Robert Thurman on Buddhism

Rating:
Summary: budhisme
Review: I want to see exemples of the budhisme religion

Rating:
Summary: Thurman presents lectures on the "Three Jewels"
Review: Robert Thurman, the renowned professor of Indo-Tibetan studies from Columbia presents popular lectures on the basic concepts of "The Three Jewels" of Buddhism - The Buddha, the Dharma and the Sangha. Thurman's style of teaching is light, sometimes humorous and entertaining enough to capture interest in the before mentioned topics. The video quality and sound are adequate - the lectures were recorded at Tibet House, New York, and the set of tapes provides a good introduction to Buddhist thought - great for the inquiring newcomer and a nice refresher for those who have studied this philosophy.

Rating:
Summary: Thurman presents lectures on the "Three Jewels"
Review: Robert Thurman, the renowned professor of Indo-Tibetan studies from Columbia presents popular lectures on the basic concepts of "The Three Jewels" of Buddhism - The Buddha, the Dharma and the Sangha. Thurman's style of teaching is light, sometimes humorous and entertaining enough to capture interest in the before mentioned topics. The video quality and sound are adequate - the lectures were recorded at Tibet House, New York, and the set of tapes provides a good introduction to Buddhist thought - great for the inquiring newcomer and a nice refresher for those who have studied this philosophy.

Rating:
Summary: Thinking of taking a class with Thurman?
Review: This isn't a multimedia presentation. There isn't even a whiteboard. There is some Tibetan art on the walls which are referred to quite infrequently. What you get here is Thurman lecturing, with lots of focus on him. Now and then the audience is shown. At times, the camera lingers on an audience member, usually female, usually young, usually attractive.

Thurman talks with his hands, almost always at least one, often both. Once in a while, a hand slips into a pocket, then comes out within ten seconds. Thurman unmistakeably signals in advance (e.g. with a change into a "silly" voice) his jokes and some young women respond with giggles. This reminds me a lot of graduate school.

So what are you getting with the tapes that a transcript wouldn't give? Well, a chance to see Thurman lecturing, if you've wondered what he's like. He seemed quite agitated, rather absorbed, somewhat of a character. The contents seemed rather elementary, with the emphasis on the teaching regarding the problems of the self and the related emphasis on reaching out to others, all of course in Buddhist terms.

The presentation is not limited to Tibetan Buddhism, which, at any rate, embraces earlier Buddhist teachings. But Thurman appeals to the magic that has been associated with Tibetan Buddhism. One extreme but not isolated example is that, in order to emphasize the power of a Buddha, he claims that if 11 people were locked in a room with only enough air for 10, it would be no problem if one of those people were a Buddha because a Buddha don't need air. Remarkable. I'm not sure what he's aiming at with such statements. Perhaps he feels it is necessary to shake people up a bit to the great potential he believes people have. Hopefully no one suffocates.

Science fiction. Virtual reality. Buddhaverses. Infinite this and that. Food fights among enlightened beings each so generous he/she gives away his/her food. Buddhas said to create acres of land frequently. Somehow the theist "Big Daddy" is a projection of self-centered people, but unlimited reincarnation is an evolutionary opportunity and doesn't reflect our fear about death. It becomes something of a sermon. In graduate school, the control of grades by professors acted to reduce negative feedback from students and I wonder if Thurman isn't victim of similar conditions. No one in the audience in these tapes asks a questions, so the giggles and attentive smiles are the key feedback.

I wondered whether Thurman is used to dealing only with advanced topics at school and not experienced at giving elementary lectures such as these. Unless watching Thurman is your aim, you may get a great deal more for your money by reading one of Thurman's books - or a book by some other Buddhist writer, many of whom cover key Buddhist themes quite well.


Rating:
Summary: A good explanation
Review: This series consists of three videotapes that cover three aspects of Buddhism: the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha. Each tape is a lecture given by Robert A. F. Thurman at the Tibet House in New York. Excepting the occasional shot of the audience, each video is 70 minutes of his lecturing.

This is not necessarily a bad thing. Thurman is an entertaining speaker and does a great job in explaining some of the mystical aspects and philosophy. He is very good at relating to the audience. After viewing them, I do feel that I have a better grasp of main tenets.

This does not appear to be scripted. For instance, in tape two, he mentions that he will discuss the Four Noble Truths, the three wheels, and the three vehicles. He goes in depth on the truths and the first two wheels, but then seems to realize that he is running out of time so rushes through the last four. There is still good information, but I wished that these last ideas had the same kind of detailed explanation.

I would recommend this to anyone wanting to understand more about Buddhism.

Rating:
Summary: A good explanation
Review: This series consists of three videotapes that cover three aspects of Buddhism: the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha. Each tape is a lecture given by Robert A. F. Thurman at the Tibet House in New York. Excepting the occasional shot of the audience, each video is 70 minutes of his lecturing.

This is not necessarily a bad thing. Thurman is an entertaining speaker and does a great job in explaining some of the mystical aspects and philosophy. He is very good at relating to the audience. After viewing them, I do feel that I have a better grasp of main tenets.

This does not appear to be scripted. For instance, in tape two, he mentions that he will discuss the Four Noble Truths, the three wheels, and the three vehicles. He goes in depth on the truths and the first two wheels, but then seems to realize that he is running out of time so rushes through the last four. There is still good information, but I wished that these last ideas had the same kind of detailed explanation.

I would recommend this to anyone wanting to understand more about Buddhism.

Rating:
Summary: Very informative, easy to follow
Review: This was essential to learing the real thoughts regarding buddism. Books I had read in the past were difficult to comprehend the actual meaning of the teachings of the buddah. Thurman is a great teacher and makes it easy and enjoyable to learn about this way of life. Also makes reading other books on the subject much easier.