Twenty discourses from the Pali Canon - including those most essential to the study and teaching of early Buddhism - are provided in fresh translations, accompanied by introductions that highlight the main themes and set the ideas presented in the context of wider philosophical and religious issues. Taken together, these fascinating works give an account of Buddhist teachings directly from the earliest primary sources.

In his General Introduction, John J. Holder discusses the structure and language of the Pali Canon - its importance within the Buddhist tradition and the historical context in which it developed - and gives an overview of the basic doctrines of early Buddhism.