Verses from the Center: A Buddhist Vision of the Sublime
Ex-monk Stephen Batchelor has stirred up controversy in the past by marrying Buddhism to secular agnosticism. Now he goes right to the greatest Buddhist sage after Sakyamuni, Nagarjuna, for corroboration. In this translation of Nagarjuna's seminal work,Verses from the Center, we see Nagarjuna turning a skeptical eye to all dogmatic beliefs. But Batchelor, through his emphasis on the poetics of the work, moves away from polemics to experience--experience of the emptiness that pervades existence and teaches deeper truths.Verses from the Centeris an extended meditation on the implications of emptiness, and thanks to Batchelor's limpid rendering, it prompts a meditative reading. Batchelor's opening essay, half of the book, is one of the best introductions you'll find on Nagarjuna's notion of emptiness, emphasizing that emptiness ultimately brings us back to face the world. In a chapter called "Acts," Nagarjuna says:My acts are irrevocableBecause they have no essence...Where are the doers of deedsAbsent among their conditions?Imagine a magicianWho creates a creatureWho creates other creatures.Acts I perform are creaturesWho create others.--Brian Bruya--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.