Book of Vishnu

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Publisher : Penguin UK
ISBN 13 : 8184758650
Total Pages : 114 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (847 download)

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Book Synopsis Book of Vishnu by : Nanditha Kirshna

Download or read book Book of Vishnu written by Nanditha Kirshna and published by Penguin UK. This book was released on 2009-07-20 with total page 114 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Vishnu, the Supreme Being, is the preserver, the protector of the good and the guardian of dharma. Seated on Adi Shesha, the many-hooded serpent, in the primeval waters, he watches over his devotees and rewards the pious. And whenever dharma is in danger, he incarnates himself on earth to rid it of evil. Beginning with an investigation of the possible non-Vedic, Dravidian origins of Vishnu, this book describes his form, aspects and attributes, and his avatars or incarnations: Matsya, the fish; Kurma, the tortoise; Varaha, the boar; Narasimha, the man-lion; Vamana, the dwarf; Parashurama; Rama; Krishna; and Kalki, the final destroyer. Combining the skill of a storyteller with the insight of a scholar, Nanditha Krishna has brought to glorious life perhaps the most powerful and revered god in the Hindu pantheon.

Vishnu

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Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9781935677086
Total Pages : 296 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (77 download)

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Book Synopsis Vishnu by : Joan Cummins

Download or read book Vishnu written by Joan Cummins and published by . This book was released on 2011 with total page 296 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Vishnu -- Hinduism's most important and powerful deity -- is the great Preserver, vanquishing those who seek to destroy the balance of the universe. For his followers he is also the Creator and the Destroyer, the cause of all existence. His many traits are embodied in his impressive physical form, the weapons he carries, the goddesses who are his consorts, and the eagle Garuda, on whom he flies down from heaven. In Hindu legend, Vishnu descends to earth in many manifestations, known as avatars, to fight powerful demons and to save his devotees. The avatars range in form from Varaha the boar to Parashurama the Brahmin warrior, and in character from Narasimha the ferocious half-man half-lion, to Krishna the charismatic prince-cowherd. The legends of Vishnu have inspired some of the greatest art, literature, and ritual traditions in India. This catalogue examines the many faces of Vishnu and the ways that the god has been represented, from antiquity to the present. Essays by noted historians of South Asian art delve deeply into the regional and sectarian traditions of Vishnu worship in India. Illustrations and discussions of almost 200 works of art, in a wide range of media and borrowed from collections around the world, reveal the rich diversity of India's art and religious culture.

The Book of Demons

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Publisher : Penguin UK
ISBN 13 : 9351181448
Total Pages : 196 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (511 download)

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Book Synopsis The Book of Demons by : Nanditha Krishna

Download or read book The Book of Demons written by Nanditha Krishna and published by Penguin UK. This book was released on 2007-10-16 with total page 196 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From The Rig Veda To Myriads Of Folk Narratives, The Belief In Demons Prevails All Over India, Vividly Illustrating That A Demon Is Something People Fear Because It Is Beyond Their Comprehension And Control. Time And Again, The Menacing And Uncontrollable Forces Of Night, Darkness And Death, Along With Powerful Defeated Enemies And Incomprehensible Natural Phenomena, Are Demonized. The Book Of Demons Presents A Perceptive Overview Of The Various Types Of Demonic Beings And Concepts That Exist In Hindu Literature, Supplemented With A Dictionary Of Individual Demons For Ready Reference. Besides The Well-Known Rakshasas And Asuras, The Author Also Reveals A Densely Populated World Of Lesser-Known, But Equally Fascinating, Demonic Creatures. Andhaka (Blind Darkness), Conceived When Parvati Playfully Covered Shiva S Eyes And The World Was Plunged Into Darkness; Gajamukha, The Elephant-Faced Demon Who Was Transformed Into A Mouse By Ganesha And Then Converted Into His Vehicle; Jambha, The Demon-Leader Who Snatched The Pot Of Immortal Nectar From The Ocean During The Great Churning; Maya, The Demonic Equivalent Of Vishvakarma, Architect Of The Gods, Who Built The Three Cities Of Tripura; And Putana, The Demon Who Tried To Kill Krishna By Suckling Him With Poisoned Breasts. Male Or Female, Human, Animal, Plant, Or Simply A Concept Demons Play A Pivotal Role In Our Mythical Traditions. Blending Insightful Erudition And Lively Description, Nanditha Krishna Brings To Life The Traits And Actions Of A Host Of Complex, Colourful, Monstrous And Intriguing Demons That Inhabit Indian Religion And Mythology.

