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What Makes You Not a Buddhist

4.1 of 5 stars 4.10 · rating details · 893 ratings · 84 reviews

Dzongsar Khyentse is one of the most creative and innovative young Tibetan Buddhist lamas teaching today. The director of two feature films with Buddhist themes (the international sensation The Cup and Travelers and Magicians), this provocative teacher, artist, and poet is widely known and admired by Western Buddhists.
Moving away from conventional presentations of Buddhis...more

Hardcover, 128 pages

Published December 5th 2006 by Shambhala

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Jul 02, 2012 Binit rated it 1 of 5 stars

“What makes you not a Buddhist” is an unconventional spiritual book written by Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse, a Tibetan monk and spiritual guru. Basically, in the book the author has summarised Buddhism’s core values in a creative way with a sensible blend of his dry sense of humour. With a touch of palpable informality, he expresses the essence of Buddhism in four simple points, they are: (1.) everything is impermanent, (2.) emotions are the cause of sufferings, (3.) all phenomena are illusionary a...more “What makes you not a Buddhist” is an unconventional spiritual book written by Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse, a Tibetan monk and spiritual guru. Basically, in the book the author has summarised Buddhism’s core values in a creative way with a sensible blend of his dry sense of humour. With a touch of palpable informality, he expresses the essence of Buddhism in four simple points, they are: (1.) everything is impermanent, (2.) emotions are the cause of sufferings, (3.) all phenomena are illusionary and empty and (4.) nirvana is beyond concept. The author claims that anyone who is aware of and who internalize these truths knowingly or unknowingly is a Buddhist regardless of his background, caste or roots.

The author in his attempt to simplify the vastness and complexity of Buddhist ideology renders the entire project ineffective. The book can serve well to those who don’t have an iota of knowledge regarding Buddhism. However, for those who are Buddhist themselves and are knowledgeable about Buddhism, this book is nothing but just another commercial book that falls flatly when it comes to promoting Buddhist values as they are. The book has been written in a light and easy-to-comprehend language. The monk-author has talked about worldly things and sensual pleasures as if he knows all these like the back of his hand. It is indigestible to read a monk’s writing written in such a loose language. He has condemned western values and their lifestyle but while doing so, he has glorified them in subtle ways by time and again referring to their lifestyle in vivid language.

However, the major flaw in this book is so disturbing to any veracious person and to the Nepalis in particular. On the very third page of the book itself, the author dedicates his book to Siddhartha, the Gautam Buddha and in the words of the author “prince of India.” As you go into the book, you encounter many places where Buddha is mentioned as a one-time prince of India and to go by the book, he was born in India itself. How can a devout follower of Buddha don’t even know where Buddha was actually born? Maybe, during the time around 500 BC, there was no concept of borders or probably there wasn’t a proper delineation of boundaries that separated one country from another. But however, the place Buddha was born undisputedly falls in the present-day Nepal. He has mentioned ‘Nepal’ not even once throughout the book. It’d be naive to believe that the author was unaware of the fact that Buddha was born in Nepal. It must be his bias working up by omitting the name of Nepal.

This book is going to mislead the millions of followers of Buddhism or anyone interested to know about Buddha. The book is published by Timeless Books, New Delhi. At a time when Nepal is celebrating Visit Lumbini 2012, books like this are surely going to negate the efforts of Nepal to spread the awareness around the world about the real birthplace of Gautam Buddha. I guess the book is not available in Nepal as I haven’t seen it in the market yet. Anyway, in a nutshell, this book is entirely misleading yet entertaining at times because of the author’s use of funny metaphors and engaging anecdotes.
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Jun 03, 2008 Dia rated it 5 of 5 stars

When I started this book, I thought, "Oh, cool, a great book for those new to and curious about Buddhism. He's dispelling a lot of common misunderstandings about Buddhism that I don't have but that I know a lot of other people have -- like that we all have to be vegetarians, etc. And he's so charming and knowing and wry. Great book to read then recommend to family."

