Narrative History of Buddhism in America

Author Rick Fields

A sweeping history unfolds the story of Buddhism’s spread to the West. A modern classic unparalleled in scope, How the Swans Came to the Lake opens with the story of Asian Buddhism, including the life of the historical Buddha and the spread of the Dharma from proto-India to Southeast Asia, China, Korea, Japan, Tibet, and elsewhere.

Coming to the modern era, American author Rick Fields tracks how Western colonialism in Asia served as the catalyst for the first large-scale interactions between Buddhists and Westerners.

Fields discusses the development of Buddhism in the West through key moments such as:

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  The original cover 40 years ago

  Transcendentalist fascination with Eastern religions;
• immigration of Chinese and Japanese people to the United States;
• the writings of D. T. Suzuki, Alan Watts, and poets in the Beat movement;
• the publication of Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind by Shunryu Suzuki;
• the arrival of Tibetan lamas in America and Europe; and
• the influence of Western feminist and social justice movements on Buddhist practice.

This 40th anniversary edition features both new and enhanced photographs as well as a new introduction by Fields’s nephew, Buddhist Studies scholar Benjamin Bogin, who reflects on the impact of this book since its initial publication and addresses the significant changes in Western Buddhist practice in recent decades. More (shambhala.com)