HOW TO SOLVE OUR HUMAN PROBLEMS: The Four Noble Truths

"All our problems... come from our delusions of attachment," writes Gyatso, a Tibetan-born teacher of Buddhism, and "Buddha's teachings are the supreme... method to solve human problems." Gyatso puts this thesis to the test by first offering very brief, general outlines of each of the Four Noble Truths. He spends the bulk of the book examining a particular delusion—anger—in chapters that more or less correspond to those Noble Truths. He begins by pointing out the many problems anger can cause, then investigates why we get angry. Gyatso then sets forth "patient acceptance" as a method of liberating one's mind from anger, and offers specific strategies for nurturing patient acceptance. He rounds out the book with several appendixes addressing topics such as reincarnation and meditation. Gyatso's discussions have mixed effectiveness. At times his insights are penetrating and his illustrations compelling, as when he explains that patient acceptance—far from being passive—requires strength and courage to resist "well-worn mental grooves of intolerance," but at other times he makes assertions with little or no explanation. Moreover, he fails to extrapolate lessons from his anger case study to address other human problems. Fans of Gyatso will find the book helpful, but others may feel he does not deliver on the book's ambitious title. (Jan.)