Philosophy and religion were never kept apart from each other in Indian philosophical tradition. The Vedas, the Upanisads and the Bhagavadgita provide a strong and unshakable philosophical foundation to Hinduism. In the present book, Dr. Misra has made a reinterpretation of the religious and philosophical thought of these sacred and immortal works. It has been found necessary in order to dispel the misinterpretation of Hinduism and meet the challenges that confront it today at the ideological and practical levels. The concepts of the Absolute, Brahman, of man and the world, the destiny of man and other fundamental issues have been discussed with great clarity, thoroughness and depth. The author has brought into clear focus the unique features of Hinduism and its intellectual depth and spiritual grandeur. A distinguishing feature of the present work is that the fundamental ideas of Hinduism have been compared with that of other religions, specially, Christianity and with the great idealistic tradition of the West. The author has also made a critical analysis and evaluation of some current ideas of contemporary Western thought. The present work provides ample evidence of the author's conceptual ability, originality and intellectual integrity. Printed Pages: 646.
Ramanuja is largely viewed as a philosopher and thinker of supreme merit. However in this present work, The Mysticism of Ramanuja, the author has attempted to present him in a new perspective, i.e., as a mystic and saint. This has been achieved by examining his many writings and detailing his innermost encounters with the Supreme Brahman. This work is a culmination of ten years research and author has based this study on the works of eminent indologists like Karmarkar, Thibaut and Van Buitenen, as well as world renowned scholars in mysticism as Rudolph Otto, Evelyn Underhill and William Johnston. It also includes a comparative study of the teachings of Ramanuja with those Christianity, something which has rarely been attempted earlier.
About the Author
Dr. Cyril Veliath S.J. is a Roman Catholic priest and a member of the Jesuist order (also known as the Society of Jesus). He spent several years in Pune where he conducted his research. He is now the Professor of Indian Philosophy, at the Institute of Indian Culture, Sophia University, Tokyo, Japan.
Ascetics and mystics have played a prominent role in the development of nearly all religious traditions. The particular importance of such figures within Hinduism is especially evident in the traditions recounted of the Seven Rsis--the seven archetypal sages or seers who are depicted as being more important and powerful than even the gods themselves: indeed, through their asceticism the Rsis become the progenitors of the gods, as also of men, demons and all other orders of creation. Traditions of the Seven Rsis is the first systematic study of these traditions, and consists of two separate but closely related parts: the first part is a text-historical examination of how and when different traditions were formulated, while the second part explores the various activities and ideas associated with the Seven Rsis. Basing his study on the Sanskrit sources, but making use also of Tamil, tribal and non-Indian sources, Dr. Mitchiner sets out the main traditions associated with the Seven Rsis and traces the underlying themes in those traditiions--particularly that of the creative role of these ascetic figures. The work encompasses a wealth of original literary material, much of it previously untranslated, and is both a sourcebook of the Rsi traditions and a study of the historical development, symbolic meaning and interconnectedness of those traditions, illustrating above all the dynamically creative role of the ascetic and mystic within Hinduism.
Review:
“The books by S.M. Srinivasa Chari fills the relative lack of good, authentic English books on Vaisnavism. ...The book has an excellent glossary, an index, and a good bibliography.”–SWAMI SUNIRMALANANDA, The Vedanta Kesari, August, 1996
“This is a scholarly work on the philosophical theology and religious discipline of Vaisnavism. Dr. Chari substantiates his claim that Vaisnavism is both philosophy and religion with reference to its Upani|adic base.”–K. KUNJUNNI RAJA, The Adyar Library Bulletin, 1994
“Srinivasa Chari has done a good job, tracing the historical development of Vaisnavism right from the monotheism of Rgveda... . Precision and erudition mark Srinivasa Chari’s exposition of the Absolute Brahman as the adorable God of religion, the nature of the individual soul, and the doctrine of cosmic matter.”–C.S. RAMAKRISHNAN, The Hindu, August, 1995
“Dr. Srinivasa Chari’s exposition of Vaisnavism is conditioned, admittedly, by the knowledge of the essentials imparted to him by his spiritual preceptor, the late Sri Gostipuram Sowmya Narayanacharya.”–The Book Review, December, 1995"
In the land of Brahman the way to the finality of human destiny, ti Sindhi and self-fulfillment, leads the pilgrim through existential contradictions and absurdities. With such markings belying the desire to proceed along a straight path, the transmigrating subject finds himself cast into a labyrinth mysteriously designed for his sole need and purpose. Such is the road of Bodhidharma. The seeker for the Ultimate Reality has no choice but to trudge resolutely, in stark solitude, undaunted by failure and discouragement. Aged on by the persuasions of Bodhidharma he strives with heroic fortitude till finally he breaks through to knowing that his pains and joys, as well as the toilsome coils of the labyrinth itself, had been of the substance of his ontological freedom. The labyrinth only happened to be the necessity through which Jinan-multi is felt as a home-coming. The dweller within then sees that, during the time of his adhesion to Bodhidharma, he was as he had always been, and now is ancient.
