John Newman

Permeated with Waddell's 19th century British imperialist Orientalist belief in the intrinsic superiority of European "Christian" civilization, this book is obsolete. It is valuable for scholars studying Western racist misrepresentations of Asian religions, but it is almost worthless for non-specialists wanting accurate, unbiased knowledge of Buddhism as it is actually practiced by Tibetans. (See also Waddell's absurd and thoroughly discredited theories of the "Aryan" [= blond Nordic race] origin of all civilization.) It is simply ridiculous (and sad) that in 2024 this book is still in print and is being marketed as an introduction to Tibetan Buddhism. Buyer beware!