Sacred Animals of India

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Author :
Publisher : Penguin UK
ISBN 13 : 8184751826
Total Pages : 258 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (847 download)

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Book Synopsis Sacred Animals of India by : Nanditha Krishna

Download or read book Sacred Animals of India written by Nanditha Krishna and published by Penguin UK. This book was released on 2014-05-01 with total page 258 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Animals are worshipped in India in many ways: as deities—the elephant-god Ganesha and the monkey-god Hanuman; as avatars—like Vishnu’s fish, tortoise and boar forms; and as vahanas—the swan, bull, lion and tiger were all vehicles of major deities and are thus sacred by association. Some animals, like the snake, are worshipped out of fear. Birds such as the crow are associated with the abode of the dead, or the souls of ancestors, while the cow’s sanctity may derive from its economic value. There are also hero-animals, such as the vanaras, and animals which were totemic symbols of tribes that were assimilated into Vedic Hinduism. Sacred Animals of India draws on the ancient religious traditions of India—Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism—to explore the customs and practices that engendered the veneration of animals in India. This book also examines the traditions that gave animals in India protection, and is a reminder of the role of animal species in the earth’s biodiversity.

The Vākāṭakas

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Publisher : BRILL
ISBN 13 : 9004644903
Total Pages : 283 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (46 download)

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Book Synopsis The Vākāṭakas by : Hans T. Bakker

Download or read book The Vākāṭakas written by Hans T. Bakker and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2023-07-31 with total page 283 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For now more than half a century, scholars of the history of Western art have become familiar with the idea that art is embedded in a social and cultural context which imbues it with meaning and as such may be viewed as a source which generates knowledge concerning this context; this again may result in a better understanding of the artefact itself. This synthetic method of investigation, known under the name of ‘iconology,’ has proved to be of great value in the research of the history of culture. The present book is an essay in which the ‘classical age’ of India is studied by exploring textual as well as archaeological sources that relate to the kingdom of the Vākāṭakas, the southern neighbours of the Guptas in the fourth and fifth centuries AD. A great number of inscriptions and Hindu sculptures have been discovered and published during the last two decades. Among these inscriptions the one found in the Kevala-Narasiṃha Temple on Ramtek Hill (Rāmagiri) deserves special mention as it throws a flood of light on the political history of the Vākāṭakas and their relationship with the Guptas. This book draws on the new sculptural and epigraphical evidence in presenting a history of the Vākāṭaka kingdom. The (Hindu) sculptures found in the eastern Vākāṭaka realm are brought together for the first time in an illustrated catalogue, their findspots are surveyed, their iconography is studied and their link with Ajanta is pointed out.

Foreign Bodies

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Publisher : Univ of California Press
ISBN 13 : 0520309278
Total Pages : 341 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (23 download)

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Book Synopsis Foreign Bodies by : A. David Napier

Download or read book Foreign Bodies written by A. David Napier and published by Univ of California Press. This book was released on 2023-12-22 with total page 341 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In five wide-ranging essays, A. David Napier explores the ways in which the foreign becomes literally and metaphorically embodied as a part of cultural identity rather than being seen as something outside it. Pre-classical Greece, Baroque Italy, and Western postmodernism are among the artistic domains Napier considers, while the symbolic terrain ranges from Balinese cosmography to body symbolism in biomedicine.

Indian Club Swinging and the Birth of Global Fitness

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Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN 13 : 1350401633
Total Pages : 289 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (54 download)

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Book Synopsis Indian Club Swinging and the Birth of Global Fitness by : Conor Heffernan

Download or read book Indian Club Swinging and the Birth of Global Fitness written by Conor Heffernan and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2023-12-14 with total page 289 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Emerging in colonial India, the fitness fad that was Indian Club Swinging became a global exercise practice in the early 19th century. Used by physicians, soldiers, gymnasts, children and athletes alike, clubs were used to solve numerous social concerns and ills, and often prescribed to treat everything from depression to spinal abnormalities. This book provides a definitive account of the rise and spread of club swinging as it spread from India to Europe and America, asking why and how it became so popular. Discussing the global, commercial fitness culture of the 19th century, Indian Club Swinging and the Birth of Global Fitness explores how the popularity of this exercise reflected much deeper global and domestic concerns about body image, military preparation and education. Addressing broader questions about nationalism, gender, race and popular commerce across the British Empire, it highlights the origins of our modern transnational fitness culture and shows how it intersected with global and colonial understandings of health, medicine and education.

