Wild Goddesses In India And Nepal

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Wild Goddesses in India and Nepal

Author : Axel Michaels
Publisher : Peter Lang Group Ag, International Academic Publishers
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 594 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (91 download)

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Book Synopsis Wild Goddesses in India and Nepal by : Axel Michaels

Download or read book Wild Goddesses in India and Nepal written by Axel Michaels and published by Peter Lang Group Ag, International Academic Publishers. This book was released on 1996 with total page 594 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: She kills and destroys. She causes illness and disaster. The wild goddess evokes fear and terror. People worship her with blood-sacrifices and alcohol in order to appease her rage, but also in order to participate in her power for she is at once a force of destruction and a force of regeneration, of life, and of sexuality. Her creative violence reflects the ambivalent power of nature. The idea of frightening goddesses is preserved in regionally different forms throughout South Asia. The Institute for the Science of Religions, University of Berne, and the Museum of Anthropology of the University of Zurich, coordinated a symposium on wild goddesses in India and Nepal. The papers and reports on ongoing research presented at this symposium are published in this volume.

Sacred Animals of Nepal and India

Author : Trilok Chandra Majupuria
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 272 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (91 download)

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Book Synopsis Sacred Animals of Nepal and India by : Trilok Chandra Majupuria

Download or read book Sacred Animals of Nepal and India written by Trilok Chandra Majupuria and published by . This book was released on 1991 with total page 272 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Goddesses of Kathmandu Valley

Author : Arun Gupto
Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 1317369211
Total Pages : 284 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (173 download)

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Book Synopsis Goddesses of Kathmandu Valley by : Arun Gupto

Download or read book Goddesses of Kathmandu Valley written by Arun Gupto and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2015-10-30 with total page 284 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In South Asia goddesses are conceptualized and worshipped in a fascinating range of forms — from cosmic beings to bacterial manifestations, from human-like appearances to creatures with animal and insect semblances. This book maps the diverse identities of goddesses through metaphors of grace, rage and knowledge, and offers an in-depth insight into femininity, sexual politics, ritual worships, religion, ecology and gender. Grace manifests as motherly sublimity, warring protectors, and varying personifications of sexuality. Rage encapsulates the fearful aspects of goddesses and independent identities of women. Knowledge evokes associations with order, reason and intellect in conflating gendered binaries of body/mind and nature/culture. The volume explores how these deity attributes are expressed and embedded through anthropomorphic as well as inorganic forms of nature, beautiful women, multi-legged and many-armed animals, epistemic selves, demonic beings, glamorous personifications as also grotesque sub-humans. A methodological combination of critical theory, mythological and philosophical concepts, along with popular ethnographic narratives and lived experiences, this monograph will greatly interest scholars and researchers of religious studies, cultural studies, folklore, art, literature, sociology and gender studies, especially those interested in Nepal and Hinduism.

The Iconic Female

Author : Jayant Bhalchandra Bapat
Publisher : Monash Asia Institute
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 248 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (91 download)

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Book Synopsis The Iconic Female by : Jayant Bhalchandra Bapat

Download or read book The Iconic Female written by Jayant Bhalchandra Bapat and published by Monash Asia Institute. This book was released on 2008 with total page 248 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The energy of the goddess fills every facet of Indian life. To her devotees, the goddess appears in myriad forms: mother, boon-giver, destroyer of evil, divine lover, protector and/or bloodthirsty ogress. The more that is discovered about her, the more teasingly complex and multivalent the Devi appears. She is both constant and changing, loved and feared, worshipped and forgotten, only to be re-discovered and worshiped again. In this book, for the first time, ten Australian researchers, working on many aspects of the Devi, have come together and offered, in a single collection, new research on the divine female. This book begins a renewed quest for the iconic Devi who continues to emerge in her many, unpredictably powerful forms.