Sri Madhavacarya (1238-1317) was the historical founder of the Dvaita system, which is one of
the three principal schools of Vedanta. He was a native of Tulunadu in Karnataka. Pajakaksetra,
eight miles south-east of the modern town of Udipi, on the West coast of S. India, was the village of his birth. He lived seventynine years.
He appeared on the Indian philosohical scene after the systems of Sankara and Ramanuja had been well established. The reasons which led him to propound a new system of Vedanta were his doctrinal differences and ideological dissatisfaction with contemporary trends and schools of thought within and without Hinduism and particularly with the system of Sankara which was the dominant philosophy of the time. In spite of the Theistic revolt against Sankara led by Ramanuja, Madhva could not agree with him on many points of Theistic doctrine. So he felt called
upon to give a new lead in thought to his countrymen.
Madhavaís writings are characterized by extreme brevity of expression and compression of thought. They need the help of a very good commentary to be understood in their fulness of thought and depth of meaning and intention. His commentator Jayatirtha has infused into them the necessary amplitude of utterance and expansiveness of thought and wealth of details.
This book is to give a complete, copious, critical and comparative exposition of Sri Madhavacarya's system of philosophy, bringing out its logical strength and metaphysical consistency and satisfyingness. It is intended to be an organic presentation of the system in all its essential aspects. It differs from all the other works in the field, including Dasgupta's, in showing how the concepts and categories of Madhava's philosophical thought have been conceived and formulated and have been put into a coherent system and in what relation they stand to those of other allied and rival systems. It brings out the special significance and interconnections of Madhava's doctrines and the architectonic unity of his system in relation to its parts. The reader is enabled to see for himself and appreciate the precise value and significance of some of Madhava's distinctive contributions to the perennial problems of religion and philosophy-particularly 'Indian Philosophy', for doctrine of Saksi, Svatantra, Visesa, Savisesabheda and Creation as Paradhinavisesapti.
Not only is such a systematic and critical exposition of Madhavaís philosophical system called for, but it has long been overdue. Metaphysically, it embodies the most powerful and sustained refutation of Vedantic monism. It has produced front-rank thinkers like Madhava, Jayatirtha and Vyasatirtha. It has an extensive philosophical literature of rare philosophical penetration, in Sanskrit. It has become the living faith of a large section of the people living in present-day India.
The volume is a good presentation of the philosophy of Sri Madhvacarya, complete in its architectonic unity. The author probes its ontological and epistemological foundations, and critcally examines the structure erected on them. The discussion focuses on crucial doctrines of theism, and brings to light for the first time the striking parallelisms of thought between Madhva and his Western contemporary St. Thomas Aquinas. Light is also thrown on how Madhva and his commentators anticipated the views of modern philosophers like Spencer, Russell and Hobhouse on the nature of time, space and memory. The latest researches on Madhvacarya's role in the Vedantic Bhakti movement and his attempt to harmonize the Upanisadic texts on monism and dualism are substantially drawn upon.
