Author: Paine, Jeffery

Tibetan Buddhism was once the fabled faith of an isolated mountain people, involving flying monks, reincarnated spirits, demons, and superhuman feats. Then the Chinese invaded Tibet, targeting Buddhist monks and monasteries for elimination. The Tibetan exodus began, and the West has never been the same. Paine tells the story with intelligence and verve, with help from colorful characters like Alexandra David-Neel, the first Westerner to enter Lhasa, and Lama Yeshe and Chogyam Trungpa, who brought Lhasa across the Atlantic.