The story of the Buddha and his awakening is more than an account of the birth of a religious tradition: it is also one of the great archetypal tales of the spiritual quest, colourful in its many details and thrilling in its depiction of the world transformed by an enlightened human being. Sherab Chodzin Kohn’s retelling of the Buddha’s life is both readable and historically informed, and presents the Buddha’s teachings along with the events of his past lives to final nirvana. Library Journal called it ‘a splendid combination of biography and instruction’. This revised edition includes a brief history of Buddhism and a list of recommended further readings.