Rude Awakenings: Two Englishmen on Foot in Buddhism’s Holy Land

Half raucous adventure and half inspirational memoir, Rude Awakenings documents an unusual pilgrimage. Two very different men--life-loving naturalist Nick Scott and austere Buddhist monk Ajahn Sucitto--together spend six months retracing the Buddha's footsteps through India. Told alternately by Sucitto and Scott in their distinctive voices, this story blends self-effacing humor, philosophical explorations, drama, travel observations, and the occasional giant fruit bat. Rude Awakenings is a heady record of survival and spirituality set against the dramatic backdrop of one of India's most lawless regions.

Ajahn Sucitto, a Theravadan Buddhist monk in the Thai forest tradition for twenty-eight years, is the Abbot of Chithurst Monastery in England. He is a popular teacher of meditation who conducts retreats around the world.

Dr. Nick Scott is a botanist and ecologist who has worked most of his life in conversation. He lives in Chithurst, outside London.

Stephen Batchelor has studied in Buddhist monasteries in India, Switzerland, and Korea. An accomplished writer and photographer, he has translated, written, and contributed to many books about Buddhism including Buddhism Without Beliefs, Verses from the Center, and The Tibet Guide. He lives in the South of France.