Did the Buddha actually say "all worldlings are mad", "all descriptions of reality are temporary hypotheses" or "all things are perfect exactly as they are"?  These are just some of the sayings that Bodhipaksa, author of Vegetarianism: A Buddhist View and of the Wildmind Buddhist Meditation site, investigates in his new book I Can't Believe It's Not Buddha!, an entertaining search for the truth amidst the haystack of 'Buddha quotes.'

The book is Bodhipaksa's response to encountering many dubious 'quotes' attributed to the Buddha on social media and elsewhere over many years.  Sayings from people such as Osho (Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh), Robert Louis Stevenson, Marie Curie...even quotes originating from the film 'Fight Club' or unlikely 'literary' quotes (such as "ennui has made more gamblers than avarice, more drunkards than thirst, and perhaps as many suicides as despair") have been, at various times, attributed to the Buddha. 

Believe nothing, no matter where you read it, or who said it, no matter if I have said it, unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense. - A real quote from the Buddha?

With great humour Bodhipaksa explores the 'fake Buddha quotes' phenomenon, using them as teaching opportunities to succinctly elucidate what the Buddha actually taught. 

Published by Parallax, I Can't Believe It's Not Buddha! is available in book shops from the 6th November.

Visit FakeBuddhaQuotes.com to find out more about this book and where it is available.