Buddhist Goddesses of India

Author : Miranda Shaw
Publisher : Princeton University Press
ISBN 13 : 0691168547
Total Pages : 586 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (911 download)

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Book Synopsis Buddhist Goddesses of India by : Miranda Shaw

Download or read book Buddhist Goddesses of India written by Miranda Shaw and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2015-08-25 with total page 586 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "The Indian Buddhist world abounds with goddesses--voluptuous tree spirits, maternal nurturers, potent healers and protectors, transcendent wisdom figures, cosmic mothers of liberation, and dancing female Buddhas. Despite their importance in Buddhist thought and practice, these female deities have received relatively little scholarly attention, and no comprehensive study of the female pantheon has been available. Buddhist Goddesses of India is the essential and definitive guide to divinities that, as Miranda Shaw writes, "operate from transcendent planes of bliss and awareness for as long as their presence may benefit living beings." Beautifully illustrated, the book chronicles the histories, legends, and artistic portrayals of nineteen goddesses and several related human figures and texts. Drawing on a sweeping range of material, from devotional poetry and meditation manuals to rituals and artistic images, Shaw reveals the character, powers, and practice traditions of the female divinities. Interpretations of intriguing traits such as body color, stance, hairstyle, clothing, jewelry, hand gestures, and handheld objects lend deep insight into the symbolism and roles of each goddess. In addition to being a comprehensive reference, this book traces the fascinating history of these goddesses as they evolved through the early, Mahayana, and Tantric movements in India and found a place in the pantheons of Tibet and Nepal."--Publisher's website.

Hindu Goddesses

Author : Lynn Foulston
Publisher : Liverpool University Press
ISBN 13 : 1802071342
Total Pages : 246 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (2 download)

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Book Synopsis Hindu Goddesses by : Lynn Foulston

Download or read book Hindu Goddesses written by Lynn Foulston and published by Liverpool University Press. This book was released on 2009-07-03 with total page 246 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Explores the diversity of Hindu goddesses and the variety of ways in which they are worshipped. Although they undoubtedly have ancient origins, Hindu goddesses and their worship is still very much a part of the fabric of religious engagement in India today. This book offers an introduction to a complex and often baffling field of study.

Feminine Journeys of the Mahabharata

Author : Lavanya Vemsani
Publisher : Springer Nature
ISBN 13 : 3030731650
Total Pages : 275 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (37 download)

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Book Synopsis Feminine Journeys of the Mahabharata by : Lavanya Vemsani

Download or read book Feminine Journeys of the Mahabharata written by Lavanya Vemsani and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2021-05-21 with total page 275 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Mahabharata preserves powerful journeys of women recognized as the feminine divine and the feminine heroic in the larger culture of India. Each journey upholds the unique aspects of women's life. This book analytically examines the narratives of eleven women from the Mahabharata in the historical context as well as in association with religious and cultural practices. Lavanya Vemsani brings together history, myth, religion, and practice to arrive at a comprehensive understanding of the history of Hindu women, as well as their significance within religious Indian culture. Additionally, Vemsani provides important perspective for understanding the enduring legacy of these women in popular culture and modern society.

The Many Faces of a Himalayan Goddess

Author : Ehud Halperin
Publisher : Oxford University Press, USA
ISBN 13 : 0190913584
Total Pages : 297 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (99 download)

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Book Synopsis The Many Faces of a Himalayan Goddess by : Ehud Halperin

Download or read book The Many Faces of a Himalayan Goddess written by Ehud Halperin and published by Oxford University Press, USA. This book was released on 2019 with total page 297 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "This book offers a portrait of Haḍimbā, a primary village goddess in the Kullu Valley of the West Indian Himalayan state of Himachal Pradesh, a rural area known as the Land of God. Drawing on diverse ethnographic and textual materials The Many Faces of a Himalayan Goddess is rich with myths and tales, accounts of dramatic rituals and festivals, and descriptions of everyday life in the celebrated but remote Kullu Valley. The book portrays the goddess in varying contexts that radiate outward from her temple to local, regional, national, and indeed global spheres. The result is an important contribution to the study of Indian village goddesses, lived Hinduism, Himalayan Hinduism, and the rapidly growing field of religion and ecology"--

Goddesses of Kathmandu Valley

Author : Arun Gupto
Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 131736922X
Total Pages : 220 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (173 download)

