Who was Siddartha Gautama? What is Buddhism? Today, countless books offer a new take on the Eastern religion that has spread far beyond the borders of India, where it was born 2,500 years ago. But this book offers something more -- the original writings and fundamental teachings that form the basis of this great, and growing, tradition.With clear, helpful commentary by scholar E. A. Burtt, this book will familiarize you with: -- THE FOUR NOBLE TRUTHS-- THE EIGHTFOLD PATH-- THE ZENAKA STORY OF BUDDHA'S BIRTH AND EARLY LIFE-- A ZEN "KOAN"-- THE WHITE LOTUS ODEAND MOREFilled with essential documents and touching upon such topics as compassion, mental health, monastic life, and the nature of nirvana, this book will introduce you to -- or deepen your understanding of -- one of the world's great religions, devoted to the realization of universal love.

"A New American Library book." "First New American Library printing, April 2000"--Title page verso.

Book 1 The Early Scriptures of Buddhism. Some Basic Doctrines of the Buddha -- Treading the Path to Nirvana -- The Spirit of Theravada Buddhism -- Book 2 Buddhist Thought Through Later Centuries. The Mahayana Religious Ideal -- Some Mahayana Philosophies -- Devotional and Intuitional Buddhism in China and Japan -- Epilogue: Buddha's Pity.