Among Tibetan Texts: History and Literature of the Himalayan Plateau (Studies in Indian and Tibetan Buddhism)
"To anyone trying to find their way among Tibetan texts, these introductions are essential reading." (Shambhala Sun)"Gene Smith opened more doors to Tibetan Buddhism than any scholar of the 20th century. These essays are the keys." (Prof. Donald Lopez, University of Michigan, author of Prisoners of Shangri-La: Tibetan Buddhism and the West)"No one knows the full range of Tibetan literature better than Gene Smith. His numerous introductions to Tibetan works are so valuable as to be priceless." (Professor Jeffrey Hopkins, University of Virginia, author of Cultivating Compassion: A Buddhist Perspective)"These essays are all characterized by Gene's astonishingly encyclopedic knowledge of Tibetan literature, philosophy, and history, delivered with a kind of easy elegance that makes his erudition look effortless. They are a pleasure to read. There are perhaps only one or two other scholars in thecountry who even come close to Gene's knowledge of Tibetan culture." (Stephan V. Beyer, author of The Cult of Tara)"A fascinating glimpse of the politics and personalities of Tibetan history." (Buddhadharma)"Smith is a legendary figure in the history of Tibetan Buddhist studies. He was a field office for the Library of Congress from 1968-1985 and used that position to salvage and subsequently publish (with the assistance of US Public Law 480) more Tibetan literature than, well, anyone. This volume contains seventeen independent essays and introductions he wrote for some of the published volume. Virtually all of them are seminal in the fields of Tibetan and Buddhist studies, which deserve the new audience this volume will attract. Most of the volume on which Smith comments are not those you will find in your local bookstore, which makes this work especially important. Anyone with an interest in Tibetan Buddhist textuality, literary history, and reading between the lines of Tibetan religion should have this book." (Religious Studies Review)