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Book Synopsis Goddesses of Kathmandu Valley by : Arun Gupto

Download or read book Goddesses of Kathmandu Valley written by Arun Gupto and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2015-10-30 with total page 220 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In South Asia goddesses are conceptualized and worshipped in a fascinating range of forms — from cosmic beings to bacterial manifestations, from human-like appearances to creatures with animal and insect semblances. This book maps the diverse identities of goddesses through metaphors of grace, rage and knowledge, and offers an in-depth insight into femininity, sexual politics, ritual worships, religion, ecology and gender. Grace manifests as motherly sublimity, warring protectors, and varying personifications of sexuality. Rage encapsulates the fearful aspects of goddesses and independent identities of women. Knowledge evokes associations with order, reason and intellect in conflating gendered binaries of body/mind and nature/culture. The volume explores how these deity attributes are expressed and embedded through anthropomorphic as well as inorganic forms of nature, beautiful women, multi-legged and many-armed animals, epistemic selves, demonic beings, glamorous personifications as also grotesque sub-humans. A methodological combination of critical theory, mythological and philosophical concepts, along with popular ethnographic narratives and lived experiences, this monograph will greatly interest scholars and researchers of religious studies, cultural studies, folklore, art, literature, sociology and gender studies, especially those interested in Nepal and Hinduism.

Renowned Goddess of Desire

Author : Loriliai Biernacki
Publisher : Oxford University Press
ISBN 13 : 0198043872
Total Pages : 313 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (98 download)

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Book Synopsis Renowned Goddess of Desire by : Loriliai Biernacki

Download or read book Renowned Goddess of Desire written by Loriliai Biernacki and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2007-10-11 with total page 313 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Tantra is a family of rituals modeled on those of the Vedas and their attendant texts and lineages. These rituals typically involve the visualization of a deity, offerings, and the chanting of his or her mantra. Common variations include visualizing the deity in the act of sexual union with a consort, visualizing oneself as the deity, and "transgressive" acts such as token consumption of meat or alcohol. Most notoriously, non-standard or ritualized sex is sometimes practiced. This accounts for Tantra's negative reputation in some quarters and its reception in the West primarily as a collection of sexual practices. Although some today extol Tantra's liberating qualities, the role of women remains controversial. Traditionally there are two views of women and Tantra. Either the feminine is a metaphor and actual women are altogether absent, or Tantra involves the transgressive use of women's bodies to serve male interests. Loriliai Biernacki presents an alternative view, in which women are revered, worshipped, and considered worthy of spiritual attainment. Her primary sources are a collection of eight relatively modern Tantric texts written in Sanskrit from the 15th through the 18th century. Her analysis of these texts reveals a view of women that is generally positive and empowering. She focuses on four topics: 1) the "Kali Practice," in which women appear not only as objects of reverence but as practitioners and gurus; 2) the Tantric sex rite, especially in the case that, contrary to other Tantric texts, the preference is for wives as ritual consorts; 3) feminine language and the gendered implications of mantra; and 4) images of male violence towards women in tantric myths. Biernacki, by choosing to analyse eight particular Sanskrit texts, argues that within the tradition of Tantra there exists a representation of women in which the female is an authoritative, powerful, equal participant in the Tantric ritual practice.

Himalayan Pantheon

Author : Daniel B. Haber
Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9788173031250
Total Pages : 0 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (312 download)

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Book Synopsis Himalayan Pantheon by : Daniel B. Haber

Download or read book Himalayan Pantheon written by Daniel B. Haber and published by . This book was released on 1998 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Contents Covers- Chapter 1. Hindu Gods, 2. Hindu Goddesses, 3. Buddhist Deities, 4. Buddhist Goddesses, 5. Hybrid Hindu/ Buddhist And Tantrik Deities.