Review:
Excerpts from reviews:
The Vedantists believe Maya to be the ""material cause"" of the world. The power of Maya is the power to realise the unreal-to impart practical Reality or mediate existence to that which does not and cannot possess absolute Reality or self-existence. Maya is at once real and unreal, while the Brahma (Self)is a absolute Reality, absolute Intelligence, and absolute Bliss. The world evolves out of Maya so that Maya in the Vedanta replaces the Prakriti of the Sankhya. But Maya and by implication the world, originate out of Brahma, not by a process of evolution, but of Vivarta ( Self-alienation). The self alienation of the Absolute, action through Maya, produces in the beginning Akasa- one, infinite, ubiquitous, imponderable, inert and all-pervasive.
B.K.KELKAR,Organiser, July 1986
Dr. Seal was a well-known and respected teacher in science and his monographs on certain themes relating to Indian Science throw a helpful light on the approach of the Hindu mind to the study of matter, Life and Mind. The author gives a comparative estimate of the Greek and Hindu sciences.He points out that the Hindu philosophy on its empirical side was influenced by concepts from physiology; the Greek was influenced by geometrical concepts and methods. He also examines to what extent the Indian sciences influenced developments in the Mid-East and Far-East.
M.P. PANDIT, World Union
The seven chapters comprising the book take up for discussion mechanical, physical and chemical theories; ideas of mechanics (kinetics), accoustics, plant life, animal classification,physiology and biology; and, finally, the Hindu doctrine of scientific method. The exposition is very lucid and an impressive effort is made to support all statements with original quotations drawn from Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain sources.
T.N. MADAN, Institute of Economic Growth"
This is a comprehensive, critical and comparative study of all aspects of the philosophy and religion of Sri Caitanya. In the first three chapters the history of the Vaisnava religion is traced from the earliest Vedic period to pre-Caitanya Vaisnavism in Bengal and some controversies regarding the life of Sri Caitanya and the Sampradaya or the sect to which he belongs are set at rest. In the succeeding chapters the problems of philosophy and religion are discussed in detail. It is shown how Sri Caitanya breathes a new spirit into philosophy and religion by transcending the narrow and mutually conflicting 'isms' and dogmas and reconciling them in a higher synthesis by means of the concept of the absolute as Bhagavan and the doctrine of Acintyabhedabheda or inconceivable identity-indifference. The importance of bhakti as the exclusive means of attaining God is His highest and sweetest form is stressed. Prema or divine love is distinguished from eroticism and established as the highest end. The doctrine of rasa or transcendental relish is explained and Parakiya rasa is established as the highest rasa. Printed Pages: 260.
The Siva Samhita is a Sanskrit text on yoga enumerating its concepts and cognate principles. In the five chapters are discussed and elaborated the essentials necessary for the practice of yoga, ways of attaining siddhi, the philosophy of existence, importance of yoga, the spirit, maya or illusion, the microcosm, the functions of the body, the principles of pranayama or breathing, asanas or postures, the Kundalini and its awakening, the various forms of yoga, etc. An important treatise on the subject, the present text with its translation into English should prove to be of immense value to the scholars and students, of the subject. Printed Pages: 96.
The Samkhya of Kapila has influenced every school of Indian philosophy. Among the treatises explaining its teachings, only two have survived intact, the rest being either in fragments or totally lost. One of these, the Samkhya-pravachana-sutram with two commentaries by Aniruddha and Vijnana-bhiksu form the body of this book, and the others Kapila-sutram, Samkhya-karika of Isvarakrisna and Panchasikha-sutram are given in appendices. The Samkhya relies on the ruler of logic for establishing the validity of its tenets. Its object is to differentiate between the soul and the non-soul. It starts with the primordial cause called prakriti or pradhana which resulted in effect, this world. It has put forward a theory of evolution to explain all objects, animate and inanimate, of this world as an infinite number of permutations and combinations of the three gunas-sattva, rajas and tamas. Its essence consists of two principles : Prakriti and Purusa. It opposes Vedic sacrifices but not the Vedas. It does not deny God but states that His existence cannot be proved. Its importance can be gauged from the fact that the Vedantasutra devotes sixty out of hundred and three aphorisms to refute its doctrines. The appendices provide all the available texts with indices for aphorisms and words. The translation, with its lucid explanation of the texts and commentaries, brings the ideas of the renowned Samkhya within reach of all.