But as I kept reading, I became more unsettled. DKR discusses the four truths that essentially define Buddhism, and throughout the...more When I started this book, I thought, "Oh, cool, a great book for those new to and curious about Buddhism. He's dispelling a lot of common misunderstandings about Buddhism that I don't have but that I know a lot of other people have -- like that we all have to be vegetarians, etc. And he's so charming and knowing and wry. Great book to read then recommend to family."

But as I kept reading, I became more unsettled. DKR discusses the four truths that essentially define Buddhism, and throughout the book he condenses these four truths into the single truth that all compounded phenomena are without inherent nature, are interdependent and impermanent. And as we look at example after example, whether it be from ancient or contemporary times, whether "inside" or "outside" one's self, this is evidently true. In fact it seems quite obvious -- too obvious! Don't I already believe this? And yet a genuine understanding of this is said to result in peace, compassion, and even bliss, three states of being I rarely catch even brief glimpses of. So what gives?

Either the most fundamental Buddhist teaching is wrong, or I don't really believe/understand it (though I think I do) so am not experiencing its fruits. When I finished the book, I couldn't help but take some peeks at my mind in the following few hours. Sure enough, there was plenty of "I hope that this will happen" and "I hope this won't happen," all thoughts that assume an independent, lasting, separate self. In fact, this evening I didn't happen to catch a single thought that didn't assume the independent, inherently existing, permanent existence of something-or-other (usually me).

So somehow I can believe this fundamental truth, assent to it heartily, proclaim it and even demonstrate it -- but in fact not a single spontaneous thought or action seems to actually arise from this belief. Thus DKR called me to practice.

There are other provocations embedded throughout this book, too. For all its brevity and charm, it's a challenging book, one that won't necessarily leave you with a comfortable feeling about your spiritual path, Buddhist or not.

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Apr 11, 2007 Angela Dawn added it

A title only a Buddhist could truly understand naturally intrigues me...this is on my list to read.
I love the way the title points up the concept that, in our finiteness, we can only really define things by defining what they are not.
That our minds lack the capacity to conceptualize what we truly are, (when we only think of ourselves as our solid and important selves), formless and void, nothing, merely a transitory and conditional movement of energy, that amounts to something as vague as infor...more

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Dec 14, 2008 Gordon Young rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: buddhism, philosphy

I love the way this guy cuts right to the point - he's not caught up in teaching a religion. Instead, he talks about the basic observations about existence that the Buddha noted, and the practical implications of those. IMHO, "Buddhism" is a set of instructions for dealing with the situation in the most beneficial way that Siddhartha could come up with at the time - and so I don't know if I exactly agree with the idea that accepting the 4 marks of existence as an accurate depiction of reality ma...more

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Mar 02, 2013 Jo rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: buddhism

This was an interesting book to read while holidaying in a Buddhist country, though the Mahayana traditions of the author sometimes seemed a world away from the Theravada traditions of Myanmar. Basically, Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse lays out his understanding of the four essential 'seals' of Buddhism - all compounded things are impermanent, all emotions are pain, all things have no inherent existence, and Nirvana is beyond concepts. He spends a chapter on each, and suggests that whether we label o...more

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May 19, 2012 Kathleen rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: spirituality

I really didn't like this book for a number of reasons. First, the Buddha that Khyentse presents is not the Buddha that I have come to admire and respect from reading other books. Khyentse's Buddha flies and does other supernatural things. For me, the appeal of buddhism is its practical nature. The Buddha is an inspiring figure precisely because he was an ordinary human. His teachings appeal to me (as I have encountered them) because it doesn't incorporate a whole bunch of hocus-pocus like relig...more

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Snailsausage The Bhagvan as being depicted doing supernatural things will come as no surprise to those familiar with works of scripture, where the Tathagata will o...more
Sep 07, 2012 02:51pm

Jul 20, 2011 Angela rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: dharma

The phrase that sticks out in my mind from this book is "naked babies missing their sex organs" (he's talking about cherubs in Christian art).

