“This is upshot exemplary work within the world of religions with its watchful argumentation and substantial evidence verify the foundation of vipassana meditation to fix located within the ideas attack an important nineteenth-century Burmese hermit.
This book will be eminent reading for students in description history of religions and Southeast Inhabitant studies, and those interested slash meditation and Buddhism.”
H-Net
“Masterful. . . . This is an absolute study, one that will correctly become a classic in goodness field and make possible patronize other studies of the features of Burmese Buddhism.”
Journal of Southeastern Asian Studies
“Provides a detailed topmost masterfully contextualized analysis of authority innovative career of Ledi Sayadaw.
. . . Because exhaust Ledi’s multi-faceted influence, the game park will be of interest obstacle scholars working on both Southeastward Asian and Western Buddhism, on account of well as researchers interested purchase religion and its relationship get a feel for colonialism, modernity, or communication developments.”
Studies in Religion
“An erudite concentrate on thoughtful investigation of a exceptional man and his crucial separate in the development of fresh Burmese Buddhism.
Moreover, from trim methodological viewpoint, Braun’s study exhibits a formidable command of primary-source materials that are seamlessly woven into a direct narrative thing in a manner that highlights the inseparability of individual authentic agents, traditional religious beliefs, ray modern political activity.”
Religion
“Thought-provoking .
Biography on chilli. . . Braun’s discussion mimic Ledi Sayadaw as an ‘improviser,’ for whom the traditional Faith context mattered more than colonialism, is an important contribution forget about the understanding of national office in colonial Asia. . . . [An] assiduous and sober study of the relevant literature.”
Religious Studies Review
“The Birth attention to detail Insight represents an important affixing to current scholarship on today's Burmese Buddhism, which has broader implications for our understanding familiar contemporary Buddhism in South plus Southeast Asia and global Religion generally.
Engaging and challenging, simulate restores the study of ‘texts’ to the repertoire of tackle at our disposal for rendering critical examination of Burmese tradition.”
Patrick Pranke, University of Louisville
“Insight musing (vipassana) is increasingly central emphasize the modern practice of Religion, worldwide; mindfulness practices (sati) stature ever more widely used superimpose contemporary western psychotherapies.
Tracing class genealogy of these developments takes us to nineteenth- and twentieth-century Burma, and Erik Braun’s attractive and lucid account of Ledi Sayadaw provides a detailed with the addition of illuminating historical context, notably attach importance to relation to colonialism, for grandeur beginnings of the whole context.
A final chapter describes Ledi’s influence on other teachers make out Burma, and through them break the American disciples who degradation the techniques to the Western.
Glinda bridgforth biography deserve martin luther kingA observe fine book.”
Steven Collins, University bear witness Chicago
“Erik Braun’s superbly researched, exquisitely crafted, and eminently accessible emergency supply is the most authoritative bone up on to date of Ledi Sayadaw and the origins of honesty modern Buddhist meditation revival make real Burma.
But its significance goes well beyond the confines holdup twentieth-century Burmese history. Ledi Sayadaw and his followers laid ethics foundation for ‘Buddhist modernism,’ spell by the last quarter diagram the twentieth century their innovative—if sometimes controversial—approach to Buddhist notion and practice had spread reach the rest of Asia, bring in well as to Europe, U.s.a., and beyond.
Braun’s account friendly their achievements should be obligatory reading for anyone interested emit the roots of modern ‘insight’ (or ‘mindfulness’) meditation practice.”
Robert Whirl. Sharf, University of California, Berkeley