A thought that comes on a person's mind and is externalised into speech or utterance it stays there in the form or shape of an image as a picture. This image or picture is rather unsubstantial as long as it stays in the depth of the mind. As it gradually surfaces and resurfaces it is, then, externalised and concretised in some recognisable form, as speech. Thus, it logically follows, 'imaging' precedes 'materialising' or 'externalising' or 'objectifying'. It is the quality of the mind that should be regarded as a mark of excellence when the image is transferred into 'speech'. So image making is a common feature with us and in this sense we are all artists. Now, mere objectifying is not the whole truth. A true artist must bring his understanding of the subject matter into an accountable way and add to it the colour of imagination. This capability, generally speaking, is an essential mark of a true artist, so much so that he, as an artist, develops the power to make the intelligent viewers happy. In fact, painting like love and music, has the power to make man happy. It is the interaction, between the painter and the viewer, that is the highest reward a painter can think of.
When it comes to considering the interaction among thought, language and painting. We should at once take note of the fact that in terms of the Jain philosophy the process of thinking is known as anekanta-drsti and that the manner and way of definitively expressing it through a comprehensible medium is generally called syadvada. in terms of anekantavada, every phenomenon contains duality in it, so painting as a form of fine art cannot escape this duality or, for that matter, the concept of non-absolutism. A painter, who for instance, is engaged in giving shape to an abstract idea or even a concrete matter, must also show the duality inherent in it, if he is to give it a touch of inclusive completeness. (The ultimate truth with which he is concerned through the medium of painting can be arrived at through the stepping-stones of duality that must remain implicit in his subject matter.)
The author goes on to explain the place of the jhanas among the accomplishments of an arahat and elucidate their usefulness for a dedicated meditator.
Review:
...This is a work which combines sound scholarship with considerable practical experience.
Amadeo Sole-Leris
Buddhist Studies Review, 5.1 (1988)
...This should be a useful book for those interested in well-documented, traditional analysis of the cons
....For a long time in my experience newcomers to Buddhism have been confused about the position of the jhanas (absorptions) in Buddhist meditation practice. This is the first book... which deals clearly and exhaustively with the subject. -PHILIP M. EDEN, Middle Way"
The Arthasamgraha is profound in contents, scholarly in treatment and simple and lucid in style and language. It condenses great amount of matter in pregnant language. The author, Laugaksi Bhaskara, about whose personal life sufficient information is not available, probably belonged to the South and Flourished in the 14th-15th century. He wrote the text for beginners and so the language is characterized by simplicity and brevity which are maintained even in the treatment of difficult problems. The work has gained popularity among scholars and beginners both and serves well as a gateway to the system of Purva Mimamsa.
The full name of the work as given by the author in the colophon is Purvamimamsarthasamgraha which means a compendium dealing with the topics of Purva Mimamsa.
The present edition comprises the Sanskrit text in Devanagari script and translation into English with profuse notes, explanatory and critical, by Professor Gajendragadkar and Karmarkar, which has proved the best on account of its merits. A new and very useful feature of this reprint is the addition of a detailed and very useful feature of this reprint is the addition of a detailed and very useful feature of this reprint is the addition of a detailed and very informative Introduction by Dr. Shiv Kumar.
Particular significance attaches to Yaksas in Indian mythology, religion and art. Their almost universal presence in the earlier Indian religions, Hindu, Buddhist and Jaina, wherein they are invested with peculiar traits and powers, indicates their importance.
Ananda Coomaraswamy's Yaksas is an attempt at bringing together the mass of information from literary and monumental sources about Yaksas and Yaksis, their origin, and development from the conceptual, mythological and iconographical points of view. Coomaraswamy has shown how this non-and pre-Aryan "animistic" concept originated and, in the historical times, dovetailed with the Hindu, Buddhist and Jaina religious systems to the extent that the concept of Yaksattva got closely bound up with the idea of reincarnation.
In the preparation of this monograph, Coomaraswamy has extensively drawn upon the sectarian and semi-secular literature and has shown unmistakable evidences of the Yaksas' once honourable status, their benevolence toward men and the affection felt by men toward them. Coomaraswamy begins by tracing the origin of the word yaksa which is first found in Jaiminiya Brahmana, where it means nothing more than 'a wondrous thing.' In course of time Yaksas and Yaksis are often mentioned and their names are found in the Epics, Buddhist and Jaina works and even in sculpture. In Jaina books Yakkhas are often called Devas, where, as Sasana Devatas they are usually guardian angels. In Buddhist works they are sometimes represented as teachers of good morals and as guardian spirits.
