Books on Hindu Studies

Tibetan medicine was probably the first truly integrated system of ancient healing science. Tibetan Ayurveda provides a comprehensive guide to the four levels of traditional Tibetan medicine with a wealth of traditional health practices and teachings.

Much of the contemporary material on Tibetan medicine focuses solely on herbal medicine and acupuncture; Tibetan Ayurveda goes beyond these to look at other important forms of treatment such as Pancha Karma for detoxification and rejuvenation and Kum Nye for integrating mind and body. Using the source text of the Gyud-Zhi, “The Ambrosial Heart Tantra,” Robert Sachs looks at the powerful regenerative therapies that underpin this ancient healing science. He provides clear explanations of their principles and methods and supplies guidelines on nutrition, exercise, relaxation, rejuvenation, detoxification, as well as on meditation and other spiritual practices. A self-profile test is included to allow readers to determine their own health needs and embark on the path toward realizing their full potential for health and well-being.

The primary goal of the series is to explore and study the relationship between spirituality and health in a concise and readable format. It will seek to integrate spirituality into medicine on a scientific basis. It will shed new light on major contemporary issues in this fascinating area of research. It'll bridge the chasm between health and well-being on the one side and religion and spirituality on the other. It'll provide a comprehensive review of the research on the interface between medicine and spirituality. It'll also endeavour to go beyond research by offering clear, concise and helpful recommendations on how to address spiritual and health issues and how to utilize the expertise of all professionals to provide the best and most compassionate care possible.

The ocean of Hindu scriptural wisdom in the form of teachings of ancient masters of the religion is too massive for a single individual. This book presents, however, a compact connected collection of such wisdom from the vast and deep literature on Spiritual Hindu Thought. Presenting the esoteric meanings and significance of numerous names of Gods, through the words of Rishis, it explains the philosophical foundations of Hinduism, rooted in the Upanishads, the Gita and other ancient scriptures. A glimpse of the synthesis of religion and art as exhibited by the Divine Dance in the Nataraja temple of Chidambaram is also provided.

From Kannada's first Jnanpith award winner, a landmark of modern fiction that documents a vanishing world. When Hoovayya and Ramayya return from their studies in the city to their ancestral home, much has changed, throwing the even tenor of village life out of joint. The entry of Subbamma, the young wife of much-married Chandrayya Gowda into the House of Kanooru, sets in motion an irrevocable chain of events which signify the coming of age of a resolutely traditional society. Acutely conscious of the burden of their education amidst the torpor of manorial life, the brothers are forced to witness the descent into cruelty of Chandrayya Gowda, who breaks old familial ties, and demands an impossible fealty. The petty meanness of the Gowda s old age and the idealistic vitality of youth confront each other when Hoovayya and Ramayya both fall in love with Seethe, their childhood playmate, with disastrous consequences for the manor house of Kanooru. The epic conflicts of a decaying feudal order are seen through a multiplicity of characters, and voices that refuse to be silenced. The first stirrings of change in the lives of the Belas, the highland plantation workers and their labouring women, the proud Shudra landowners, the secretive and predatory Agrahara of the Brahmins, are dramatized by a humane eye sensitive to the slightest nuance. The House of Kanooru is ultimately a moving tribute by one of Kannada s greatest writers to the spirit of modernity. Translated from the Kannada by B.C. Ramachandra Sharma and Padma Ramachandra Sharma.

Here is a textbook of Sanskrit grammar whose popularity with teachers and students alike has been on increase since its first printing. In it the essentials of Sanskrit grammar are carefully organized in thirty selected lessons. Interest in lessons is added by quotations of vocabularies from original Sanskrit, and the student is encouraged to read and memorize them. The lessons are followed by appendixes which are of no less interest. The inclusion of English-Sanskrit and Sanskrit-English glossaries is a special feature of the book. The reprint of A Rapid Sanskrit Method will be welcomed by the students as well as the teachers.

Kundalini energy manifests itself in as many ways as the sun has rays. In most people the energy is latent. Like electricity, it is neutral. The gurus stress the need to gain control of any kind of power. For those who have laid the foundation by learning self-mastery, the Kundalini energy, when understood, can be controlled at will.

The first stage in Kundalini Yoga is becoming aware. It presents a well laid-out plan that encompasses more and more aspects of one's
life. Like concentric circles, it is ever expanding. Once the principal idea that moves like a red thread through the levels of consciousness is understood, a marvelous way of life is opened to the individual. There is a vast potential that lies within each of us- the potential of energy, power, heightened perception and awareness. Evolution for humans must now refer to evolution of consciousness, and Kundalini offers a blueprint of the vast mine to be tapped. In summary, the purpose of this book is to give the tools by which those who wish to cooperate with the process of evolution can do so. There is no mystification about the awakening of Kundalini, yet this process leads to the mystical experience.

