Heretofore studies of the Bodhisattva doctrine in Buddhism, the basis of Mahayana Buddhism, have concentrated on Sanskrit sources. The distinctiveness of the present volume lies in the variety of languages and cultures in which research has been done. Traditionally , a Bodhisattva has been understood in view of the Buddha's former lives or as a superhuman making his way toward the enlightened state. The eleven studies making up this volume indicate a need to question uncritical acceptance of such interpretations of the Bodhisattva doctrine. Although the studies are scholarly, they are nonetheless accessible to laypersons as well as scholars and should prove to be instructive for both.
Bodhisattva Doctrine in Buddhism, Leslie S. Kawamura (editor), Sri Satguru, Hardcover,
272 Pages, $24.00
Leslie S. Kawamura is an Assistant Professor, Department of Religious Studies, University of Calgary, Alberta. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, in Far Eastern Studies (1974). He has studied at the Kyoto University (Japan) and has taught at the Nyingma Institute (Berkeley), Institute of Buddhist Studies (Berkeley), and the University of Saskatchewan (Saskatoon). His publications include Mind in Buddhist Psychology (with H.V. Guenther, Dharma Press, 1975) and Golden Zephyr (Dharma Press, 1975). He was a founding member of the Honpa Buddhist Church of Alberta and the Canada-Mongolia Society.
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