Buddhist Essays

The book is arranged into twenty essays that move from biography and doctrine to ethical, metaphysical, and historical reflection. “The Life of the Buddha” recounts the Buddha’s renunciation, awakening, teaching career, final days, and distinctive spiritual personality. “A Brief Survey of the Leading Doctrines of Buddhism” introduces the core doctrinal framework of Buddhist teaching, while “Some Characteristics of Buddhism” identifies what makes Buddhism distinct among religious and philosophical systems. The essays on “Pessimism and Sorrow,” “Nibbāna,” “God,” and “Kamma, the Judge of the World” examine the Buddhist understanding of suffering, liberation, non-theism, causation, and moral responsibility. “Morality in Buddhism,” “Charity,” and “Knowledge” develop the ethical and practical dimensions of Buddhist life. “After Death” addresses rebirth and continuity beyond physical death, while “The Specific in Buddhism” clarifies the distinctive structure of Buddhist insight. “The Law of the Middle Path” and “Asceticism” explain Buddhist discipline as avoiding both sensual indulgence and extreme self-mortification. Later essays discuss women, the riddles of beginning and end, miracle, and the elements, before the book concludes with a historical survey of Buddhism’s development and a reflection on its world mission.