A collection of studies by leading scholars of Indonesian culture, history and anthropology examining the death practices and rituals of Indonesian tribal groups in the context of ongoing changes is Islam.

Anthony Reid took his BA and MA from Victoria University of Wellington, and his Ph.D in History at Cambridge University in 1965. He is currently Professor of Southeast Asian History at the Research School of Pacific Studies, Australian National University. He has taught in Malaysia, Indonesia, and at Yale University in the USA.