So: hilarious! This is a fresh, witty book that challenges (and even gently mocks) the certain, um, less aware forms of western Buddhism that have developed. Where by "less aware", I mean "Orientalist" and maybe even "ignorant" - but Rinpoche is much too kind to say something so mean. Nonetheless, he DOES provide a very readable, informative guide to help...more

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May 06, 2012 Reid rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012-reads, review, religion, eastern-philosophy

This is a challenging book. I love the author's direct, irreverent and humorous approach, and it is mostly rational, not steeped in mystical double talk if you think about it. I read parts of this twice - I was bothered by it, for sure, and still am. Of the 4 seals, 1, 2 and 4 seem like no brainers - 1, everything changes and is impermanent, 2, no emotions are purely pleasurable (“all emotions are pain”) - if we're wanting pleasure, then we're wanting the absence of the opposite, which is imposs...more This is a challenging book. I love the author's direct, irreverent and humorous approach, and it is mostly rational, not steeped in mystical double talk if you think about it. I read parts of this twice - I was bothered by it, for sure, and still am. Of the 4 seals, 1, 2 and 4 seem like no brainers - 1, everything changes and is impermanent, 2, no emotions are purely pleasurable (“all emotions are pain”) - if we're wanting pleasure, then we're wanting the absence of the opposite, which is impossible and sets us up for suffering; #4, Nirvana is beyond concept, it's not really possible to consider.

Ok, check check check. #3, though, is that all is illusion, things have "no inherent existence", by which he means that things have no reality without our subjective or communal co-creation, visually, mentally, etc. Ok, I now even see the truth of that - proven by neuroscientists, psychologists and the like. So, there is no ultimate reality to anything - all is dependent on our filters. But still, the real challenge is to not be attached to anything, no person, especially the self, no ideas, no objects, no nothing. (Sounds like the combination of 2 and 3 to me.) If we can do this, then the inevitable results are the highest levels of generosity, compassion, lack of violence, and the highest level of personal freedom. The Stoics, too, preached non-attachment - it’s got a lot going for it.

The author also says that Buddhism is just a tool, a placebo, to get us to the full belief in these four authentic seals. (Do other books, or religions, dare say this?) Once we journey across the river, we can ditch the boat. There are no rules to follow on the journey, it’s not mandatory to not eat meat or to meditate, etc, but certain practices may help us in our path toward realization. (For those, read other books.)

And here’s something that would make sense in our pragmatic world if we weren’t so attached to materialism and the self - “Buddhists venerate wisdom above all else. Wisdom surpasses morality, love, common sense, tolerance, and vegetarianism.” Why? Because if you first truly believe the four seals to your core, the rest will follow. We’re here a short time, we’re all in the same boat, acting selfishly actually increases suffering, so be compassionate and generous. And I like that he counters Sartre’s ego-centric line about “hell is other people” with this: “there is no hell realm apart from (your) own aggression and ignorance.” In other words, hell isn’t other people, hell is you (and all of us) on the drug of ego-attachment. There are plenty of good quotes, but it’s better to just read the book...(less)

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Apr 08, 2012 Pedro Cabiya rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: religion

Venerable Dzongsar Khyentse sounds a little bit angry and anti-western. In fact, he is very anti-democratic and a homophobe for sure. Not the best book on Buddhism, but it gets the job done for analyzing the main tenets of the notion of impermanence.

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May 20, 2013 Anne rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: non-fiction, mindfulness-buddhism

NOT for the faint of heart, or those interested in simply dabbling in superficial aspects of Buddhism. DJK won't stand for it. Overall, I was disappointed in the continuity of this book. At the beginning DJK states that one can be a meat-eating, Paris Hilton-worshiping materialist, but still be a Buddhist. At the end of the book, however, he condemns the practice of eating meat, as it not only harms another creature, but is an attempt to sustain your impermanent form. If this is the case, why ea...more

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Jun 28, 2012 Angelique rated it 3 of 5 stars

I liked this book, but didn't love it. Khyentse explains in the prologue that he was purposely trying to make the language accessible to the masses, but he went a bit too far for my taste. I found some of it unnecessarily graphic like, "we are like monkeys that shit on the very branches we swing from." But, all in all, I do now have a better understanding of the 4 seals (I previously understood them to be 3 seals and he also explains that we may have understood it that way depending on who the t...more

