Theistic Buddhism

This book is mainly concerned with the moral needs of believers and its main theme of inquiry is the character of human experience, its dangers, and its victory. These themes are the peculiar products of Buddhist imagination, demanded by the requirements of the moral order to provide for every grade of merit. The early conversions, effected under the immediate influence of Buddha, placed the believer in direct relations with a powerful personality. When the first missionaries went forth to proclaim the saving truth, they could not set their followers in the same immediate contact with the teacher, and a new demand for faith was naturally awakened.