Why Buddhism baffles the west
                                             Wilson Quarterly
                                         Vol. 21 No. 2  Spring.1997
                                                      P.72
                                      Copyright by Wilson Quarterly

None of the world's major religions is more richly varied than Buddhism.
From the time of its birth some 2,500 years ago in India, it was reworked
and reshaped over and over again as it spread to the many kingdoms of
Asia--and, recently, to the West. In each of these lands, Buddhism
profoundly influenced local cultures, and was in turn profoundly remolded
by them--so much so that today's adherents sometimes even honor different
Buddhas. Such variety makes it all the more ironic, our contributors point
out, that Westerners today have such a one-dimensional picture of the faith
the Buddha spawned.

PHOTO (BLACK & WHITE): BUDDHISM