pt. 1. Studying religion. Introductory issues in the study of religion -- A biased canon -- pt. 2. African traditions. African religious traditions -- Witchcraft and sorcery -- God in Zulu religion -- The case of Isaiah Shembe -- pt. 3. The Yogic tradition. The origins of yogic religions -- The richness of the Hindu tradition -- Rethinking the Hindu tradition -- Gandhi the great contrarian -- Buddhism -- The development of Buddhist belief and practice -- The moral quest of Edward Conze -- Other yogic-type traditions -- pt. 4. The Abramic tradition. Early Judaism -- Rabbinic and other Judaisms -- Jewish faith and practice -- Martin Buber's Zionist spirituality -- Christianity -- Christian history -- Christian faith and practice -- Christian politics according to Abraham Kuyper -- The challenge of Islam -- Muslim beliefs and practices -- Muslim piety -- Sayyid Qutb and the rebirth of contemporary Islam -- Conclusion: Whither religious studies?