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Today the Buddha is honoured throughout the world as one of the great religious figures in the history of humankind. His greatness lies in his teachings, and in the religious community that he founded, but also in his exemplary life story.
In this authoritative biography, John Strong presents that story the way Buddhists have told it - from accounts of his previous lives, and the story of his birth and upbringing, through to his enlightenment, deathbed deeds, and ongoing presence in the relics that he left behind.
Along the way, he explores the roots of key Buddhist beliefs and practices, making this volume not only a useful study of the life of the Buddha, but a helpful introduction to Buddhism as a whole.
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The Buddha A Beginner’s Guide Where today’s news only scratches the surface, ONEWORLD BEGINNER’S GUIDES combine a truly engaging approach with expert analysis of the most challenging issues facing modern society. Innovative and affordable, these books are perfect for anyone curious about the way the world works and the big ideas of our time. mafia & organized crime james o. finckenauer anarchism ruth kinna democracy david beetham anti-capitalism simon tormey energy vaclav smil artificial intelligence blay whitby evolution burton s. guttman biodiversity john spicer evolutionary psychology r. dunbar, l. barrett & j. lycett the palestine–israeli conflict dan cohn-sherbok & dawoud el-alami fair trade jacqueline decarlo philosophy of mind edward feser the brain a. al-chalabi, m. r. turner & r. s. delamont genetics a. griffiths, b. guttman, d. suzuki & t. cullis postmodernism kevin hart christianity keith ward global terrorism leonard weinberg cloning aaron d. levine hinduism klaus k. klostermaier criminal psychology ray bull et al. life in the universe lewis dartnell bioterror & biowarfare malcolm dando NATO jennifer medcalf quantum physics alastair i. m. rae religion martin forward the small arms trade m. schroeder, r. stohl & d. smith FORTHCOMING: animal behaviour feminist theory medieval philosophy beat generation forensic science modern slavery bioethics french revolution oil british politics galaxies philosophy of religion censorship gender & sexuality political philosophy climate change globalization racism conspiracy theories history of science radical philosophy crimes against humanity human rights renaissance art engineering humanism romanticism ethics immigration socialism existentialism indigenous peoples time extrasolar planets literary theory volcanoes The Buddha A Beginner’s Guide John S. Strong A Oneworld Book First published by Oneworld Publications as The Buddha: A Short Biography, 2001 First published in the Beginners Guide series, 2009 Copyright © John S. Strong, 2001 All rights reserved Copyright under Berne Convention A CIP record for this title is available from the British Library ISBN 978–1–85168–626–1 Typeset by Jayvee, Trivandrum, India Cover design by XXX Printed and bound by XXX Oneworld Publications 185 Banbury Road Oxford OX2 7AR England www.oneworld-publications.com Learn more about Oneworld. Join our mailing list to find out about our latest titles and special offers at: www.oneworld-publications.com For Robbins Strong (1912–99) and Kitty Strong (1917–99) Contents List of tables ix List of