Ajaan Mun is a towering figure in contemporary Thai Buddhism. He was widely revered during his lifetime for the extraordinary courage and determination he displayed in practicing the ascetic way of life and for his uncompromising strictness in teaching his many disciples. The epitome of a wandering monk intent on renunciation and solitude, he assumed an exalted status in Buddhist circles, his life and teachings becoming synonymous with the Buddha’s noble quest for self-transcendence.

A groundbreaking and detailed presentation of the rich system of meditation traditions that have come to us through the Pali tradition of Buddhism. Meditations of the Pali Tradition, from consummate scholar of Pali Buddhism L. S. Cousins, explores the history of meditation practice in early or Pali Buddhism, which was established in various parts of South and Central Asia from the time of the Buddha and developed until at least the fourteenth century CE. Ranging in discussion of jhana (absorption) meditation in ancient India to the Buddhist practice centers of the Silk Road to the vipassana (insight) practices of our modern world, this rigorous and insightful work of scholarship sheds new light on our understanding of the practices that are today associated with the Theravada school of Buddhism and the insight meditation movement. Cousins demonstrates that there is much more to Buddhist meditation than mindfulness alone—concentration and joy, for example, are equally important.

Robert Buswell, a Buddhist scholar who spent five years as a Zen monk in Korea, draws on personal experience in this insightful account of day-to-day Zen monastic practice. In discussing the activities of the postulants, the meditation monks, the teachers and administrators, and the support monks of the monastery of Songgwang-sa, Buswell reveals a religious tradition that differs radically from the stereotype prevalent in the West. The author's treatment lucidly relates contemporary Zen practice to the historical development of the tradition and to Korean history more generally, and his portrayal of the life of modern Zen monks in Korea provides an innovative and provocative look at Zen from the inside.

It will primarily be of interest to those that study Buddhism at a post-graduate level - extracts from the book are already being used as teaching material for an MA in Religious Studies Fills the gap for a textbook in Early Buddhism - which is taught in American universities Of interest to the growing market of educated Buddhists who want to read around the subject First anthology to explore all meditation objects in early Buddhism Features new translations of actual texts, not merely commentaries

This book presents a rethink on the significance of Thai Buddhism in an increasingly complex and changing post-modern urban context, especially following the financial crisis of 1997. Defining the cultural nature of Thai 'urbanity'; the implications for local/global flows, interactions and emergent social formations, James Taylor opens up new possibilities in understanding the specificities of everyday urban life as this relates to perceptions, conceptions and lived experiences of religiosity. Changes in the centre are also reverberating in the remaining forests and the monastic tradition of forest-dwelling which has sourced most of the nation's modern saints. The text is based on ethnography taking into account the rich variety of everyday practices in a mélange of the religious. In Thailand, Buddhism is so intimately interconnected with national identity and social, economic and ethno-political concerns as to be inseparable. Taylor argues here that in recent years there has been a marked reformulation of important conventional cosmologies through new and challenging Buddhist ideas and practices. These influences and changes are as much located outside as inside the Buddhist temples/monasteries.

This handbook is currently in development, with individual articles publishing online in advance of print publication. At this time, we cannot add information about unpublished articles in this handbook, however the table of contents will continue to grow as additional articles pass through the review process and are added to the site. Please note that the online publication date for this handbook is the date that the first article in the title was published online.

This eight-volume set brings together seminal papers in Buddhist studies from a vast range of academic disciplines published over the last forty years. With a new introduction by the editor, this collection is a unique and unrivalled research resource for both student and scholar. Coverage includes: - Buddhist origins; early history of Buddhism in South and Southeast Asia - early Buddhist Schools and Doctrinal History; Theravada Doctrine - the Origins and nature of Mahayana Buddhism; some Mahayana religious topics - Abhidharma and Madhyamaka - Yogacara, the Epistemological tradition, and Tathagatagarbha - Tantric Buddhism (Including China and Japan); Buddhism in Nepal and Tibet - Buddhism in South and Southeast Asia, and - Buddhism in China, East Asia, and Japan.