Hinduism and Nature

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Publisher : Penguin Random House India Private Limited
ISBN 13 : 9387326543
Total Pages : 256 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (873 download)

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Book Synopsis Hinduism and Nature by : Nanditha Krishna

Download or read book Hinduism and Nature written by Nanditha Krishna and published by Penguin Random House India Private Limited. This book was released on 2017-12-26 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The basis of Hinduism is dharma or righteousness, incorporating duty, cosmic law and justice. Five thousand years ago, the Vedas showed a clear appreciation of the natural world and its ecology, the importance of the environment and the management of natural resources. Hinduism and Nature delves into the religion's deep respect for all life forms, the forests and trees, rivers and lakes, animals and mountains, which are all manifestations of divinity. Nature is venerated all over India: every village has a sacred grove, every temple a sacred garden and sacred tree. In this fascinating book, scholar and environmentalist Nanditha Krishna explores both the classical and the tribal traditions that venerated nature, and convincingly argues that we can save the environment only by seeking answers in ancient wisdom.

Sacred Plants of India

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Publisher : Penguin UK
ISBN 13 : 9351186911
Total Pages : 385 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (511 download)

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Book Synopsis Sacred Plants of India by : Nanditha Krishna

Download or read book Sacred Plants of India written by Nanditha Krishna and published by Penguin UK. This book was released on 2014-05-15 with total page 385 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 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.

Krishna in History, Thought, and Culture

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Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN 13 : 161069211X
Total Pages : 360 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (16 download)

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Book Synopsis Krishna in History, Thought, and Culture by : Lavanya Vemsani

Download or read book Krishna in History, Thought, and Culture written by Lavanya Vemsani and published by Bloomsbury Publishing USA. This book was released on 2016-06-13 with total page 360 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Krishna is a central figure in Hinduism, a religion that has been a fundamental force for thousands of years. This accessible encyclopedia covers texts, practices, scholarship, and arts related to Krishna from the earliest known sources on. As Eastern religions and related practices such as yoga become increasingly popular, there is a need for resources that explain where these practices come from and what they mean. This is one of those works. Krishna is central to Hindu philosophy, theology, art, architecture, and literature, and an understanding of Krishna will give students greater understanding of the role of Hinduism around the world. Yet this isn't just a book on religion. The encyclopedia also provides insights into Indian and world history and into contemporary concerns, fostering respect for religious and cultural diversity. Entries on a wide range of subjects related to Krishna cover India and other places where major Krishna religious centers and temples are established worldwide. Articles draw from classical Indian sources dating back as far as 1300 BCE and from folk and worldwide literature, including mythology from Jainism and Buddhism. The book's alphabetical organization, cross references in each entry that highlight related entries and further readings, and topical and thematic lists will facilitate in-depth research.

Karnataka's Rich Heritage - Art and Architecture

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Author :
Publisher : Notion Press
ISBN 13 : 9352068254
Total Pages : 552 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (52 download)

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Book Synopsis Karnataka's Rich Heritage - Art and Architecture by : Lalit Chugh

Download or read book Karnataka's Rich Heritage - Art and Architecture written by Lalit Chugh and published by Notion Press. This book was released on 2016-04-08 with total page 552 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: You may have a lot of questions about the art and architecture of Karnataka. There may be queries about the various heritage touring circuits. You might like to understand what went into designing, planning and constructing monuments over a thousand year ago. You may still wish to know how art and architecture progressed during the ancient and medieval times in Karnataka. This book attempts to answer a lot of these questions, for example: 1.What is the name of the first established Village in South India and where is it located? 2.Where did the earliest gold miners live in Karnataka? 3.Which was the first Agrahara established in Karnataka? 4.Which is the first existing temple dedicated to Siva in Karnataka? 5.Which is the first existing temple dedicated to Krishna in Karnataka? 6.What roles did temples have other than being the places of worship? 7.Which is the first temple dedicated to Rama in Karnataka? 8.What was Karnataka referred to as in the Puranic times? 9.Which is the first existing temple dedicated to Shakti in Karnataka? 10.How old is the Kannada language?

The Dictionary of Art

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Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 962 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (91 download)

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Book Synopsis The Dictionary of Art by : Jane Turner

Download or read book The Dictionary of Art written by Jane Turner and published by . This book was released on 1996 with total page 962 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Kailas Histories

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Publisher : BRILL
ISBN 13 : 9004306188
Total Pages : 550 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (43 download)

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Book Synopsis Kailas Histories by : Alex McKay

Download or read book Kailas Histories written by Alex McKay and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2015-10-27 with total page 550 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Tibet’s Mount Kailas is one of the world’s great pilgrimage centres, renowned as an ancient sacred site that embodies a universal sacrality. But Kailas Histories: Renunciate Traditions and the Construction of Himalayan Sacred Geography demonstrates that this understanding is a recent construction by British colonial, Hindu modernist, and New Age interests. Using multiple sources, including fieldwork, Alex McKay describes how the early Indic vision of a heavenly mountain named Kailas became identified with actual mountains. He emphasises renunciate agency in demonstrating how local beliefs were subsumed as Kailas developed within Hindu, Buddhist, and Bön traditions, how five mountains in the Indian Himalayan are also named Kailas, and how Kailas sacred geography constructions and a sacred Ganges source region were related.