Of equal importance are the Yaksas and Yaksis in early Indian art and in the early examples (Bharhut, Sanci, Gandhara, etc.) they are frequently represented as Atlantes, supporters of buildings and superstructures. The early iconography of Yaksas, again, seems to have formed the foundation of later Hindu and Buddhist iconography. Coomaraswamy has traced a kind of Bhakti cult centering round the worship of Yaksas on the basis of the Yaksa caityas, the offerings to the Yaksas and has tried to show that the facts of Yaksa worship correspond almost exactly with those of other Bhakti religions.
"Coming as it does from the pen of Ananda Coomaraswamy, this brilliant monograph is the acme of scholarship and brilliance and provides a mass of well-documented information. The work is divided into the two parts, an Appendix giving Tale of a Yaksa found in the Divyavadana, alongwith 73 plates.
Back of the Book
Ceremonial rites and rituals occupy a place of utmost importance in the life of a devout Hindu. In fact, there are no vital actions-birth, initiation, marriage, death etc.-which can be allowed to be performed without its appropriate rite or samskara. The number of samskaras has been fluctuating but was finally fixed at sixteen.
Marriage is the most important and elaborate out of these sixteen samskaras. Manu enjoins that rituals should be performed in the case of a virgin for legalizing the marriage, legitimatizing children and avoiding public scandal.
The mantras used in the nuptial rites being in Sanskrit are beyond the comprehension of not only the average Hindu but even the common priest entrusted with the duty of conducting the rituals. To overcome this difficulty the present book was originally prepared in Hindi and is now translated into English with the mantras etc. Romanized for the benefit of those who do not have adequate knowledge of Hindi, for example especially those whose forefathers had migrated to remote countries during the last one hundred years or so.
Dr. R.C. Prasad, taught English Literature at Patna University for over forty years, during which he wrote scores of books, including biographies and translations, the most outstanding of which was his prose rendering of the Ramacharitamanasa.
There are the two boys of the title story, locked in their own world of fantasy and make-believe, reaching out to each other to survive the terrible prospect of fatherlessness. ‘House Hunting’ shows us the grim spectacle of a couple whose marriage is in its death throes, and whose search for a happy home is doomed; in another story a couple struggle to overcome the effects of a brutal rape. Elsewhere, a family therapist comes face to face with the dark secret of his childhood, and an American football star down on his luck makes his peace with his father. The collection culminates in a daring and wonderfully baroque horror story ‘In the Black Mill’, which chronicles the terrifying fate that befalls an archaeologist as he uncovers cannibalism and ritual sacrifice in a gloomy Pennsylvanian town. Serious in their subject matter, yet shot through with wit, humour and compassion, these nine short stories demonstrate Chabon’s ability to weave together comedy and tragedy with unforgettable results.
The book captures Subbudu's rise as critic incisively by juxtaposing it with the way Indian performing arts have shaped up post-independence. Beyond Destiny ends with a note of caution glancing at the reality of music and dance in India and its survival in the mainstream media. Lada Guruden Singh is a trained broadcast journalist and a poet. He has to be congratulated for this in-depth account of the Life and Times of Subbudu.
About The Author : Lada Guruden Singh
Lada Guruden Singh is a trained broadcast journalist, a poet with two collection of poems. Split Ends and Where Must I Go... a Bharatanatyam dancer, a columnist with The Statesman and a freelance writer for host of national and international dance journals and websites.
This is perhaps the first ever biography of an Indian critic (Subbudu) from the world of classical performing arts. Put into place through scores of interviews with country's top musicians, dancers and critics, the book traces the growth of an incorrigible kid as he takes on the high and the mighty from the world of arts to emerge as a fearless critic, whose single minded passion in life has been, to serve the arts.
