.... This book is wonderfully helpful to those who, like me, could use both a handy map and a refresher guide, for quick reference when one of those darned lists crops up in reading or a teaching session. First, it succeeds remarkably well in schematizing and simplifying the relationship between the key lists with which the Dharma abounds, starting with the "The Jewels" that provide the "refuge" for Buddhists of every persuasion: the Buddha himself, the Dharma (his teachings) and the Sangha (originally, the association of monks who followed him; today, used more loosely, everything from monastic orders to small groups of practitioners.) Then come the "Four Noble Truths" that form the basis of all Buddhist teaching, the "Eightfold Path" the Buddha prescribed as the true path for those who seek the end of suffering and a shot at enlightenment, the "Three Characteristics of Existence;" the "Five Aggregates;" and so on.... Read the whole review...
