Since the appearance of the epoch-making works of Rhys Davis, Kern, and Oldenberg, the sources for the history of Buddha and Buddhism, have been greatly increased. The accessions to our knowledge of the Pali texts are indeed chiefly due to Rhys Davids, but this new data has never been incorporated into previous results.
This present work sets forth information that is known from records which had not, till the publication of this book, been presented in a Western forum. It is undeniable that in the story of Buddha there has been a growth, and even in the oldest documents we can trace records of varying antiquity. In these pages an attempt has been made to distinguish the earliest account, but this does not touch the fundamental question: is there a concrete, historical basis at all?
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