As a Social Work student, I have taken several classes on counseling/therapy and I was struggling with how to reconcile the ideas I was learning in my classes with the philosophy of Buddhism. Coming across Aronson's book has been a great help to me in addressing these questions. On the surface it may seem like psychotherapy and Buddhism clash on ideas of anger, the self, and attachment, but as Aronson explains, they are not really so contradictory after all.

I also appreciate the words of caution he has for westerners taking up this religion. The cultural differences are real and it would be a mistake to ignore them. If we're not careful, we as westerners can use our Buddhist practice to reinforce dysfunctional behavioral patterns and thinking. I was surprised how spot on Aronson was in identifying these problems. He is clearly someone who is very familiar with both Buddhism and psychotherapy and has a deep understanding of how the two can interact for westerners. I learned a great deal about myself in reading this book and I am very grateful to Aronson for that.

I highly recommend this book for any western Buddhist, whether they are involved in psychotherapy or not, and also for any therapists in general as it will help them understand some of the struggles their Buddhist clients may be experiencing.

This book was desperately needed for those that live in the West and practice Buddhism! The honesty, directness and usefulness of this book is great! I'm so glad this book was published!

A well written and thought-out book that can be of great use for western practioners of the buddha-dharma. Having been exposed to many of the challenges written about in this book I find it helpful that such a book has been written by someone with so much experience in the buddhist world as well as the world of psychotherapy. A veritable boon for all westerners on the path of awakening!

For more than half a century scholars and psychologists have been trying to see whether the practices and philosophy of Eastern religions and philosophical systems can be engaged with Western psychology. Some of the finest attempts at doing this have come from Ken Wilber, Roger Walsh and Frances Vaughan. To their number we should now add the name Harvey Aronson. I do not know him, but I read that he is a psychotherapist and Buddhist lecturer and this is one of the most comprehensive attempts to examine the basic differences and convergences between Asian and Western cultural and spiritual values.

This is far from being an arcane topic. Virtually every meditation teacher has been struck by the amount of psychological work that we need to do. Not just at the outset, but, as practice continues, many psychological issues tend to come up. Often people find themselves struggling with the apparent contradictions of being a Christian and needing therapy. Or alternatively of being a Western practitioner of Buddhism who enters therapy and then has to try and reconcile the apparent contradictions between a meditation practice that stresses the gradual dissolution of the ego and social inter-dependence, with therapeutic models that tend to emphasize ego-strengthening, autonomy and individuality.

The influential Chögyam Trungpa, founder of Naropa University in Boulder, talked a lot about meditation as therapy, but always said that meditation should be seen as an unconditional way of life rather than a form or medicine or healing.

The author's background enables him to expand on the subject in a way that only a few other writers have. In this book he focuses on the four central strands of the teachings of the Buddha: The Self, anger, love and attachment, and how these strands can illuminate and enrich Western psychological thought.

This is a well-written, clear and practical book that I recommend highly.

The author is psychotherapist, & meditation teacher with many famous associates/teachers in Theravada, Vajrayana, Dzogchen, & Bon (e. g. Surya Das, the IMS crew, Hopkins, Dudjom R., Norbu, Wangyal, Goenka et al), & Anne Klein's husband. He builds on the work of other therapist-Buddhists (Engler, Rubin, Epstein, Safran, Welwood) in explaining differences, risks, & potential cross-fertilization between these Eastern & Western approaches p. xiii: "Buddhist philosophy & meditation practice offer many tools for profound spiritual development, but they do not address all the psychological concerns of Westerners. Without more culturally appropriate interventions such as psychotherapy, even some advanced meditators continue to suffer from anxiety, depression, isolating narcissism, or numbed disengagement," p. xv: "When unacknowledged, such cultural gaps can cause teachers to misunderstand their students, who in turn suffer feelings of alienation & emotional injury," p. 2: "When we assimilate Buddhist practice into preexisting patterns, we merely introduce new content into old forms," & p. 65: "Confusion can occur when we are not mindful that we are taking concepts out of a Buddhist historical & linguistic context, translating them & depositing them into our own cultural-linguistic framework." As Tibetan/Pali/Sanskrit translator, he provides extensive discussion of how words, used differentially in English & Asian tongues, cause misunderstanding; thus, he focuses on 4 often confusing topics: self, anger, love, & attachment, providing examples of cultural & linguistic differences. Carefully choosing his words, he provides examples, stories, personal experiences, & quotes from both Buddhist masters & psychotherapists as well as meditation exercises (Tonglen, metta/maitri--see Pema Chödrön's works for more detail). He describes his aim as: p. 91: "cross-cultural & psychological reflections on Buddhist teachings," pointing out that p. 228 note 30: "Our way of understanding our experience is then very different from that of traditional Asian cultures." For example, p. 92: "Healthy anger, or assertion, differs from the intent to harm, which is the traditional Buddhist meaning of anger." p. 101: "Buddhist texts have no single morally neutral term for our abstract concept `emotions'." Also, p. 162: "It is an unfortunate & significant misreading of Buddhist literature to confuse the attitude of a Buddhist practitioner who embodies engaged nonattachment with that of a person who is defensively detached." He addresses how Buddhism will be absorbed into the West (reminiscent of Tsomo's & others' books on Western Buddhist Women), stating--p. 80: "We in the West will inevitably place Buddhist philosophical teachings within our psychological frame." p. 195: "While it is important to recognize the complex web of language, philosophy, social customs, & history that have both informed Buddhism & been informed by it in Asia, there is no way that we can-or should-seek to replicate all segments of that web when we incorporate Buddhist practice into our lives. From what I have seen, it is most effective to craft our own psycho-spiritual milieu, one that combines both traditional & modern approaches in addressing the broad array of concerns that we currently experience." p. 205: "We are seeing the evolution of an entirely new style of Buddhism in the West, influenced by cultural forces not prevalent in traditional Asia."