How did British rule in India transform persons from lower social classes? Could Indians from such classes rise in the world by marrying Europeans and embracing their religion and customs? This book explores such questions by examining the intriguing story of an interracial family who lived in southern India in the mid-nineteenth century. The...

In this new edition of the best-selling Introduction to Buddhism, Peter Harvey provides a comprehensive introduction to the development of the Buddhist tradition in both Asia and the West. Extensively revised and fully updated, this new edition draws on recent scholarship in the field, exploring the tensions and continuities between the...

A sacred space is any place recognized for its ability to direct the mind and body to holy matters. The basis for this power varies considerably. Sometimes spaces act like reliquaries—enclosures that mark the deposit of a saint’s remains, or the site of an unusual event such as a vision or manifestation of divine power, or the...