Devoted to the Goddess

Author : Malcolm McLean
Publisher : State University of New York Press
ISBN 13 : 1438412584
Total Pages : 234 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (384 download)

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Book Synopsis Devoted to the Goddess by : Malcolm McLean

Download or read book Devoted to the Goddess written by Malcolm McLean and published by State University of New York Press. This book was released on 1998-02-13 with total page 234 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The eighteenth-century Bengali poet and religious adept Ramprasad was an important figure in the revival of the worship of the Goddess in Bengal at a time when the previously dominant Vaisnavism was beginning to sustain a decline in popularity. In this book, Malcolm McLean examines the evidence for the life of Ramprasad, and finding little in the historical record, deconstructs the important early biographics, which contain material that is largely legendary in nature. A founder figure emerges whose "life," modeled on that of the earlier saint, Caitanya, became a rallying point for his followers. An analysis of the approximately 350 songs of this "Ramprasad" are analyzed and show how he skillfully combined three important elements of the Hindu tradition into a consistent whole: the classical Puranic Goddess tradition, especially as it is found in the Devi Mahatmya; the indigenous tradition of Bengali fold Goddesses, still enormously popular; and the previously underground esoteric Tantric tradition. This was a powerful and popular mix which allowed a very Tantric Goddess tradition to flourish for the next two hundred years. The book makes a strong case for seeing Ramprasad as basically a Tantrika, and argues that the kind of devotion advocated in the songs is a Tantric devotion of a kind quite different form the current Vaisnavite devotion. The book also looks at how these poems/songs, many of which are translated here, might be read today. The author argues that many have a contemporary relevance which might appeal to many Western readers as they do to Bengalis even today.

The Oxford History of Hinduism: The Goddess

Author : Mandakranta Bose
Publisher : Oxford University Press
ISBN 13 : 0191079685
Total Pages : 384 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (91 download)

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Book Synopsis The Oxford History of Hinduism: The Goddess by : Mandakranta Bose

Download or read book The Oxford History of Hinduism: The Goddess written by Mandakranta Bose and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2018-05-24 with total page 384 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Oxford History of Hinduism: The Goddess provides a critical exposition of the Hindu idea of the divine feminine, or Devī, conceived as a singularity expressed in many forms. With the theological principles examined in the opening chapters, the book proceeds to describe and expound historically how individual manifestations of Devī have been imagined in Hindu religious culture and their impact upon Hindu social life. In this quest the contributors draw upon the history and philosophy of major Hindu ideologies, such as the Purāṇic, Tāntric, and Vaiṣṇava belief systems. A particular distinction of the book is its attention not only to the major goddesses from the earliest period of Hindu religious history but also to goddesses of later origin, in many cases of regional provenance and influence. Viewed through the lens of worship practices, legend, and literature, belief in goddesses is discovered as the formative impulse of much of public and private life. The influence of the goddess culture is especially powerful on women's life, often paradoxically situating women between veneration and subjection. This apparent contradiction arises from the humanization of goddesses while acknowledging their divinity, which is central to Hindu beliefs. In addition to studying the social and theological aspect of the goddess ideology, the contributors take anthropological, sociological, and literary approaches to delineate the emotional force of the goddess figure that claims intense human attachments and shapes personal and communal lives.

Religion, Secularism, and Ethnicity in Contemporary Nepal

Author : David N. Gellner
Publisher : Oxford University Press
ISBN 13 : 019099343X
Total Pages : 394 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (99 download)

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Book Synopsis Religion, Secularism, and Ethnicity in Contemporary Nepal by : David N. Gellner

Download or read book Religion, Secularism, and Ethnicity in Contemporary Nepal written by David N. Gellner and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2020-01-01 with total page 394 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The socio-political landscape of Nepal has been rocked by dramatic and far-reaching changes in the past thirty years. Following a ten-year Maoist revolution and civil war, the country has transitioned from a monarchy to a republic. The former Hindu kingdom has declared its commitment to secularism, without coming to any agreement on what secularism means or should mean in the Nepalese context. What happens to religion under conditions of such rapid social and political change? How do the changes in public festivals reflect and/or create new group identities? Is the gap between the urban and the rural narrowing? How is the state dealing with Nepal’s multicultural and multi-religious society? How are Nepalis understanding, resisting, and adapting ideas of secularism? In order to answer these important questions, this volume brings together eleven case studies by an international team of anthropologists and ethno-Indologists of Nepal on such diverse topics as secularism, individualism, shamanism, animal sacrifice, the role of state functionaries in festivals, clashes and synergies between Maoism and Buddhism, and conversion to Christianity. In an Afterword, renowned political theorist Rajeev Bhargava presents a comparative analysis of Nepal’s experiences and asks whether the country is finding its own solution to the conundrum of secularism.