This is a direct path to higher conciusness. It is the process of concious cooperation with evolution. within each of us there lies a vast Potential of energy and power which, when properly understood and directed, will lead to previously unimagined heights of perception and awareness. This is a book of inspiration, and into life are given for those who wish to cooperate with evolution. Swami Radha has presented clear directions for exercises and practices.

Review:

... clear, comprehensive and full of extremely useful information. - Stanislav Grof, Esalen Institute, Big Sur, California

The book is a treasure chest. It is a welcome relief to read about Kundalini in ways that are clear, detailed, explicit and profound... a genuinely useful text for personal development. - James Fadiman, Institute of Transpersonal Psychology, Menlo Park, California

In view of growing interest in the 'inner way' by which we attempt to tune into the forces of evolution, Kundalini Yoga may well mark a break through, long expected and long overdue. - Herbert V. Guenther, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Sask

Kundalini Yoga is full of sound advice and spiritual directions for purifying and developing the physical, emotional and mental being as a foundation for the safe awakening of the Kundalini Power. - Judith Tyberg, East-West Cultural Centre, Los Angeles

This book is destined to become a classic in the literature of altered states of consciousness. - Stanley Krippner, Humanistic Psychology Institute, San Francisco

This book presents the paradigm in a fairly comprehensive and easily understandable manner, steering clear of confusion and controversies. - Prof. S. K. Ramchandra Rao, The Astrological Magazine, Vol.84, No.1, Jan. 1995

In a most comprehensive and thorough analysis, the present work identifies Mithuna or Male-Female theme as a symbol pure and simple that occurs and recurs under many contexts and representational assumptions in different phases of Indian culture, art and thought. The author has brought out an exposition of the Mithuna symbol treating fully its implications in manifold contexts and areas of thought such as One And The Many, Male and Female, As An Idyllic Concept, Dampati, Incomplete Mithuna, Eternal Mithuna And Sahaja. As such this symbol now forms the key to analysing several basic ideals permeating different Indian metaphysical systems and mythical formulations as well as their tangible projection in art and iconography through the ages. The accented expression of Mithuna in Indian art and ritual has ever been a thing of wide interest both to scholars and general readers. Dr. Agrawala's work studies this greatly fascinating subject in a new and comprehensive setting, treating the Indian Male-Female theme for the first time in the widest possible range of its existence from prehistoric ages to pre-modern times and of its multiple presence in religious, social and philosophical ideologies and art. Printed Pages: 140 with 223 b/w and 18 four-colour illustrations.

Did you know that Brahma once had five faces?
Why do snakes have a forked tongue?
Do gods cheat?
Why does Shiva sport a crescent moon on his head?

The Trinity, consisting of Brahma, Shiva and Vishnu, is the omnipresent trio responsible for the survival of the human race and the world as we know it. They are popular deities of worship all over India, but what remain largely unknown are some of their extraordinary stories.
Award-winning author Sudha Murty walks by your side, weaving enchanting tales of the three most powerful gods from the ancient world. Each story will take you back to a magical time when people could teleport, animals could fly and reincarnation was simply a fact of life.

Sudha Murty

Sudha Murty was born in 1950 in Shiggaon in north Karnataka. She did her Mtech in computer science, and is now the chairperson of the infosys Foundation. A prolific writer in English and Kannada, she has written novels, technical books, travelogues, collections of short stories and non- fictional pieces, and four books for children. Her books have been translated into all the major Indian languages. Sudha Murty was the recipient of the R.K. Narayan Award for Literature and the Padma Shri in 2006, and the Attimabbe Award from the government of Karnataka for excellence in Kannada literature in 2011.

"Bana's Kadambari is often appointed as a text-book in the Indian Universities, and owing to the peculiar characteristics of its style, the students often find it is a hard task to translate the intricate passages in it, in spite of the help they receive in the class-room from their Professors. Some editors try to satisfy the needs of their readers by issuing voluminous notes, whose very extent, however, frightens away the student; at any rate it becomes a tire-some task to wade through a bulky book for obtaining light on one's own particular difficulty. Moreover, only a literal and complete translation can solve many of the simpler difficulties of the ordinary student as regards the meanings of individual words and constructions of sentences, which the annotator may have passed over as being easy.

The present translation has been prepared at the request of many students who require some such help. The translation, here offered, is complete, without the omission of a single word or phrase; it is as close as the idiom of the language permits; and particular care has been bestowed upon passages involving puns and suggested senses."

"Vyakarana holds an uncontested place of honour in Indology, and Panini's grammar in particular is a basic source in argumentation not only among Paniniyas but also for students of Indian literature and sastras regardless of their particular areas of concentration. In this volume are published thirteen contributions presented in the Vyakarana section of the twelfth World Sanskrit Conference. The papers represent a considerable breadth of interest.

