INTRODUCTION – BUDDHISM, POWER AND POLITICS IN THERAVADA BUDDHIST LANDS

These chapters represent an edited collection of essays, some of which were first delivered at a symposium entitled Buddhism, Power and Politics in South and Southeast Asia held by the Becket Institute, St Hugh’s College, University of Oxford, on 14-16 April 2004. The intention of the event was to get the widest possible contribution from scholars working in Theravada Buddhist contexts to the debate over what constitutes a natural sphere of Buddhist political activity, with specific emphasis on the history of the last two centuries.