The book captures Subbudu's rise as critic incisively by juxtaposing it with the way Indian performing arts have shaped up post-independence. Beyond Destiny ends with a note of caution glancing at the reality of music and dance in India and its survival in the mainstream media. Lada Guruden Singh is a trained broadcast journalist and a poet. He has to be congratulated for this in-depth account of the Life and Times of Subbudu.
About The Author : Lada Guruden Singh :
Lada Guruden Singh is a trained broadcast journalist, a poet with two collection of poems. Split Ends and Where Must I Go... a Bharatanatyam dancer, a columnist with The Statesman and a freelance writer for host of national and international dance journals and websites.
Of the eleven dialogue-hymns of the Rgveda, two of them are composed in soliloquy form and are concerned with a gambler and a mendicant respectively. Three hymns are connected mainly with Indra (the god of rains), two with the couples like Agastya and Lopamudra, and Pururavas and Urvashi, and one with the twin siblings: Yama and Yami. Out of the rest, one hymn displays a delightful and heavenly picture of the marriage ceremony which is traditionally prevalent in India even today, another tells us about the prosperous condition of the ancient traders like Panis, and yet another deals with the crossing through the currents of two rivers by Visvamitra, a Vedic seer.
About The Author : Dr. Satya Dev Choudhary :
Dr. Satya Dev Choudhary is a Prof. of Hindi & Sanskrit. His special interest include Indian Poetics, Philology, Vedic Literature and Medieval Hindi Literature. He has about 25 books to his credit and for them he has been felicitated with a number of prizes and awards.
The thread that runs through the entire gamut of these twenty odd philosophers thoughts and deeds is that unanimity on the fundamental purpoe of human life which is, happiness through the cooperation of mankind. Plato and Socrates, Aristotle, Francis Bacon, Descartes, Voltaire, Kant, Hegel, Spencer, William James, Bergaon, Santayana are some of the philosophers in this book whose life stories are given.
Hindus have one God. They also have 330 million gods: male gods; female gods; personal gods; family gods; household gods; village gods; gods of space and time; gods for specific castes and particular professions; gods who reside in trees; in animals; in minerals; in geometrical patterns and in man-made objects. Then there are a whole host of demons. But no Devil. In this groundbreaking book Dr Devdutt Pattanaik; one of India’s most popular mythologists; seeks an answer to these apparent paradoxes and unravels an inherited truth about life and death; nature and culture; perfection and possibility. He retells sacred Hindu stories and decodes Hindu symbols and rituals; using a unique style of commentary; illustrations and diagrams. We discover why the villainous Kauravas went to heaven and the virtuous Pandavas (all except Yudhishtira) were sent to hell; why Rama despite abandoning the innocent Sita remains the model king; why the blood-drinking Kali is another form of the milk-giving Gauri; and why Shiva wrenched off the fifth head of Brahma. Constructed over generations; Hindu myths serve as windows to the soul; and provide an understanding of the world around us. The aim is not to outgrow myth; but to be enriched and empowered by its ancient; potent and still relevant language.
Specification:
- Product Code: BK14210
- Author :
- Cover : Paperback
- Publisher : Penguin
- Edition : 2014
- Pages : 312
- Weight : 280 gm.
- Size : 5 x 0.6 x 8 inches
- Language : English
- ISBN-0143066269
ISBN-13: 978-0143066262
Plants personify the divine — The Rig Veda (X.97) Trees and plants have long been held sacred to communities the world over. In India, we have a whole variety of flora that feature in our myths, our epics, our rituals, our worship and our daily life. There is the pipal, under which the Buddha meditated on the path to enlightenment; the banyan, in whose branches hide spirits; the ashoka, in a grove of which Sita sheltered when she was Ravana’s prisoner; the tulsi, without which no Hindu house is considered complete; the bilva, with whose leaves it is possible to inadvertently worship Shiva. Before temples were constructed, trees were open-air shrines sheltering the deity, and many were symbolic of the Buddha himself. Sacred Plants of India systematically lays out the sociocultural roots of the various plants found in the Indian subcontinent, while also asserting their ecological importance to our survival. Informative, thought-provoking and meticulously researched, this book draws on mythology and botany and the ancient religious traditions of India to assemble a detailed and fascinating account of India’s flora.
