Understanding Buddhism

Erscheinungsjahr 2006
ISBN: 978-1-903765-18-0
Verlag: Dunedin Academic Press

Buch, Englisch, 192 Seiten, Paperback, Format (B × H): 139 mm x 215 mm, Gewicht: 256 g

Reihe: Understanding Faith

Today Buddhism is often presented as a religion without dogmas and commandments, without God and without any need to believe, tolerating all and everything – as no “religion” at all, but as a way of life most suitable to the needs of post-modern Westerners. But is this an accurate image? In this book Buddhism is introduced as a genuine religion, gentle and powerful, being as demanding as it is consoling. Buddhism is certainly not a theistic faith, but neither is it a form of atheism or materialism. Rather it is a challenge to both: a rich source of metaphysical, ethical and spiritual insight that has shaped and nourished countless generations of followers all over Asia and that is now taking firm roots in the West.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Schmidt-Leukel, Perry

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Preface. Introduction. 1. Buddhism: A Brief Overview; 2. The Religious Context of Early Buddhism; 3. Siddharta Gautama, the Buddha; 4. The 'One Taste': Liberation; 5. Many Lives and Ultimate Bliss; 6. Buddhist Meditation; 7. Buddhist Ethics; 8. The Buddhist Community; 9. Buddhism and Politics; 10. The Bodhisvatta Ideal; 11. The New Understanding of the Buddha; 12. Concept, Language and Reality; 13. Tantric Buddhism; 14. Buddhism in China and Japan; 15. Buddhism and Modernity. Bibliography. Glossary. Index.

Über Autor(innen)

Perry Schmidt-Leukel is Professor of Systematic Theology and Religious Studies at the University of Glasgow