What Makes You Not a Buddhist
SynopsisPlot
So you think you’re a Buddhist? Think again. Tibetan Buddhist master Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse, one of the most creative and innovative lamas teaching today, throws down the gauntlet to the Buddhist world, challenging common misconceptions, stereotypes, and fantasies. In What Makes You Not a Buddhist, Khyentse reviews the four core truths of the tradition, using them as a lens through which readers can examine their everyday lives.
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About this book
Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse is a Tibetan Buddhist teacher and filmmaker known for his direct, often irreverent style of communication. In What Makes You Not a Buddhist, he addresses a straightforward question: what actually defines a Buddhist? Rather than focusing on meditation habits, cultural symbols, or lifestyle choices, Khyentse argues that the answer lies in whether a person genuinely accepts four specific views, commonly known as the Four Seals of Buddhism.
These four principles concern impermanence, the nature of suffering, the concept of selflessness, and the meaning of nirvana. Khyentse uses each one as a framework for examining assumptions that both practicing Buddhists and curious outsiders often carry without scrutiny. He points out that many people attracted to Buddhism engage mostly with its outer forms, such as incense, robes, or beads, while bypassing the philosophical positions at its foundation.
The book is short and written in a conversational tone, with humor and occasional sharpness. Khyentse draws examples from ordinary life to illustrate abstract ideas, keeping the discussion grounded in recognizable situations rather than specialized vocabulary. His background connects to Bhutan and the broader Tibetan Buddhist tradition, and he is also known for directing several feature films.
