The Ways of Religion

"A very rich source to enable students to get a 'taste' of influential traditions."--Mary Anne Foley, University of Scranton"A very creative, interesting introduction to world religions--a hybrid text."--Gaston Espinosa, Westmont College"An outstanding anthology and clear expositions."--Allen Howard Podet, Buffalo State College"An excellent supplementary book for World Religions courses because it quotes primary sources."--Marianne Ferguson, Buffalo State College"Excellent selection from recent studies of religion from the original texts. Eastman covers a great deal of ground in 500 pages and does it carefully and intelligently."--Dan O'Bryan, Sierra Nevada College"An excellent survey for use in introductory level courses at the seminary level. It helps to bring students into the world of religion beyond the Judeo-Christian tradition."--Philip Wickari, San Francisco Theological Seminary/Graduate Theological Union"A thorough, comprehensive book with a variety of presentations to meet different kinds of audiences."--Ralph R. Covell, Denver Seminary"The Ways of Religion was just what I was looking for. It provides substantial sections of writings (including Scripture) from various traditions without being overwhelming to students. Its inclusion of contemporary writings adds to it relevancy as well."--Joel J. Heim, Carroll CollegePraise for the previous edition (first 4 quotes): "In my twenty-five years of teaching world religions this is the first book on the subject that I have liked, with the sole exception of Huston Smith's World Religions. Unlike the latter, this is an anthology and a very excellent one at that. Eastman's book will be a boon to students."--Ramesh Patel, Antioch College"An excellent mixture of restrained but clear commentary with multiple selections of primary texts from the great traditions of humankind. The sense and sentiment, taste and feel emerge from the stories and sacred texts."--Michael Barnes, University of Dayton"A most useful introduction."--Randall Balmer, Barnard College, Columbia University"An excellent anthology...thoroughly recommended for study and general interest."--Geoffrey Parrinder

• PrefacePROLOGUEIntroductionDiana L. Eck: Frontiers of EncounterI. HINDUISM: Himalayas of the SoulSarvepalli Radhakrishnan: The Hindu View of LifeWendy Doniger O'Flaherty (translator): Hymns from the Rig VedaSwami Prabhavananda and Frederick Manchester (translators): Selections, The UpanishadsBarbara Stoler Miller (translator): Selections, Bhagavad-GitaBarbara Stoler Miller: Yoga: The Discipline of FreedomR. K. Narayan: ChudalaMahatma Gandhi: I Am But a Seeker After TruthII. BUDDHISM: Enlightenment, Compassion, NirvanaHeinrich Zimmer (translator): The Roar of AwakeningHeinrich Zimmer: BuddhahoodEdward Conze (translator): Selections, Buddhist Scriptures,Selections, The DhammapadaEdward Conze (translator): Buddhaghosa on the Recollection of DeathAnanda Coomaraswamy: The Mahayana and the Ideal of BodhisattvaWalpola Rahula: Buddhism As a Way of LifeThe Dalai Lama: Holder of the White LotusIII. ZEN BUDDHISM: The Sound of One HandD.T. Suzuki: The Essence of ZenRuth Fuller Sasaki: Zen Dust: The KoanGary Snyder (translator): Han-shan and Cold MountainPhilip B. Yampolsky (translator): Hakuin: Poor Hole-Dwelling DevilShunryu Suzuki: Be Like a FrogIV. CONFUCIANISM: An Ideal of Moral OrderConfucius and the Struggle for Human HappinessArthur Waley (translator): Selections, The AnalectsW.A.C.H. Dobson (translator): Selections, The Book of MenciusTu Wei-ming: Confucian Self-RealizationJulia Ching: Confucianism in PerspectiveHerbert Fingarette: A Confucian Metaphor--The Holy VesselV. Taoism: The Way to Do Is to BeFrederic Spiegelberg: The Old Master and His BookGia-fu Feng and Jane English (translators): Selections, Tao Te ChingThomas Merton: Selections, Chuang TzuLin Tung-chi: The Chinese Mind: Its Taoist SubstratumHuston Smith: Tao NowVI. SHINTO: The Way of the KamiEdwin O. Reischauer: Shinto and Japan: An OverviewJoseph M. Kitagawa: The Way of the KamiMotoori Norinaga: The True WayIan Reader: Beginnings, Births, Fertility, and FestivalsLafcadio Hearn: Glimpses of ShintoVII. JUDAISM: The Sanctification of LifeNicholas de Lange: What Is Judaism?Louis Finkelstein: Nothing Is OrdinaryThe Jewish Publication Society: Selections, The Holy ScripturesAdin Steinsaltz: The Essential TalmudHoward Schwartz: Jewish Mystical TalesEmil L. Fackenheim: HolocaustVIII. CHRISTIANITY: Taking Up The CrossNorman Perrin: Ways of Being Religious in the New TestamentNew Revised Standard Version: Selections, The New TestamentThomas O. Lambdin (translator): The Gospel of ThomasSt. Augustine: Selections, The ConfessionsSoren Kierkegaard: The Anguish of Being a ChristianThomas Merton: Seeds of ContemplationRita Dove: On the Road to DamascusIX. ISLAM: The Straight PathJohn L. Esposito: Muhammad, Prophet of GodA. J. Arberry (translator): Selections, The KoranFazlur Rahman: The Qur'anic TeachingAl-Ghazali: Deliverance from ErrorIsma'il R. Farugi: Moments of the Religious LifeSeyyed Hossein Nasr: Male and Female in Islamic PerspectiveX. AFRICAN TRADITIONAL RELIGIONS: The Dawn of All ThingsE. Bolaji Idowu: Errors of TerminologyVincent Mulago: Traditional African ReligionE. Geoffrey Parrinder: God in African BeliefMarcel Griaule: Ogotemmeli and the Dawn of All ThingsJohn S. Mbiti: Divinities, Spirits, and the Living DeadXI. RELIGION IN AMERICA: A SamplerPeter Cartwright: Frontier PreacherJoseph Smith: The Faith of the Latter-day SaintsMary Baker Eddy: Christian ScienceThe Souls of Black FolkJoseph Epes Brown: The Spiritual Values of Native AmericansEPILOGUEIntroductionJohn Hick: A Personal Note