Tue History or Busoomst Tuovewr.—By Dr. Edward J. Thomas. Kegan Paw Ca, London. 15/=-
Dr. Thomas is already well known for his book on the life of Buddha, but in the volume which he has now reduced he sets himself a task quite istinet from that which he performed in his original and very interesting contribution to literature dealing with Buddhistic subjects. Indeed, he has taken up the history of Buddhism from the time of the death of the Founder of the religion. Thas Buddha himself was a religious genius there cannot now be the slightest doubt. But once the incidents of his life have been dealt with, the growth of the religion which sprung out of his tea~ ching, from the appearance of his chai of wandering ascetics to the velopment of several branches of the same religion, presents a study which has curious parallels in the history of the Christian Church; and as it has been dificult to bring the results of the various Christian schisms into one comprehensive volume, so has Dr. Thomas. experienced the same difficulties in the very excellent survey which he gives of Buddhist thought through the century es. Dr. Thomas does the student of Buddhism an infinite service when, {in the early part of his book, he deals somewhat with the Brahmainism which prevailed in India at the time of the life of Buddha, and thereby affords a very interesting description Of the background against which the Buddha formed the philosophy which was to endure and spread so exten sively throughout Asia. Like the Christian religion, it has no document tary relics from the time of the prophet himself; and in the early centuries after the death of Buddha we
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.