That's Funny, You Don't Look Buddhist

On Being A Faithful Jew and a Passionate

Sylvia Boorstein

• Publisher: HarperOne
• Year: 2010
• Print ISBN:
  9780060609580
• eBook ISBN:
  9780062031280
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Buddhism

This "touching and funny" book by a Jewish Buddhist "giv[es] a sense of the richness that comes with opening to more than one way of spiritual observance"( San Francisco Chronicle).

"How can you be a Buddhist and a Jew?" It's a question Sylvia Boorstein, author of It's Easier Than You Think, has heard many times. Can an authentic Jewish faith be wedded with Buddhist meditation practice? In this landmark national bestseller, the esteemed Buddhist teacher addresses the subject in a warm, delightful, and personal way. With the same down-to-earth charm and wit that have endeared her to her many students and readers, Boorstein shows how one can be both an observant Jew and a passionately committed Buddhist.

"An incisive exploration of the process of religious participation—one that will be widely read and intensely important to many people." —Elaine Pagels, New York Times-bestselling author of  The Gnostic Gospels

"A beautiful book for Jews and Buddhists alike—warm, honest, heartfelt." —Jack Kornfield, author of  The Wise Heart

Includes a foreword by Stephen Mitchell

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Dedication
• Contents
• Preface
• Foreword by Stephen Mitchell
• First Page
• One More River
• I am a Jew and I am a Buddhist
• An Early Introduction to Buddhism
• Good Karma
• “So, What’s a Nice Jewish Girl Like You…?”
• Basic Dharma
• All Attachments Cause Suffering
• More Profound is Not the Point
• Another Attachment Story
• The Possibility of Peace
• Silence is a Fence for Wisdom
• A Renewed Jew
• Not Quite Beyond Words
• Emptiness
• Karma is True
• Permission and Inspiration
• Torah All Around
• Psalm 121
• Hineyni
• Serve God with Joy
• Abounding Love
• An Alternative, Almost Wordless, Liturgy
• Prayer
• Liturgical Optimism
• Serve God with Sorrow
• Holocaust
• V’ahavta—Metta Practice
• Compassion is Compassion
• The Great Way is Not Difficult
• A Beit Knesset is Not Supposed to Be a Zendo
• Jewish in Jerusalem
• Dinner Party in Jerusalem
• Lineage
• This is How American Buddhism Looks
• Last Page
• Acknowledgments
• About the Author
• Copyright
• About the Publisher