Most of the studies concern technical aspects of Paninian grammar. Several papers deal with facets of Panini's metalinguistic usage and four studies with points concerning derivational procedures and particular sutras related to them. Two papers concentrate on questions of syntax and two other scholars treat subjects of primarily historical interest."

"These volumes of the Sacred Books of the East series include translations of all the most important works of the seven non-Christian religions that have exercised a profound influence on the civilisations of the continent of Asia. The Vedic Brahmanic system claims 21 volumes, Buddhism 10, and Jainism 2;8 volumes comprise Sacred Books of the Paris; 2 volumes represent Islam; and 6 the two main indigenous systems of China. Translated by twenty leading authorities intheir respective fields, the volumes, Buddhism 10, and Jainism 2;8 volumes comprise Sacred Books of the Parsis; 2 volumes represent Islam; and 6 the two main indigenous systems of China. Translated by twenty leading authorities in their respective fields, the volumes have been edited by the late F. Max Muller. The inception, publication and the compilation of these books cover almost 34 years.
1. BUDDHISM
Vol. 49: Buddhist Mahayana Texts (2 Parts); Vol. 11: Buddhist Sutras; Vol. 10: The Dhammapada and Sutta Nipata; Vol. 35 36: The Questions of King Milinda (2 Parts); Vol. 21: The Saddharma Pundarika or the Lotus of the True Law; Vol. 13,17 20: Vinaya Texts (3 Parts).
2. CHINESE
Vol. 19: The Fo-Sho-Hing-Tsan-King; Vols. 3, 16, 27, 28, 39 40: The Sacred Books of China (6 Parts)
3. A GENERAL INDEX
Vol. 50: A General Index to the Names and Subject-matter of the Sacred Books of the East
4. ISLAM
Vol. 6 9: The Qur'an (2 Parts)
5. JAINISM
Vol. 22 45: The Jaina Sutras (2 Parts)
6. PARSIS
Vol. 5,18, 24, 37 47: Pahlavi Texts (5 Parts); Vol. 4,23 31: The Zend-Avesta (3 Parts)
7. VEDIC-BRAHMANIC SYSTEM
Vol. 8: The Bhagavadgita with the Sanatsujatiya and the Anugita; Vols. 29 30: The Grihya-Sutra: Rules of Vedic Domestic Ceremonies (2 Parts) Vol. 42: Hymns of the Atharva Veda together with Extracts from the Ritual Books and the Commentaries; Vol. 7: The Institutes of Vishnu; Vol. 25: The Laws of Manu; The Minor Law Books; Vols. 2 14: The Sacred Laws of the Aryas as Taught in the Schools of Apastamba, Gautama, Vasishtha and Baudhayana (2 Parts); Vols. 12, 26, 41, 43 44: The Satapatha Brahmana According to the text of the Madhyandina School (5 Parts); Vols. 1 15: The Upanishads (2 Parts); Vols. 34 38: The Vedanta Sutras (2 Parts); Vol. 48: The Vedanta-Sutras (With the commentary by Ramanuja) Vols. 32 46: Vedic Hymns (2 Parts)."

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SPECIFICATION:

• Publisher : Motilal Banarsidass Publishers
• By : Y.J. Padmarajiah
• Cover : Hardcover
• Language : English
• Edition : 1986
• Pages : 434
• Weight : 500 gm
• ISBN-10 : 8120800362
• ISBN-13 : 978-8120800366

DESCRIPTION:

An attempt to determine the meaning and contents of the notion of dravya and distinguish between the two concepts of guna and paryaya. Cursorily also discusses notions of realtivity, continuity, divisibilty and negation. It presents an analytical account and a critical estimation of the methods of knowledge with an investigation into the nature and the logical evolution of the theory of manifoldness (anekantavada). The work has aimed throughout at a comparative treatment of the problems. Effort has been made to avoid strained and far-fetched comparisons and contrasts and to treat criticisms and controversies in a constructive spirit.

In The Scientific Foundations of Jainism Professor Mardia attempts to elucidate the point that Jainism is a science with religion. After a very brief introduction to the Jainism, the author introduces the four Axioms and discusses their theoretical and applied aspects and their plausibility in a modern context. It gives Jaina logic together with present trends in scientific thinking and indicates how Jainism and modern science are related. "Written by a modern thinker and a scientist with an international reputation in research and the dissemination of scientific knowledge. The Scientific Foundation of Jainism is a valuable guide in understanding Jainism. Mardia refers to the Jain claim that one can see the whole truth of Jain science when one attains kevalajnana or infinite knowledge! His efforts to reveal to us the truth of Jain science in an understandable way provide a testimony to the vast amount of knowledge he must have acquired through the dilligent study of the literature on Jainism.

