book yet please get a copy. This is worth the read les me tell you