Buswell (Korean & Chinese Buddhism, UCLA), a strong editorial board, and 250 contributors from around the world have produced an outstanding encyclopedia that succeeds in its aim to document the range and depth of the Buddhist tradition in its many manifestations. Intended for nonspecialists, some 470 scholarly, signed, and highly readable entries, ranging from 50 to 40,000 words in length, address Buddhist history and doctrines from cultural and national perspectives worldwide. The entries also address sacred texts and significant places, people, and schools. Each concludes with a bibliography of scholarly works, many of which, however, will prove difficult to locate in public or smaller academic libraries. Access to the alphabetically arranged entries is effectively augmented by a detailed subject index, a thematic listing of entries, and plentiful cross references.


Readers seeking an introduction to issues affecting or affected by Buddhism as well as students of comparative religion will benefit from the many longer articles treating broad concepts, such as Buddhist Studies, Politics and Buddhism, or Christianity and Buddhism, in which the author provides examples or case studies from multiple traditions (e.g., Chan, Mahayana) or nations (e.g., Tibet, United States). While each volume offers eight pages of vibrant color photographs to spark interest, the 150 line drawings supporting entries seem sparsely placed. One of the very few encyclopedia-like, English-language resources addressing Buddhism broadly, this work is highly recommended.-James R. Kuhlman, Univ. of North Carolina Lib., Asheville