Mission to Tibet ─ The Extraordinary Eighteenth-Century Account of Father Ippolito Desideri, S.J.

When Ippolito Desideri’s Historical Notices of Tibet first appeared in an abridged English translation in 1932, it was soon recognized as a classic for its richly detailed descriptions of Tibetan social, cultural, and religious life. The Italian missionary was the first Westerner to learn about Buddhism directly with Tibetan scholars. He was also an eyewitness to some of the most tumultuous events in Tibet’s history, of which he left us a vivid and dramatic account. Unfortunately, the earlier translation omitted, truncated, or paraphrased much of Desideri’s text, especially his comprehensive treatment of Tibetan religion and key Buddhist concepts. The present unabridged and engrossing English translation redresses those omissions. Richly annotated, it also includes an introduction situating the work in the context of Desideri’s life and his intellectual and religious milieu.

Michael Sweet received a PhD in Buddhist Studies in 1977 from the University of Wisconsin-Madison under the direction of Geshe Lhundub Sopa. From 1977-78 he taught and did research at the American Institute of Buddhist Studies. After later graduate studies, he was a psychotherapist in public and private practice (1980-2004) and a sometime lecturer at UW Madison, where he has been an assistant clinical professor in the Department of Psychiatry. He has written extensively on the history of sexuality in South Asia and on Buddhist Studies. Since 2001 his research has focused on Ippolito Desideri and the Catholic missions in Tibet. Current research focuses on the first mission to Tibet, led by the Portuguese Jesuit Antonio de Andrade.

Leonard Zwilling studied with Geshe Wangyal from 1967 to 1978 and graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a BA in 1970, going on to receive an MA in Hindu studies (1972) and a PhD in Buddhist studies (1976) also at UW-Madison. His dissertation, on apoha in Buddhist logic, was directed by Geshe Lhundub Sopa. He did predoctoral research in Sri Lanka (1973-74) and Nepal (1974-75) under Ford Foundation and Fulbright-Hays scholarships. From 1977 to 1983 Dr. Zwilling taught Asian religions, Sanskrit, and Tibetan at UW-Madison and elsewhere. He received an MLS from UW-Madison in 1985 and from 1986 to 2009 was the general editor and bibliographer of the Dictionary of American Regional English in the department of English at UW-Madison, where he is presently senior scientist emeritus. Dr. Zwilling has published in a number of fields, and since 2005 his work has centered on Ippolito Desideri and missions in Tibet.
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