Revised and updated, the third edition of this highly acclaimed anthology surveys all the major religious traditions--Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, Judaism, Christianity, Islam, and African religions--and also covers Zen Buddhism, Shinto, and the religious experience in America. Ideal for courses in world religions and comparative religion, it introduces the unique claims, hopes, and wisdom of each tradition in its own voice, through substantial excerpts from its scriptures, prophets, and authors. "I have tried to pay heed," Eastman writes in his Preface, "to A. C. Bouquet's warning of many years ago that the study of religion may sink to the level of collecting dead insects or pressed flowers, which in the process lose all their color and reality. There is not much excuse for a dreary book about a subject as inherently interesting and provocative as the world's religions." The following selections are new to the third edition: Diana L. Eck's "Frontiers of Encounter," Barbara Stoler Miller on Yoga, R. K. Narayan's story "Chudala," Julia Ching's "Confucianism in Perspective," Thomas Merton on Chuang Tzu, Joseph M. Kitagawa's "The Way of the Kami," Ian Reader on Shinto, Vincent Mulago on African Religions, and "A Personal Note" by John Hick.

Preface PROLOGUE Introduction Frontiers of Encounter, Diana L. Eck I. HINDUISM: Himalayas of the Soul The Hindu View of Life, Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan Hymns from the Rig Veda, Wendy Doniger O'Flaherty (translator) Selections, The Upanishads, Swami Prabhavananda and Frederick Manchester (translators) Selections, Bhagavad-Gita, Barbara Stoler Miller (translator) Yoga: The Discipline of Freedom, Barbara Stoler Miller Chudala, R. K. Narayan I Am But a Seeker After Truth, Mahatma Gandhi II. BUDDHISM: Enlightenment, Compassion, Nirvana The Roar of Awakening, Heinrich Zimmer (translator) Buddhahood, Heinrich Zimmer Selections, Buddhist Scriptures,, Edward Conze (translator) Selections, The Dhammapada Buddhaghosa on the Recollection of Death, Edward Conze (translator) The Mahayana and the Ideal of Bodhisattva, Ananda Coomaraswamy Buddhism As a Way of Life, Walpola Rahula Holder of the White Lotus, The Dalai Lama III. ZEN BUDDHISM: The Sound of One Hand The Essence of Zen, D.T. Suzuki Zen Dust: The Koan, Ruth Fuller Sasaki Han-shan and Cold Mountain, Gary Snyder (translator) Hakuin: Poor Hole-Dwelling Devil, Philip B. Yampolsky (translator) Be Like a Frog, Shunryu Suzuki IV. CONFUCIANISM: An Ideal of Moral Order Confucius and the Struggle for Human Happiness Selections, The Analects, Arthur Waley (translator) Selections, The Book of Mencius, W.A.C.H. Dobson (translator) Confucian Self-Realization, Tu Wei-ming Confucianism in Perspective, Julia Ching A Confucian Metaphor--The Holy Vessel, Herbert Fingarette V. Taoism: The Way to Do Is to Be The Old Master and His Book, Frederic Spiegelberg Selections, Tao Te Ching, Gia-fu Feng and Jane English (translators) Selections, Chuang Tzu, Thomas Merton The Chinese Mind: Its Taoist Substratum, Lin Tung-chi Tao Now, Huston Smith VI. SHINTO: The Way of the Kami Shinto and Japan: An Overview, Edwin O. Reischauer The Way of the Kami, Joseph M. Kitagawa The True Way, Motoori Norinaga Beginnings, Births, Fertility, and Festivals, Ian Reader Glimpses of Shinto, Lafcadio Hearn VII. JUDAISM: The Sanctification of Life What Is Judaism?, Nicholas de Lange Nothing Is Ordinary, Louis Finkelstein Selections, The Holy Scriptures, The Jewish Publication Society The Essential Talmud, Adin Steinsaltz Jewish Mystical Tales, Howard Schwartz Holocaust, Emil L. Fackenheim VIII. CHRISTIANITY: Taking Up The Cross Ways of Being Religious in the New Testament, Norman Perrin Selections, The New Testament, New Revised Standard Version The Gospel of Thomas, Thomas O. Lambdin (translator) Selections, The Confessions, St. Augustine The Anguish of Being a Christian, Soren Kierkegaard Seeds of Contemplation, Thomas Merton On the Road to Damascus, Rita Dove IX. ISLAM: The Straight Path Muhammad, Prophet of God, John L. Esposito Selections, The Koran, A. J. Arberry (translator) The Qur'anic Teaching, Fazlur Rahman Deliverance from Error, Al-Ghazali Moments of the Religious Life, Isma'il R. Farugi Male and Female in Islamic Perspective, Seyyed Hossein Nasr X. AFRICAN TRADITIONAL RELIGIONS: The Dawn of All Things Errors of Terminology, E. Bolaji Idowu Traditional African Religion, Vincent Mulago God in African Belief, E. Geoffrey Parrinder Ogotemmeli and the Dawn of All Things, Marcel Griaule Divinities, Spirits, and the Living Dead, John S. Mbiti XI. RELIGION IN AMERICA: A Sampler Frontier Preacher, Peter Cartwright The Faith of the Latter-day Saints, Joseph Smith Christian Science, Mary Baker Eddy The Souls of Black Folk The Spiritual Values of Native Americans, Joseph Epes Brown EPILOGUE Introduction A Personal Note, John Hick

"A very rich source to enable students to get a 'taste' of influential traditions."--Mary Anne Foley, University of Scranton