The Light of Asia: or The Great Renunciation Being the Life and Teaching of Gautama, Prince of India and Founder of Buddhism

At its initial publication in 1879, this lovely retelling of the life of Prince Gautama Buddha, prior to his attaining enlightenment to become the Buddha, was a huge hit, and a huge scandal. Eastern scholars of Buddhism claimed it misrepresented the doctrine. Western Christians were outraged by the likening of Buddha to Jesus. Its reputation was cemented. English poet SIR EDWIN ARNOLD (1832-1904), whose verse in The Light of Asia was praised at the time and continues to inspire and move readers today, was fascinated by the East, and this work was one of the first to introduce European readers to Buddhism. As an artifact of the opening of Western minds to Eastern influences, this remains a fascinating read, as well as an enlightening one.