Buddhists: Understanding Buddhism through the Lives of Practitioners provides a series of case studies of Asian and modern Western Buddhists, spanning history, gender, and class, whose lives are representative of the ways in which Buddhists throughout time have embodied the tradition.

• Portrays the foundational principles of Buddhist belief through the lives of believers, illustrating how the religion is put into practice in everyday life
• Takes as its foundation the inherent diversity within Buddhist society, rather than focusing on the spiritual and philosophical elite within Buddhism
• Reveals how individuals have negotiated the choices, tensions, and rewards of living in a Buddhist society
• Features carefully chosen case studies which cover a range of Asian and modern Western Buddhists
• Explores a broad range of possible Buddhist orientations in contemporary and historical contexts

About the Author

Todd Lewis is Professor in the Religious Studies Department at The College of the Holy Cross. He is one of the world's leading authorities on the social history of Buddhism. His most recent book, Sugata Saurabha: A Poem on the Life of the Buddha by Chittadhar Hridaya of Nepal, was awarded the Toshide Numata Book Prize for the best book in Buddhist Studies in 2010 and the Khyentse Foundation Award in 2012, for the best translation of a Buddhist text. In 2011, Professor Lewis was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship.

Reviews

"...this volume goes far in filling this lacuna in our teaching resources by presenting a series of biographies of Buddhists that demonstrates the way in which they try and live their lives asBuddhists." (H-Net.org, 1 June 2015)

Book Information
ISBN 9780470658185
Author Todd Lewis
Format Paperback
Page Count 384
Imprint Wiley-Blackwell
Publisher John Wiley and Sons Ltd
Weight(grams) 544g
Dimensions(mm) 244mm * 170mm * 18mm