Preface 1. A Benign Introduction 2. A Place of Exceptional Universal Value 3. A Tale of Two Histories 4. The Anthropology of Enlightenment 5. What Do Gods Have to Do With Enlightenment? 6. A Baroque. Conclusion. Bibliography. Index
Biography
Richard S. Cohen is Associate Professor of South Asian Religious Literatures at the University of California, San Diego. This is his first book, though he has published numerous articles in such venues as the Journal of the American Academy of Religion and History of Religions. He is now working on a study of Buddhism and counterculture.
'This book has ambitious scope, it explores and critiques Western notions of enlightenment that have structured the study of Buddhism.'
- Nayanjot Lahiri, Professor of History, Delhi University, India