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Dec 18, 2010 Henry rated it 5 of 5 stars

A book for young and modern folks to understand Buddha's teachings. What is Buddhism talking about? A 14-year Buddhist myself, I feel it hard to explain in plain English. And my root guru Dzongsar Jamyang Kyentse Rinpoche has made this possible by writing such a book different from any other one introducing Buddhism. By "peeling off" all those outer phenomena often associated with Buddhism in people's mind such as religious rituals and culture trappings, Rinpoche's book finds and demonstrates th...more

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Apr 25, 2013 Dale rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: buddhism

So you think you're a Buddhist, eh? With wit and irony, Khyentse lays out the "four seals" at the heart of the Buddha's teaching.

You are a Buddhist if you accept the following:

1. All compounded things are impermanent.
2. All emotions are pain.
3. All things have no inherent existence.
4. Nirvana is beyond concepts.

Easy, eh?

Don't forget to check out the Rinpoche -- as the major reincarnation of a famous Tibetan Lama (who's impermanent and has no inherent existence, mind you) -- he's attractive in...more

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Apr 28, 2012 Eli Brooke rated it 4 of 5 stars

Very accessible intro to the heart of the Buddhist understanding of (non)existence. The author does a good job of explaining the Four Seals and what they really mean, as opposed to the outer trappings that people who aren't familiar with Buddhism may associate with it. He does tend to throw in a LOT of off-hand contemporary examples, which can be a bit distracting and will date this work in the long run, but are useful and pointed nonetheless. Overall this really helped me re-focus on the basics...more

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Aug 09, 2012 Will added it

The title is clever and frankly, "tricky". You might expect a book about belief and behavior but what you'll find is fundamentally a scholarly treatment on the "Four Seals" of Buddhism. But this book is very engaging with excellent analogies and relevant modern cultural references (there's your belief and behavior). While I wouldn't necessarily recommend it to someone new to Buddhism, this is a fun and informative work by a well-respected Rinpoche.

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Jul 10, 2009 Ymfoo1 rated it 5 of 5 stars

Very easy to read. Good for anyone. Very practical ideas. 3 key points I learnt to apply to myself:
(1) Nothing is permament (helps learning to let go and not clinging on to something tightly).
(2) All emotions are pain (learn not to be emotional,
particularly at work).
(3) Self does not exist indepedently. (we are are interconnected. learnt to have less "self".
(3)

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Aug 23, 2012 Ahmaud rated it 5 of 5 stars

I read this book with the intention of better understanding Buddhist thought. There are many seeming contradictions that exist in Buddhism, and being trained in Western philosophy I find some of them dubious, but I read it with as open of a mind as I could given my philosophic and religious state. What I found interesting is that anyone who has ever told me that they are interested in Buddhism have never mentioned the four–or three depending on the school–seals and their importance in grounding...more

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Nov 11, 2012 Duncan Hendrick rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: buddhism

An excellent, thought-provoking book I highly recommend, even to people who are prescribed to no/another religion.

It's very well written, and the author makes complex concepts very easily digestible. It reads like a great novel, where you may have some unanswered questions early on in the reading, but it all comes together and makes sense by the end.

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Nov 04, 2011 Kayla rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: spirituality

For those just beginning to contemplate buddhist theology, this book is a bit esoteric. The author explains the "four seals": All things are impermanent. All emotions are pain. All things have no inherent existence. Nirvana is beyond concepts. For me, it clarified a few fine points like that karma is gathered by consciousness...if your conscious self acts out of greed or aggression, negative karma is generated.

