Indian History - Religious Aspects, Buddhist Philosophy, Tibet History, Tibetan Buddhism, Buddhist History, Buddhist Doctrine

Indo-Tibetan Buddhism

Name: Indo-Tibetan Buddhism
Author: David Snellgrove
ISBN: 9781570629730

by David Snellgrove

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Overview

This volume provides a comprehensive survey of Indian Buddhism and its subsequent establishment in Tibet. It concentrates on the tantric period of Buddhist theory and practice, from the eighth to the thirteenth centuries, when the Tibetans were actively engaged in absorbing all they could find of Buddhist culture and religion into their own country. Snellgrove emphasizes the significant role played by the Central Asian kingdoms along the ancient Silk Route in the gradual process of Tibetan conversion. He draws convincingly upon documents of the time to illustrate the cultural changes that swept Tibet as a result of its rule over an extensive empire from the seventh to the ninth centuries—a period of history largely forgotten by the Tibetans themselves when they later embarked upon the wholesale importation of Buddhism directly from Northern India. Throughout, the author quotes extensively from numerous original sources, many of which have never before been translated into English. The illustrations include iconographic art as well as photographs of historical interest.

About the Author, David Snellgrove

David Snellgrove is renowned for his ability to convey the spirit as well as the textual interpretation of Sanskrit and Tibetan texts relating to the history of Buddhism. Since his retirement from teaching commitments in 1982, he has expanded his interests to South Asia, primarily Indonesia, and now Cambodia. He is a Doctor of Literature at the University of Cambridge, Professor Emeritus of the University of London, and a Fellow of the British Academy.