An English civil servant who worked in British India and Nepal, Brian Houghton Hodgson (c.1801–94) was also a specialist in Tibetan Buddhism. First published in 1874, this is a collection of his essays on nineteenth-century Nepal and Tibet, earlier versions of which had appeared in the Journal of the Bengal Asiatic Society and two books of Hodgson's own, later updated for the Phoenix, a monthly magazine for China, Japan and eastern Asia. Diverse in coverage, the essays represent over thirty years' research. Those in Part 1 focus on Buddhism, covering religious practices, writing, literature, attitudes to Buddhism and the differences between Buddhism and Shaivism. The pieces in Part 2 explore other aspects of Nepal and the Himalayas, such as tribal culture, colonisation and commerce. Discussing a range of linguistic, cultural, sociological and economic topics, this collection remains relevant to scholars working in these fields. Contents Part I 1. Notices of the languages, literature, and religion of Nepál and Tibet 2. Sketch of Buddhism 3. Quotations from original Sanskrit authorities 4. European speculations on Buddhism 5. Remarks on M. Remusat's review of Buddhism 6. Note on the inscription from Sárnáth 7. Notice of Adi Buddha and the seven mortal Buddhas 8. Note on the primary language of the Buddhist writings 9. A disputation respecting caste by a Buddhist 10. On the extreme resemblance that prevails between many of the symbols of Buddhism and Saivism 11. The Pravrajyá Vrata or initiatory rites of the Buddhists Part II 1. On the physical geography of the Himálaya 2. On the aborigines of the Himálaya 3. Origin and classification of the military tribes of Nepál 4. On the Chepang and Kusunda tribes of Nepál 5. Cursory notice of Náyakot and of the remarkable tribes inhabiting it 6. On the tribes of northern Tibet and of Sifan 7. On the colonization of the Himálaya by Europeans 8. On the commerce of Nepál Index.