A Buddhist Grief Observed
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
Amid the world-shattering pain of loss, what helps?
“After the death of his beloved partner from cancer, Newland finds himself asking how effective his long years of Buddhist practice have been in helping him come to terms with overwhelming grief. This finely written book offers a lucid meditation on what it means to practice the Dharma when everything falls apart.” —Stephen Batchelor, author of Buddhism without Beliefs and After Buddhism
In the tradition of C. S. Lewis’s A Grief Observed, Guy Newland offers this brave record of falling to pieces and then learning to make sense of his pain and grief within his spiritual tradition. Drawing inspiration from all corners of the Buddhist world—from Dogen and the Dalai Lama, to Pema Chödrön and ancient Pali texts—this book reverberates with honesty, kindness, and deep humanity. Newland shows us the power of responding fully and authentically to the death of a loved one.
“A sad, beautiful, and necessary book—and a map waiting for many who will need it.” —James Ishmael Ford, author of If You’re Lucky Your Heart Will Break
“Guy Newland faces squarely the pain of death and the pain of grief and offers a work of uncommon power, insight, and honesty—and extraordinary compassion.” —Jay L. Garfield, author of Engaging Buddhism
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Newland, chair of the department of philosophy and religion at Central Michigan University and a scholar of Tibetan Buddhism, forgoes academic language and instead uses C.S. Lewis's A Grief Observed as a guidepost for Buddhist reflections on bereavement. He is candid and heartbreakingly honest when revealing the emotional trauma he endured after the death of his wife. While in the throes of grief, Newland looked to Buddhist teachings on karma, impermanence, emptiness, and the lived experience to make sense of his wife's death. He dispenses with some interpretations of Buddhism (such as the karmic belief that his wife's suffering was caused by her own actions) but makes deep use of Buddhist considerations surrounding grief: deep accepting of the lived experience; turning to others as mutually, mortally wounded individuals; honoring the deceased by being kind to oneself through the experience. The simplicity and poetry of Newland's prose is deceptive, and his observations suggest immense depths of wisdom underneath the heartache: "To be human is to set sail for the next shipwreck." He offers a powerful and moving eulogy to his wife, and tender, compassionate support for those experiencing the loss of a loved one.
