Buddhism Simplified
Brief notes on Buddhist thought and practice
(more about these pages)

Welcome!

This disreputable layman has been favored with many wonderful opportunities:

  • I have studied with monks, nuns, priests, and lamas
  • I have completed several pilgrimages in Japan
  • I have worked in two temples, and lived in one
  • I have taught Buddhism in English to Chinese kids and monastics
  • I have studied formally for a PhD in Buddhism

Through all of this--whether for non-Buddhist temple visitors, or for sophisticated Buddhists with not-so-sophisticated English--I have often had to express complex Buddhist ideas in the simplest way possible.

In these pages I will share some of those ideas. These will include:

  • The world the Buddha lived in
  • The story of his life
  • The problem he faced (human suffering)
  • His solution (elimination of desire=Nirvana, enlightenment)
  • How this solution was adapted as it spread throughout the world

You must realize, though, that this is my understanding, representing an American's view of some Eastern concepts. Please don't blame my teachers for any mistakes I make!

You can read more about my involvement with Buddhism here.

Everything on these pages is © 2009 by James Baquet.