The History of Faith and Religious Ideas. From Gautama Buddha to the Triumph of Christianity

This work is a classic example of research in the field of the history of religion. Religious ideas are presented here not only in chronological order, but also united by a common understanding of the diversity of religious life across all cultures and continents. Eliade masterfully employs methods of comparative anthropology and demonstrates common trends in the development of religious ideas.
The book is dedicated to the most dramatic and important period in the world history of religions. Its title, of course, does not encompass the ecumenical breadth of the material presented in the book: ancient China and Hellenistic Egypt, European barbarians (Celts and Germans) and Iranian dualism – in the fifteen chapters of this book, it seems, all the richness of the religious development of the Old World is contained. At the same time, the title has a precise meaning that conveys the substantive 'core' of the book: the emergence of world religions, religions of salvation. The book provides a panoramic view of the religions of salvation from Taoism to Christian Gnosticism.