The Warrior Song of King Gesar

Rating:
Summary: Gesar Kicks Demon A**
Review: I am not a student of Eastern philosophy, although I've always thought that I had some appreciation for Buddhist ideas. Well, Gesar is not your sanitary, American high school Buddhism. Gesar is a warrior and superman, and through meditation and divine interaction, he goes out and - excuse the expression - Kicks Some Demon A**. The demon kingdoms surround Gesar's country of Ling, and Gesar must be victorious over them, so the populous will turn towards the tenets of Buddhism and his country have security.

Gesar is an ancient tale from the Himalayan region, and its hero based on a real king. The author has done his best to abridge the major story into a form that is approachable to those of us without extensive background to Tibetan or Mongolian Buddhism, or knowledge of the extensive pantheon of Buddhist deities. However, I fear he has shortened the tale too much; some of his actions seemed like they needed more context. Doing a book search through a university library led me to another translation of the epic of Gesar - *The Superhuman life of Gesar of Ling* by Alexandra David-Neel & the lama Yongden. This version is nearly 400 pages long, compared to 150 pages. Obviously Douglas J. Penick took some liberties with the translation.

This is an exciting tale, filled with magic, demons, and adventure. It is a good, "off-the-beaten-path" story that will give you another perspective on Buddhism and an insight into the cultures of the Himalayan region.

Rating:
Summary: Gesar Kicks Demon A**
Review: I am not a student of Eastern philosophy, although I've always thought that I had some appreciation for Buddhist ideas. Well, Gesar is not your sanitary, American high school Buddhism. Gesar is a warrior and superman, and through meditation and divine interaction, he goes out and - excuse the expression - Kicks Some Demon A**. The demon kingdoms surround Gesar's country of Ling, and Gesar must be victorious over them, so the populous will turn towards the tenets of Buddhism and his country have security.

Gesar is an ancient tale from the Himalayan region, and its hero based on a real king. The author has done his best to abridge the major story into a form that is approachable to those of us without extensive background to Tibetan or Mongolian Buddhism, or knowledge of the extensive pantheon of Buddhist deities. However, I fear he has shortened the tale too much; some of his actions seemed like they needed more context. Doing a book search through a university library led me to another translation of the epic of Gesar - *The Superhuman life of Gesar of Ling* by Alexandra David-Neel & the lama Yongden. This version is nearly 400 pages long, compared to 150 pages. Obviously Douglas J. Penick took some liberties with the translation.

This is an exciting tale, filled with magic, demons, and adventure. It is a good, "off-the-beaten-path" story that will give you another perspective on Buddhism and an insight into the cultures of the Himalayan region.