Buddhist Landscapes in Central India

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Author :
Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 1315432633
Total Pages : 1029 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (154 download)

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Book Synopsis Buddhist Landscapes in Central India by : Julia Shaw

Download or read book Buddhist Landscapes in Central India written by Julia Shaw and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2016-08-12 with total page 1029 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The “monumental bias” of Buddhist archaeology has hampered our understanding of the socio-religious mechanisms that enabled early Buddhist monks to establish themselves in new areas. To articulate these relationships, Shaw presents here the first integrated study of settlement archaeology and Buddhist history, carried out in the area around Sanchi, a Central Indian UNESCO World Heritage site. Her comprehensive, data-rich, and heavily illustrated work provides an archaeological basis for assessing theories regarding the dialectical relationship between Buddhism and surrounding lay populations. It also sheds light on the role of the introduction of Buddhism in changing settlement patterns.This volume was originally published in 2007 by the British Association of South Asian Studies.

The Jagannatha Temple at Puri

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Publisher : BRILL
ISBN 13 : 9004646566
Total Pages : 240 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (46 download)

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Book Synopsis The Jagannatha Temple at Puri by : O M Starza

Download or read book The Jagannatha Temple at Puri written by O M Starza and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2023-08-14 with total page 240 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An account of the architecture, sculpture, paintings and associated festivals of the great Vaisṇava shrine of Jagannatha at Puri in Orissa, on the east coast of India, together with a new analysis of the origin of the icons of the Triad.

Hinduism and the Religious Arts

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Publisher : A&C Black
ISBN 13 : 0304707392
Total Pages : 261 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (47 download)

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Book Synopsis Hinduism and the Religious Arts by : Heather Elgood

Download or read book Hinduism and the Religious Arts written by Heather Elgood and published by A&C Black. This book was released on 2000-04-01 with total page 261 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The roots between the Hindu religion and the wider culture are deep and uniquely complex. No study of either ancient or contemporary Indian culture can be undertaken without a clear understanding of Hindu visual arts and their sources in religious belief and practice. Defining what is meant by religion - no such term exists in Sanskrit - and what is understood by Hindu ideals of beauty, Heather Elgood provides the best synthesis and critical study of recent scholarship on the topic. In addition, this book offers critical background information for anyone interested in the social and anthropological roots of artistic creativity, as well as the rites, practices and beliefs of the hundreds of millions of Hindus in the world today.

Karnataka's Rich Heritage – Temple Sculptures & Dancing Apsaras

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Author :
Publisher : Notion Press
ISBN 13 : 1947137360
Total Pages : 525 pages
Book Rating : 4.9/5 (471 download)

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Book Synopsis Karnataka's Rich Heritage – Temple Sculptures & Dancing Apsaras by : Lalit Chugh

Download or read book Karnataka's Rich Heritage – Temple Sculptures & Dancing Apsaras written by Lalit Chugh and published by Notion Press. This book was released on 2017-05-23 with total page 525 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Nataraja, the dancing Siva sculpture, is perhaps the most well-known among all Hindu sculptures, and rightly so. It has evoked highly advanced discussions among scientists, philosophers, performing artists, art critics, art collectors, historians, archaeologists and mythologists. The Nataraja sculpture also occupies a pride of a place at CERN, the European Centre for Research in Particle Physics in Geneva. Siva, according to Hindu Mythology, was the very first dancer in the world. All dramaturgy and dance traditions emerge from Siva’s cosmic dance. Tandu, Siva’s disciple narrated the description of Siva’s dance to Bharata Muni and he is believed to have compiled the Natyasastra, the world’s first treatise on dramaturgy, dance and other performing arts. Scholars believe that the Natyasastra was written over a long period of time between the 2nd century BCE and 2nd century CE with contributions from various sages, with its foundation having been laid by Bharata Muni. Convergence between Hindu mythology, Natyasastra and Silpasastra was the natural outcome. Karnataka, and its temple architecture tradition, played a pioneering role in giving an artistic form to this convergence in its temple sculptures. Though this trend may have started earlier during 2nd and 3rd century CE, it started to take the center stage from the times of the Badami Chalukyas. Passing through various refinements between 5th and 10th centuries, it reached its peak with the Hoysala art. This book traces the history of temple sculpture evolution and development through the centuries by referring to the existing sculptural forms and the canonical literature that developed over time.