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Damien Keown
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Buddhist Ethics: A Very Short Introduction 1st Edition

by Damien Keown (Author)
4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 55 ratings
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There is a newer edition of this item:

Buddhist Ethics: A Very Short Introduction (Very Short Introductions)
Buddhist Ethics: A Very Short Introduction (Very Short Introductions)
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The latter half of the twentieth century witnessed a growing interest in Buddhism, and it continues to capture the imagination of many in the West who see it as either an alternative or a supplement to their own religious beliefs. Numerous introductory books have appeared in recent years to cater to this growing interest, but almost none devotes attention to the specifically ethical dimensions of the tradition. For various complex cultural and historical reasons, ethics has not received as much attention in traditional Buddhist thought as it has in the West. Written by Damien Keown, one of the few experts worldwide who specializes in the area, Buddhist Ethics illustrates how Buddhism might approach a range of contemporary moral issues, ranging from abortion to euthanasia, sexuality to cloning, and even war and economics.

About the Series: Combining authority with wit, accessibility, and style, Very Short Introductions offer an introduction to some of life's most interesting topics. Written by experts for the newcomer, they demonstrate the finest contemporary thinking about the central problems and issues in hundreds of key topics, from philosophy to Freud, quantum theory to Islam.
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  1. ISBN-10
    9780192804570
  2. ISBN-13
    978-0192804570
  3. Edition
    1st
  4. Publisher
    Oxford University Press
  5. Publication date
    September 8, 2005
  6. Part of series
    Very Short Introductions
  7. Language
    English
  8. Dimensions
    4.75 x 0.5 x 7 inches
  9. Print length
    168 pages
  10. See all details
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very short introducations, introductions, comprehensive
very short introductions, VSI, key features, concise, exper authors, analysis, grow your knowledge
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Book Description

An invaluable exploration of the ethical dimension of one of the world's great religions

About the Author

Damien Keown is Reader in Buddhism at Goldsmiths College, University of London. His books on Buddhism include Dictionary of Buddhism and uddhism, A Very Short Introduction. He is also Editor of The Journal of Buddhist Ethics and Coeditor of The Curzon Critical Studies in Buddhism series.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ 019280457X
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Oxford University Press; 1st edition (September 8, 2005)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 168 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9780192804570
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0192804570
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 5.6 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 4.75 x 0.5 x 7 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 55 ratings

About the author

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Damien Keown

Damien Keown

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Damien Keown is Emeritus Professor of Buddhist Ethics at Goldsmiths College, University of London. His research interests centre on the study of contemporary moral problems from a Buddhist perspective. He is co-founder of The Journal of Buddhist Ethics and the author of the best-selling 'Buddhism: A Very Short Introduction' and 'Buddhist Ethics: A Very Short Introduction', both from Oxford University Press and available on Amazon.

Customer reviews

4.2 out of 5 stars
4.2 out of 5
55 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Victor Gabriel
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent
Reviewed in the United States on September 5, 2020
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Arrived on time. Product as described. Good introduction into the topic. Clear, layered, good summary of important points.
One person found this helpful
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bchan33
5.0 out of 5 stars Easy to read and very informative!
Reviewed in the United States on December 1, 2011
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I loved this book. It was a quick read but extremely informative and covers a wide array of topics from Buddhist point of view such as: abortion, vegetarianism, animal welfare, sexuality and lots more. I would recommend this book for anyone interested in Buddhism.
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Billy C.
4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting read for Buddhism enthusiasts
Reviewed in the United States on March 23, 2014
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Enjoyed the application of Buddhist theories to modern day issues. Although lacking in depth, it does provide a good fundamental analysis of key issues like abortion and cloning and how Buddhism would view such practices. Somewhat dry but short and insightful for beginners of Buddhism.
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robert dunne
1.0 out of 5 stars Seek elsewhere.
Reviewed in the United States on June 28, 2015
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Didn't like it. Couldn't relate to it.
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Sarah Parcell
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent short introduction
Reviewed in the United States on August 26, 2022
I enjoyed this book wholeheartedly. I got the audio book and the performance was outstanding. I have knowledge of Buddhism, but wanted to become specifically acquainted with Buddhist Ethics perspectives. I found some passages fascinating. I'm considering buying the print version so I can make notes. Highly recommended.
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Tre
5.0 out of 5 stars good intro overview
Reviewed in the United States on October 1, 2012
Whether you are a student of Buddhism or a casual interested layperson, this is the book for you! Easy to read and a good companion volume to his introductory text which goes with this book. As suggested, read the intro book first to get the most out of this sister volume that focuses on ethics.
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Crow Man
2.0 out of 5 stars Not Very Readable
Reviewed in the United States on July 2, 2022
The author seems knowledgeable. Wish the book included some insight into the history of Buddhism and how this faith group is linked to Hinduism. I'll keep looking.
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D. F SHAFER
4.0 out of 5 stars Ethics for Everyman
Reviewed in the United States on January 28, 2006
This is the second "A Very Short Introduction" book on Buddhism that I have read. Focusing on "Buddhist Ethics, Keown does a yeoman's job of not merely repackaging the information in his previous short introduction to "Buddhism". Keown Describes the tenants of Buddhism, classifies the "ethics" of Buddhism using the Western canon of ethics and then takes on six applied areas. Each are is looked at from the Western and then Buddhist ethical point of view:1) animal s and the environment, 2) sexuality, 3) war and terrorism, 4) abortion, and 6) cloning. The discussion of cloning alone is a reason for reading this book.

