ABSTRACT
This book represents a significant addition to the comparative study of philanthropy and culture. In no other volume have a variety of area specialists been asked to turn their attention to the role of philanthropy – of giving and sharing beyond the family – in the life of a particular culture at a particular time. That so little attention has been paid to this subject is surprising. One need only consider the role that philanthropy has played in defining and sustaining numerous religious traditions, e.g., Buddhism, in the establishment of a wide range of educational and cultural institutions, and, perhaps most visibly, the construction of innumerable public buildings and facilities – roads, khans, fountains, etc. The sheer magnitude of this construction undertaken throughout history should have made that activity a prime candidate for study. However, such has not been the case.
