Living with the Devil Paperback – 1 June 2005

Batchelor has wrought together thoughtful, insightful essays. Much here is profound, with very little fat. More than worth the time and money.

Batchelor - is the master of secular Buddhist analysis and the teachings of Buddha. In this book he explores the capacity to encounter and work with the Shadow. Highly recommend.

Stephen Batchelor is one of my favorite writers. For me his grasp of the essence of the Buddha's path, and his capacity to open it to others through words, is second to none. I read this book a few years ago and thought it "good". Re-reading it, and some passages over and over again, it seems to me to be his best. Often, reading, there comes a stunning clarity as his words sink in. You just have to stop and look at the world around you. Excellent . Recommended.

I gave up bookmarking the pages as there were far more than not. An incredible tour de force. Words fail me, simply wonderful.

Stephen Batchelor has written a superb analysis of the shadow part of human psychology as conceptulised in Indian Buddhism by the idea of the demon Mara. Compared to our "western" notion of the "devil" as a personified daimonic entity, Mara in Batchelor's Buddhism is less of a persona and more of a psychological force that eclipses our better selves, makes end-runs around our good intentions(with which hell is often paved),and messes us up in ways that we ourselves mess up in our getting along in the world because of our ignorance, greed and aversion (what Buddhists call the three poisons.Batchelor does not hold with dualistic notions of Mara and the Buddha. As he says, the Buddha and Mara are one. Why does he go that far? He says this because he views the Buddha as human like the rest of us, not as a superhuman being with magical powers. Buddha is not a god.He demonstrates from a close study of many of the canonic Pali texts times when the Buddha was afflicted--by doubt, by enemies, by annoyance, by negative emotions. (In one famous episode he calls his competitive, manipulative monk cousin, Devadatta, a lickspittle.)The negative shadow side of each and every personality is forever in some kind of play because it stems from our prehistoric ancestors' needs to be on guard, ready for fight or flight at any time. But this reactiveness of our personalities--although probably it can never be eliminated--can be limited by the steady work of Buddhist practice, especially the practice of insight meditation. The goal is not some state of transcendance, but rather the incremental growth of insight into the work/action of ourselves in the world and with other humans, to the point that we are able to develop more caring and more compassion in our ability to identify with others, and less hatred, lust, and delusion (the daily paranoia).So Batchelor's idea of Mara is not that of an occult demon to be controlled by rituals and magic. Mara is our shadow, or negative aspects that need to become apparent in our awareness, and dealt with. It's about living the freedom of not suppressing our demonic capabilities or projecting them onto others, but by learning to recognise the destructiveness that often rules our actions and thoughts. As Batchelor says: "Buddha and Mara are figurative ways of portraying a fundamental opposition within human nature. While 'Buddha' stands for a capacity for awareness, openness, and freedom, 'Mara' represents our capacity for confusion, closure, and restriction."A great book--highly recommended for anyone not bogged down by dogmatic views on Buddhism or human psychology.