Dhamma book for the completely uninitiated

[Epistemes]

There's a thread currently going about which book to give as a gift for somebody who already knows the basics, but what about for somebody who is completely uninitiated? What about if somebody thinks Buddhism is strange but is open to the idea of reading something on it? What's a good way of easing somebody into knowledge of the dhamma?

[David2]

The books mentioned in the other thread are also good for absolute beginners in my opinion.
"Mindfulness in plain English" is very good because it does not use many Pali terms.

[Epistemes]

Yes, there are a lot of good books in the other thread, but I feel many of the recommendation assume some familiarity with terms like "Buddha," "Dhamma," "Sangha," etc. Many of the recommendations in the other thread are for books that contain much to do with the Pali Canon.

"Mindfulness in Plain English" seems to be a book rooted in some knowledge of what dhamma is or, at least, some desire to want to start meditation.

[Justsit]

"Buddhism for Dummies" ??

(No insult intended or implied. )

[David N. Snyder]

Here is an excellent book for beginners and it is completely available online. It is currently available in 31 different languages!

http://www.goodquestiongoodanswer.net/

[Epistemes]

David,

What a great resource! A link worth bookmarking.

[retrofuturist]

Greetings,

What about if somebody thinks Buddhism is strange but is open to the idea of reading something on it? What's a good way of easing somebody into knowledge of the dhamma?

Buddhism For The Modern Skeptic (PDF)
http://www.justbegood.net/Downloads/e-b ... %201_1.pdf



Metta,
Retro.

[pilgrim]

Ajahn Brahm's "Opening the Door of your Heart", also published as "Who Ordered this Truckload of Dung?"

[Maitri]

I personally love, "What the Buddha Taught" by Walpola Rahula. It's one of my favorite intro books and I think I am due for another read. I had the good fortune of giving a copy to a person seeking the Dhamma this weekend!

[polarbuddha101]

The first book I came across about buddhism was "What the Buddha Taught" by Walpola Rahula. It is especially good to give this book to a skeptic because it says rather harsh things about people fabricating god and soul to comfort themselves instead of just seeing reality how it is. I also like the way it described anatta.

However, I think I'm gonna check out that book "Buddhism For The Modern Skeptic" that another poster put up because that sounds interesting