In the first or second century CE, Chinese officials began to hear rumors of a powerful new deity somewhere in the far off 'western region'. Golden hued, able to fly through the air, and of superhuman size, he was the source of unspeakable power. The Chinese Emperor sent out an exploratory expedition, images of the Buddha began to appear at court, and thus began the gradual spread of Buddhism through East Asia; from India to China, Korea, Vietnam and Japan. This book offers an up to date introduction to Buddhism in East Asia, taking a timely regional focus and covering history, geography and culture, doctrine and texts, practice and tradition. Written by a leading scholar, it surveys the field by means of vivid and accessible explanations made readily understandable by features such as boxed summaries, charts and timelines, a glossary, further reading lists and illustrations. The regional focus and the stress on practice and material culture is in tune with contemporary research in the field and bringsthe East Asian Buddhist world enjoyably to life.