I don't want to make the review longer than the short book. Read this book and you will dramatically increase your self-awareness of the ethics within!
10 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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M. Craig Willy
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent overview of Buddhist ethical traditions.. glimpses of future
Reviewed in France on September 24, 2021
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I have a mixed experience with Oxford's Very Short Introductions series. Many are excellent, others are so superficial (to me) that I don't feel I get a good grasp of the topic, besides knowing the general themes.

This is one of the excellent VSI books. Keown synthesizes a vast amount of knowledge on the Buddhist tradition, including the Pali Canon, Zen, and current practices and attitudes in Buddhist countries today (Japan, Thailand, Sri Lanka...). Suffice to say the cultural landscape is vast and the author does a fine job of presenting it - no mean feat!

The information was generally congruent with my other readings, e.g., on early Buddhism's hostility to violence and Zen's more ambivalent position. In the end, Asian Buddhism in practice ends up having an ethics not necessarily so different to what Westerners will be familiar with regards to Christianity (e.g., on abortion).

One clearly senses Buddhism's attitude to family and the state changed when it shifted from a spiritual subculture to the institutionalized dominant culture in symbiosis with the government and the peasantry. Something similar clearly occurred with Christianity.

Looking to the future, there are some tantalizing discussions of Buddhist approaches to novel biotechnologies such as cloning, gene editing, and enhancement. Overall, this is a fine book to familiarize oneself with the long and diverse Buddhist traditions and stimulate ethical debate.
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Michael Schröder
4.0 out of 5 stars Gelungene Einführung
Reviewed in Germany on October 10, 2018
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Das Buch ist meiner Ansicht nach eine sehr gelungene Einführung in das Thema "Buddhistische Ethik". In einem so kleinen Buch sind naturgemäß nicht alle Themen umfassend darstellbar. Die zentralen Grundannahmen, von denen eine buddhistische Ethik ausgehen kann sowie einige aktuelle Anwendungsthemen werden gut beschrieben und analysiert.
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Vibey
5.0 out of 5 stars Loved it
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 2, 2018
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Loved it
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RAVI BHATT
3.0 out of 5 stars I find his previous book much better..
Reviewed in India on October 31, 2016
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To be honest, I find his previous book much better....
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laurens van den muyzenberg
2.0 out of 5 stars A Survey of Diverse Buddhist Views
Reviewed in France on July 10, 2013
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The main part of this book presents a diversity of views of different Buddhists about sexuality, just war, terrorism, abortion, suicide, euthanasia, cloning and stem cells. The description of Buddhism s such covers only twenty pages. This is not a book for beginners. In order to evaluate these different views the readers need considerable knowledge about Buddhism. Just to take one example, the concept of "emptiness." This is a very important subject difficult to understand. "Emptiness" refers to the concept that nothings exists without a cause, that nothing is permanent, that everything is interdependent, in other words there exists nothing "on its own" usually referred to as "inherently". "Emptiness" is presented in the book as a concept that can provide justification for taking life of others with equanimity. This was the opinion of a Japanese nationalistic Buddhist in the context of war. This in my view is not a helpful illustration of "emptiness". In the context of war the Dalai Lama believes self-defense is justified.

The author does indicate that the book requires prior knowledge and also that those that want to develop a more comprehensive understanding should read "Buddhist Ethics" by Hammalawa Saddhatissa and "Introduction to Buddhist Ethics" by Peter Harvey with which I completely agree. I also suggest " Beyond Religion”, "Ethics for a whole world" by the Dalai Lama.

This diversity of views the author presents on the subjects treated is not unique for Buddhism. That is the same in Christianity and Islam. All spiritual traditions have some extremist adherents with views that are far removed from the intentions of the founders. In summary the book is interesting for those that would like to compare different Buddhist views on very important ethical issues with the differing views in other spiritual traditions.
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