Silicon Valley Monk: From Metaphysics to Reality on the Buddhist Path

J.A. Kempf

Nov 2014 · Dharma Gates Publishing

About this ebook

For over 2,000 years, the area of India that is today western Bihar and eastern Uttar Pradesh has served as the destination for devout Buddhist pilgrims from all over Asia.  In 2010, James Kempf and his wife Renate undertook a pilgrimage to the Buddhist sacred sites together with 28 other Western pilgrims. Led by the renowned British meditation teacher Stephen Batchelor, the group visited the area where the Buddha walked and taught, an area untouched by the Indian high tech revolution yet rich in cultural treasures.  In this frank memoir, Kempf tells the story of that pilgrimage, interwoven with the story of his 40 years of meditation training and his career as a software engineer in Silicon Valley. Follow Kempf as he ordains as a Zen priest and negotiates his way through the maze of the Silicon Valley reality distortion field, trying to find wisdom and compassion in the midst of greed, hatred, and confusion, and experiences the benefits and dangers of a hard core meditation practice.  The path of pilgrimage and the path of practice unite in a realization that the Buddha’s teaching wasn’t about mysticism and meditation experiences, but rather about a rational, realistic blueprint for reducing suffering. 

Ratings and reviews

A fantastic book for anyone interested in meditation and/or Buddhism. Woven throughout a modern pilgrimage to notable destinations in Buddha's life is a succinct and well thought out history of the Buddha's life and philosophy. In addition James gives an extremely candid and insightful look into his life's meditation practice. I love how open and willing to share the depths of his heart James is in this book. I'd recommend this book to just about anyone who's actively seeking answers to the never-ending riddle of our lives.

Good but it something missing

Hindi

About the author

I'm a long term Buddhist meditator with formal practice in both the Zen and Vipassana traditions. My blog is at http://svmonk.blogspot.com.