Buddha

karen armstrong

With such bestsellers as A History of God and Islam , Karen Armstrong has consistently delivered "penetrating, readable, and prescient" ( The New York Times ) works that have lucidly engaged a wide range of religions and religious issues. In Buddha she turns to a figure whose thought is still reverberating throughout the world 2,500 years after his death. Many know the Buddha only from seeing countless serene, iconic images. But what of the man himself and the world he lived in? What did he actually do in his roughly eighty years on earth that spawned one of the greatest religions in world history? Armstrong tackles these questions and more by examining the life and times of the Buddha in this engrossing philosophical biography. Against the tumultuous cultural background of his world, she blends history, philosophy, mythology, and biography to create a compelling and illuminating portrait of a man whose awakening continues to inspire millions.

Genres buddhismnonfictionbiographyhistoryphilosophyspiritualityindiareligionasiabiography memoir

240 pages, Paperback

First published January 29,2001

Series

Penguin Lives

This edition

Format: 240 pages, Paperback
Published: September 28, 2004 by Penguin Books
ISBN: 9780143034360
ASIN: 0143034367
Language: English

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The Buddha

An ascetic (śramaṇa) and sage, on whose teachings Buddhism was founded. He is believed to have lived and taught mostly in the eastern part of ancient India sometime between the sixth and fourth centuries BCE.Gautama taught a Middle Way between sensual ind...

About the author

karen armstrong

Karen Armstrong is a British author and commentator of Irish Catholic descent known for her books on comparative religion. A former Roman Catholic religious sister, she went from a conservative to a more liberal and mystical Christian faith. She attended St Anne's College, Oxford, while in the convent and graduated in English. She left the convent in 1969. Her work focuses on commonalities of the major religions, such as the importance of compassion and the Golden Rule.
Armstrong received the US$100,000 TED Prize in February 2008. She used that occasion to call for the creation of a Charter for Compassion, which was unveiled the following year.