Summary of The Buddha from Babylon

The Buddha from Babylon is a novel written by Jacquline Balental that follows the story of an Iraqi man's journey into the world of Buddhism. Ahlam Malik, the protagonist, was raised in an upper-class Iraqi Muslim family and was groomed to marry a wealthy Iraqi man, but instead, chooses to break from tradition and follow her dream of studying in a monastic university. With her newfound understanding of Buddhism, she makes a pilgrimage to the ancient Buddhist sites in Nepal and discovers her true identity. Along her journey, Ahlam's life is beset with danger and struggles, exacerbated by her conflicting views between her Muslim faith and newly found practice of Buddhism. Ahlam's story is one of personal discovery, of growing up and into oneself, and of transformation.