In Gotama Buddha, Professor Najima Nakamura embarks on a search for the details of the historical Buddha's life. He conducts an exhaustive analysis of both the oldest, most reliable teaxts and later biographies of the Buddha that contain mythological material. Carefully sifting these texts to seperate facts from embellishments, he constructs a biography that begins with the Indian historical context at the time of the Buddha's birth and takes the reader through all the stages of his life. Professor Nakamura also compares the oldest Buddhist texts with the earliest Jain and Hindu writings and finds surprising similarities that elucidate the significance of the historical Buddha. Archeological discoveries and factual elements from Buddhist art support Professor Nakamura's fscinating story. In volume 2 he traces the Buddha's final journey from Rajagaha toward his birthplace of Kapilavatthu, details the many events of the Buddha's death, and discusses the beginnings of his deification.

Gotama Buddha, Volume Two, Hajime Nakamura, Kosei Publishing, Paperback, 2005, 350 pp., $19.95

Hajime Nakamura (1912-99), a world-renowned authority on Indian philosophy, was president of the Estern Institute, Tokyo, and a professor emeritus of the Universty of Tokyo. He was engaged for many years in extensive research on Asian thought and religion. Among his other works translated into English are Ways of Thinking of Eastern People, A Comparative History of Ideas, and Gotama Buddha.