The Buddha and the Sahibs
The men who discovered India’s lost religion
By Charles Allen
Read by Sam Dastor
12 hours 17 minutes
For nearly 1000 years, from the destruction of temples and monasteries by Muslim invaders in the 11th and 12th centuries, followed by Hinduism’s increasing power, Buddhism vanished from the country of its origin. Though hugely influential throughout Asia, the religion was forgotten in India.
This is the story of the men from the British Raj who re-discovered the history of the Buddha and his teachings, and the role played by key Buddhist rulers such as Ashoka. British rule brought soldiers, administrators and adventurers to India. From the late 18th century, handful of remarkable individuals, amateur linguists, archaeologists and explorers – who became known as the Orientalists – began investigating the subcontinent’s lost past. By deciphering scripts, excavating and dating massive stone ruins, discovering huge and richly decorated monastic cave complexes, these men returned Buddhism to its place in Indian history.
Charles Allen’s book is a mixture of detective work and story-telling, as this acknowledged master of British Indian history pieces together early Buddhist history to bring a handful of extraordinary characters to life.
Available on audible: audible.co.uk, audible.com, audible.de, audible.fr, audible.com.au: : £28.52 or on subscription.
Audoifile Review – Narrator Sam Dastor speaks with a low-pitched British enunciation–quite appropriate for many of the historical figures covered here. He might have come across as pedantic but avoids that trap nicely. He does sound like a professor, but a friendly one with a conversational approach. Click here for full review
Sam Dastor regularly seen on film, TV and stage, is an accomplished audiobook reader with more than 80 recordings to his credit including an unabridged reading of Rudyard Kipling’s Kim.