Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benares to Modern Colombo (The Library of Religious Beliefs and Practices) 2nd Edition, Kindle Edition
by Richard F. Gombrich (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.8 out of 5 stars 10 ratings
Written by the leading authority on Theravada Buddhism, this up-dated edition takes into account recent research to include the controversies over the date of the Buddha and current social and political developments in Sri Lanka. Gombrich explores the legacy of the Buddha's predecessors and the social and religious contexts against which Buddhism has developed and changed throughout history, demonstrating above all, how it has always influenced and been influenced by its social surroundings in a way which continues to this day.
Editorial Reviews
Review
`An excellent and exciting introduction to the social history of Buddhism ... This book will be useful to scholars and students in both Buddhist studies and the social sciences.' |IChoice --This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition.
About the Author
Daniel Jackson is Senior Lecturer in Media and Communication at Bournemouth University.
Caroline E. M. Hodges is Senior Lecturer in the Media School at Bournemouth University.
Mike Molesworth is Principal Teaching Fellow at the University of Southampton.
Richard Scullion is Associate Dean of Corporate & Marketing Communication in the Media School at Bournemouth University.
--This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition.
Product details
Publication Date : September 27, 2006
File Size : 473 KB
Word Wise : Enabled
Print Length : 254 pages
Publisher : Routledge; 2nd Edition (September 27, 2006)
ASIN : B000OT7UKA
Text-to-Speech : Enabled
Enhanced Typesetting : Enabled
Language: : English
X-Ray : Not Enabled
Simultaneous Device Usage : Up to 4 simultaneous devices, per publisher limits
Lending : Not Enabled
Best-sellers rank #1,157,793 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
#168 in Theravada Buddhism (Kindle Store)
#244 in Buddhist History (Kindle Store)
#360 in Theravada Buddhism (Books)
Customer Reviews: 4.8 out of 5 stars 10 ratings
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Elizabeth A. Gibson
5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding social history of Buddhism in ancient India and Sri Lanka
Reviewed in the United States on April 9, 2009
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Gombrich is an excellent writer, his prose clear and precise. In this book, he does a great job of explaining how Buddhism grew out of the Buddha's responses to the various religious and spiritual options available in 500-400 b.c. India, including Brahmanism and various types of renouncers and ascetics. Fascinating! Gombrich also does an excellent job of explaining the specific spiritual problems Gotama attempted to address with his philosophy and practice. Very highly recommended.
14 people found this helpful
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Margaret Fairrie
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United States on January 31, 2017
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Overall pleased!
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Vivianne Crowley
5.0 out of 5 stars Crowley, Vivianne. “Review: 'Theravada Buddhism: A social history from Ancient Benares to Modern Colombo', by Richard Gombrich.”
Reviewed in the United States on April 3, 2015
Crowley, Vivianne. “Review: 'Theravada Buddhism: A social history from Ancient Benares to Modern Colombo', by Richard Gombrich.” The Middle Way: Journal of the Buddhist Society 81, no. 4 (February 2007): 250-251.
This welcome re-issue of Professor Gombrich’s classic Theravada Buddhism has been updated to take account of recent research, and provides a scholarly but very readable introduction to the history of Buddhism in India and Sri Lanka from the fifth century BCE to the present day. The importance of the work lies not only in its historical value in helping Buddhists and to understand early developments, but also in educating contemporary Buddhists about the influence of Western ideas on the development of Buddhism in Sri Lanka in the nineteenth century. Theravada Buddhism was first published 20 years ago, since when there have been scholarly advances in our understanding of the development of early Buddhism, including Professor Gombrich’s contribution to the dating of the historical Buddha’s life and Professor Joanna Jurewicz’s work on references to rebirth in the Rig Veda. On a more tragic note, there has also been, of course, the civil war in Sri Lanka, as well as population growth and economic developments that have changed the lives and therefore the religious practices and needs of its inhabitants. Theravada Buddhism’s final chapter explores these late twentieth-century changes and their meaning for Buddhism in the twenty-first century.
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Nick
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent
Reviewed in the United States on June 30, 2010
If you're interested in the origins of Buddhism, with a thorough exposition of its social parameters, this is the book for you. From the Buddha's relation to Brahminism and the evolution of the religious order founded by him, this book covers it all, including the arrival of Europeans and how Theravada Buddhism reacted to it.
Personally, I started reading this book to know about Theravada Buddhism per se, not so much its social history, but even then I found much to be interesting and helpful for an understanding of Buddhism in general.
The writing is excellent, precise, to the point, and informative.
14 people found this helpful
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W. Chen
4.0 out of 5 stars Good introcution to Buddism in general, and its development in Ceylon in particular
Reviewed in the United States on December 28, 2012
The first half (5 chapters) is a very good and concise introduction to the origin of Buddhism, its conceptual framework, contrast with Hinduism, and monastic system (Sangha). The second half (3 chapters) is relatively uneven, covering Buddhism's spread to Ceylon (by Asoka's son) as the conservative Theravada, its decline and corruption, and modern renewal and tranaformation in the last one and a half century.
6 people found this helpful
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A reader
3.0 out of 5 stars Overview is lacking in some regards
Reviewed in the United States on March 14, 2008
The author's choices are a little strange to me. Why spend so much time on the pre-Buddhist vedic tradition and then say absolutely nothing about Buddhism in India post-Ashoka? Granted, he mentions that there isn't much information to be had about Theravada in India, but there is some. He cuts right to Sri Lanka though.
Otherwise its a decent overview. If it was titled "A Social History from 430-300 BCE and 1100-present CE" it would be much more accurate.
16 people found this helpful