Gods, Heroes and their Story Tellers

Author : V. Hari Saravanan
Publisher : Notion Press
ISBN 13 : 9384391492
Total Pages : 837 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (843 download)

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Book Synopsis Gods, Heroes and their Story Tellers by : V. Hari Saravanan

Download or read book Gods, Heroes and their Story Tellers written by V. Hari Saravanan and published by Notion Press. This book was released on 2014-01-01 with total page 837 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: We can hear Urumula Naganna’s drum roll during the rendition of the Sri Akammagaru Kaviya. An oral tradition which is as old as the hills is captured in the book Gods, Heroes and their Storytellers. Do you know the story of how the Madiga community came to inherit the right to skin cattle carcass and produce leather articles? How are contemporary Folk Oral Literatures connected to the Ramayana and the Mahabharata? There are many such stories and tradition bearers who doggedly go on in spite of the onslaught of the digital media. The author here has tried his best in keeping these traditions alive by not only telling the stories but also by living with the story tellers themselves. The rich details give us a window to a world which is not only very far away for our everyday mundane existence but also makes us retrospect on what we are missing out. Each of the tradition bearers are different and so are their stories and the region to which they belong. These are not merely stories but a way of life for these oral narrators who are fast disappearing in today’s consumerist landscape. The need of the hour is to keep alive these traditions and the tradition bearers.

Tantra, Ritual Performance, and Politics in Nepal and Kerala

Author : Matthew Martin
Publisher : BRILL
ISBN 13 : 9004439021
Total Pages : 308 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (44 download)

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Book Synopsis Tantra, Ritual Performance, and Politics in Nepal and Kerala by : Matthew Martin

Download or read book Tantra, Ritual Performance, and Politics in Nepal and Kerala written by Matthew Martin and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2020-08-10 with total page 308 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For the first time, Tantra, Ritual Performance and Politics in Nepal and Kerala offers a comparative approach to Tantric mediumship as observed in two locales: Navadurgā rituals in Bhaktapur, Nepal, and Teyyāṭṭam in North Kerala.

Kiss of the Yogini

Author : David Gordon White
Publisher : University of Chicago Press
ISBN 13 : 022602783X
Total Pages : 393 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (26 download)

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Book Synopsis Kiss of the Yogini by : David Gordon White

Download or read book Kiss of the Yogini written by David Gordon White and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2006-07-07 with total page 393 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For those who wonder what relation actual Tantric practices bear to the "Tantric sex" currently being marketed so successfully in the West, David Gordon White has a simple answer: there is none. Sweeping away centuries of misunderstandings and misrepresentations, White returns to original texts, images, and ritual practices to reconstruct the history of South Asian Tantra from the medieval period to the present day. Kiss of the Yogini focuses on what White identifies as the sole truly distinctive feature of South Asian Tantra: sexualized ritual practices, especially as expressed in the medieval Kaula rites. Such practices centered on the exchange of powerful, transformative sexual fluids between male practitioners and wild female bird and animal spirits known as Yoginis. It was only by "drinking" the sexual fluids of the Yoginis that men could enter the family of the supreme godhead and thereby obtain supernatural powers and transform themselves into gods. By focusing on sexual rituals, White resituates South Asian Tantra, in its precolonial form, at the center of religious, social, and political life, arguing that Tantra was the mainstream, and that in many ways it continues to influence contemporary Hinduism, even if reformist misunderstandings relegate it to a marginal position. Kiss of the Yogini contains White's own translations from over a dozen Tantras that have never before been translated into any European language. It will prove to be the definitive work for persons seeking to understand Tantra and the crucial role it has played in South Asian history, society, culture, and religion.