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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
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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
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For Robbins Strong (1912–99) and Kitty Strong (1917–99)
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