This book contains fifteen chapters, many by well-known scholars of Buddhism, a general introduction, and a short bibliography. It recounts some aspects of "the life of Buddhism" that could be conveyed by detached observers and outsiders, with the exceptions of an essay on an esoteric Shingon Buddhist meditation and the single article on Buddhism in North America at the end of the book, which discusses Buddhist chanting in a Zen context. All but one of the chapters are about Asian Buddhism, with all major forms of Asian Buddhism and all Asian countries with significant Buddhist populations being represented. Some of the authors are Asians, but the majority are North Americans. One of the authors, Philip Kapleau, is iden- tified as a Buddhist. We do not know how many, if any, of the other authors are Buddhists, though it seems safe to guess that several may be.
