Theravāda Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benares to Modern Colombo

The book is organized into eight main chapters. The first chapter introduces the basic concepts of Theravāda Buddhism, including the Buddha, Dhamma, Sangha, the meaning of refuge, the role of Pāli, the Tipiṭaka, and the methodological problem of writing a social history of Buddhism. The second chapter situates Gotama Buddha within the religious and social world of ancient India, especially Vedic civilization, brahminical ritual, karma, rebirth, and the conditions that made the Buddha’s teaching attractive. The third chapter analyzes the Buddha’s Dhamma as a response to brahminism, emphasizing religious individualism, morality, kingship, and the social implications of the teaching. The fourth chapter studies the discipline of the Sangha, including Vinaya principles, monastic rules, chastity, hierarchy, sect formation, conformity, and relations between monks and laity. The fifth chapter examines the accommodation between Buddhism and ancient Indian society through devotion, relics, pilgrimage, mortuary rituals, transfer of merit, and Aśoka’s patronage. The sixth chapter follows the Buddhist tradition in Sri Lanka, discussing Sinhalese Buddhist identity, cosmology, Buddha-image worship, village monks, Mahinda’s mission, the preservation of scriptures, Buddhaghosa, Pāli learning, forest and village monks, state control, monastic property, decline, and revival. The seventh chapter explains Protestant Buddhism, focusing on colonial disruption, missionary influence, lay activism, the Theosophists, Anagārika Dharmapāla, and modern reform. The final chapter addresses current trends and new problems, including religious pluralism, war, nationalism, Hinduizing tendencies, altered states of consciousness, developments in the Sangha, and the continuing challenge of adapting Theravāda Buddhism to modern social realities.