"It's time for modern people like ourselves to give some thought to spiritual matters,...more

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Sep 05, 2008 Jasmine rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: buddhists

Recommended to Jasmine by: a random customer

Shelves: bhutanese

Okay this book is so short I read it without even adding it to my book list. The book is great it focuses really directly on the four seals. Here are some great things from the book:

"Not just a few Christians and Muslims feel passionate about converting heathens to escape hell-fire and damnation, while the existentialists zealously try to convert the religious into heathens." -44

"Buddha doesn't want Jack to be caught in a personal 'Hell,' but he can't tell Jack to work with his perceptions and...more

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Jul 11, 2012 Greg Smolyn rated it 3 of 5 stars

Interesting and modetately insightful. Basically a distilled version of what the core of Buddhism is, without all the hokery pokery of some of the more popular (ie. Tibetan) schools.
Sometimes still a bit dense/obtuse (a problem with books on Buddhism).

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Jul 24, 2010 Sarah rated it 1 of 5 stars

I read a few chapters but had to stop when my eyes got sore from too much rolling. Too bad you can't choose zero stars. Gratuitous pop culture references, needless trashing of world religions. I know it's not Buddhist to judge-- so hey, I guess he's right!

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Jan 22, 2010 Mike rated it 3 of 5 stars

This book is good for what it is, a discussion about what makes one a Buddhist and what a Buddhist is not. But in the end he says that the realization of Buddhism is Buddhist practice, which he does not really define except in a very general and useless way.

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Nov 25, 2011 Elsie rated it 4 of 5 stars

Well, being "not a Buddhist", I had the honour of meeting the author Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse for the first time in May 2004, at a lunch hosted by me and friends whom were members of the organising committee for a charity premiere of the movie "Travellers and Magicians" in Singapore. Though to everyone in the team he is to us, Khyentse Rinpoche, he reminded the team that as he is now in the position as director of the movie, that we should just address him as Director Khyentse Norbu and not Rin...more

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Nov 05, 2011 Steve Woods rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: buddhism, spirituality, psychology-psychotherapy

This is a great little book. it is very clear and presents some of the most daunting concepts of Buddhist thought in a way that anyone can understand. It addresses the essence of what it is to be a Buddhist in practice; what that means to the way we conduct out life. It's a terrific introduction that may whet the appetite for something more orthodox. Even if a reader goes no further, a serious consideration of what is being put in this book could fundamentally alter the quality of the experience...more

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Nov 19, 2012 amoyag rated it 5 of 5 stars

At he end of the book Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche; lama, filmmaker, and writer, states: "I have attempted to present the four views –All compounded things are impermanent, All emotions are pain, All things have no inherent existence, and Nirvana is beyond concepts– the core of Buddhist philosophy, in day-to-day language accessible to people from all walks of life."

That is exactly what he does. This book is a must read for everyone who want to go beyond the superficial and misguided first...more

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Dec 25, 2012 Dorian Wong rated it 5 of 5 stars

this book is suitable for ordinary people to get a basic understanding abt buddhism.not so much scaring serious terms .easy for us to accept ,like hearing a simple story.

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Mar 23, 2011 Brandon rated it 5 of 5 stars

This short, concise book simply rocks! Incredible introductory Buddhist book for anyone with even the slightest interest of understanding Buddhism. Must read.

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Oct 21, 2010 Ronny rated it 4 of 5 stars

An excellent alternate take on what Buddhism is. Rather than go through the 4 Noble Truths as many books do, the book instead covers the 4 seals, which I think are very useful for those who are interested in practice.

I would have liked the book to go into more depth about some of these seals, especially the one stating that all emotions lead to pain.

The book doesn't really talk much about what makes a person not a Buddhist, although it justifies its title at the beginning and end.

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Mar 16, 2010 Lynn Flewelling rated it 5 of 5 stars

Khyentse effectively demystifies Buddhism, scrapes away Western misconceptions, and lays out the structure of this philosophy in clear, eloquent terms.

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About Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse

Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche was born in Bhutan in 1961 and was recognised as the main incarnation of Dzongsar Khyentse (1894-1959). From early childhood, he has studied with some of the greatest contemporary masters, particularly H.H. Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche.

From a young age he has been active in preserving the Buddhist teachings, establishing centres of learning and practice, supporting pr...more

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Books by Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse

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Entrance to the Great Perfection: A Guide to the Dzogchen Preliminary Practices

Brilliant Moon: The Autobiography of Dilgo Khyentse

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