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Buddhism is one of the major religions of the world. It has different strands and is diverse in its spiritual and philosophical structures. In recent times, it has gained popularity especially in the West. Many of its aspects have attracted scholars from different disciplines—history, philosophy, literature and the arts.

This volume takes up aspects of Buddhism ranging from archaeology and the date of the Buddha to early Buddhist faith, Mahayana and contemporary Buddhism. It is concerned with the traditional biography of the Buddha, the Pali canonical literature in exploring vital features of early Buddhism such as the concepts of arahant, functions of consciousness and the theory of relations. It details the ethical thoughts of Buddhism and its spread in the early centuries after its birth. It examines the contributions of Mahayana scholars to evolution of Buddhism and role of Tantric Buddhism in this context. An interesting section tries to delve into the relation between evolution of Buddhist monasticism and art and architectural contributions of Buddhism. It views the contemporary importance of the religion.

The editor of the volume is Govind Chandra Pande, scholar-historian who was the first National Fellow of Indian Council of Historical Research from 1985-86 and President cum Chairman, Indian Institute of Advanced Study, Shimla. The prestigious fellowship of the Sahitya Akademi was conferred upon him in 2002, in recognition of his contributions to the areas of ancient history and philosophy and creative work as a poet.