The Buddhist monk Buddhasdasa Bhikku (1906-1993) injected fresh life into Thai Buddhism by exploring and teaching little known transcendent aspects of the religion. His investigations excited both monks and lay people; and gave rise to the vigourous discussion in shops; temple yards and newly founded Buddhist associations. Moreover; he was a prolific author; who produced a rich array of publications that are indicative of his popularity and the impact of his teachings. While these discussions included serious exchanges on doctrine and practice; they also included jokes and light humor; criticisms of weak evidence for certain positions; and a defamation campaign arising from rumors that Buddhadasa was a communist sympathizer. Buddhadasa's thoughts and historical context coincide with the general picture of "modern Buddhism" and he may be seen as an agent of "Buddhist modernity;" but he worked predominantly in Thailand through the medium of the Thai language; and he contributed much more significantly to Thai Buddhists than to Buddhist practice outside the country. An enormous amount of material relating to Buddhadasa Bhikkhu has been captured in religious journals and in numerous "pocket books" aimed at a general audience. Departing from the classical method of studying Buddhism through philology; Tomomi Ito's account of Buddhadasa Bhikkhu draws on this popular literature and on conversations with a broad spectrum of the people involved in these discussions to develop an account of Buddhism as it is experienced by Thai people. The result is a lively intellectual and social history of contemporary Thai religion and society built around the life of an exceptional monk who captured the interest of Buddhists pursuing spiritual depth in the context of the ideological conflicts of the Cold War.
#610334 in Books Judaica Place 2012-02-14Original language:English 10.75 x 8.50 x 1.00l; 3.10 #File Name: 9657265118336 pages
Review
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Price very good but Maps are small...By Mrs. O.We were really excited to get this atlas; especially when we saw the price versus other online stores; but when it arrived today we were quite disappointed in the size of the maps. For some reason; the typesetter decided to put a 2 inch border of white space around each side of the maps. This makes each map quite small for the size of the book. We were hoping for lush; large maps; and while the color and clarity of typesetting is good; enlarging the maps would have much improved the looks and functionality of this volume. I also sent one as a gift; and I'm hoping the text size on the maps doesn't pose a problem for a person with bifocals. The labeling of locations also seems a bit sparse for my tastes. I love to look at maps; and am sad this wasn't done a tad different. However; I am looking forward to how it can improve my understanding of the Biblical narrative. -SW (Not G. Olinger)1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. I Like It!By CustomerI have a deep interest in the physical aspect of the Bible; geography; culture; archaeology; etc. This is my first atlas from a Jewish point of view and it is enlightening and broadening. It gives a different slant to what I have in my several Christian atlases and I appreciate it. What kind of differences? Well one simple thing is the definition of words that form part of place names. I know; I can look that up in a dictionary; but I usually don't. Then; for example; in the discussion of the rivers that flowed out of Eden: the comments on similar names for water-related features close to Jerusalem (e.g. El Gihon) and the rabbinic speculation that "The waters of the river that flowed out of Eden disappeared into the bowels of the earth and returned to the surface in widely separated regions; at opposite ends of the Fertile Crescent..." This is rounding out my geographical library.1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Excellent Atlas; though actually about 20 years oldBy Ariel SegalThis is a superb overview of the events and historical context of Tanakh. However; it is actually a translation of the original Daat Mikra Hebrew atlas from 1993. Thus the archaeological information is not up-to-the moment (stuff like the Khirbet Qeiyafa inscription). With that reservation; I would heartily recommend it to all those interested in Biblical Archaeology