The book includes a bibliography, glossary and an index. Wherever possible, a sharper scientific pictorial representation has been given, and very few original terms are used in the text so that the flow of the arguments is not hampered. Paul Marett in the Foreword says "Prof. Mardia's book divides naturally into three parts. First he explains the basic ideas of the soul, karma, living beings and non-living matter, and brings these together in the Jain explanation of life and death and the universe. Next he moves from the general to the particular, to the practice of self-conquest and the path of the individual soul towards purification. Thirdly, in two chapters which demand, and reward, close reading, he places Jain logic in its rightful position as a valid and acceptable system, and draws together the most fundamental and up-to-date aspects of modern physics with the scientific theories of the Jain writers."

Review: It will, I am sure, be of value to Jains living in the modern world who often find it difficult to discern the relevance of the writings of long-dead authors to the world today. It will also be of value to non-Jains, particularly those who approach the study of a little-known religion in a spirit of rational inquiry. - Paul Marett, Jain Journal, Vol.25, July 1990.

This is a very important book. The author wears his formidable scholarship both in theoretical physics and in Jain Philosophy lightly: the book is readable and understandable. He has given a vocabulary and a set of concepts which make possible the presentation of much that was shrouded in abstruse terminology and pre-modern science, in the language of today. - The Jain, March 1991

Written by a modern thinker and a scientist with an international reputation in research and the dissemination of scientific knowledge, The Scientific Foundations of Jainism is a valuable guide in understanding Jainism. Mardia refers to the Jain claim that one can see the whole truth of Jain science when one attains kevalajnana or infinite knowledge! - Jain Samaj, April 1992.

Instead of explaining Jainism in terms of Brahmanical philosophies and method, here we find a new modern approach to Jainism which is welcome. ...The whole theme is divied into ten chapters-Bibliography, glossary and index are added. The book deserves recommendation to the students of philosophy and science. - E.R. Sreekrishna Sarma, The Adyar Library Bulletin, Vol.54, 1990.

"Harmless Souls considers doctrinal change and its implication for religious practice in early Jainism. It focuses on evolving views about the conditions necessary for Karmic bondage and the liberation of embodied souls, as described inparts of the early Svetambara canon, Umasvati`s Tattvartha Sutra, and the major works of Kundakunda. It is concluded that, although significant doctrinal changes do take place, these are not permitted to affect Jaina practice which constitutes and preserves the distinctive religious and social identity of the Jaina community. "

Jainism is aside from Buddhism, the only surviving example of India`s ancient non-Vedic religious traditions celebrated for its systematic practice of non-violence and for the rigor of the asceticism it promotes. It sheds light on a little known religious tradition and demonstrates that divine absence.

"A translation of the Kalpa Sutra into English needs justification, since during the past few years several such translations have appeared int he market. The pioneering work by Hermann Jacobi remains a classic to this day, while in recent translations the writers have exercised a freedom which is hardly justified. The present translation not only claims complete authenticity, but, like the translation of a few other Jaina texts by the same writer, it also strictly follows the prakrit text in prose as well as verse so that the reader through the English medium may enjoy a taste of the original.

Bhadrabåhuís Kalpa Sµutra is the earliest account of the life of the T?rtha?karas, the 24th, 23rd, 22nd and 1stósince the arrangement of the book moves back in time. The present work should, in the fitness of things, occupy a unique position. Scholars have divided this work into three Parts, viz., Tirthankaras, Church Leaders and Parjusana. For the present translation, however, it has been divided into seven Parts as follows: Bhagavan Mahavira, Arhat Parsva, Arhat Aristanemi, Twenty other Tirthankaras, Arhat Rsabha, Church Leaders and Parjusana.

Among the Agamic texts, Kalpa Sutra belongs to a group called Cheda Sµutra. Going by the contents of these texts, it would appear that they contain rules about personal behaviour and organisational discipline to be observed by the monks. Among the Cheda Sµutras, three names usually go together which are Dasa-kappa-vavahara and they are compiled into one text called Sruta Skandha. Kalpa Sutra is the eighth chapter of the Dasa text. With certain sects of the Jainas, the reading of the Kalpa Sutra during the Parjusana is a must which has contributed to the great spiritual significance of this work."

About The Author:

S. M. Srinivasa Chari (b. 1919, Mysore) has a brilliant academic record. He is an M. A. in Philosophy of the University of Mysore and recipient of Ph.D. from the University of Madras. He is a finished Sanskrit scholar trained up by eminent traditional teachers. He was a research Scholar at the University of Madras and a Fellow of Institute of Philosophy at Amalner in Maharashtra.

Dr. Chari joined the Ministry of Education, Government of India, after the completion of his university career. He retired in 1976 as Joint Educational Adviser.

Dr. Chari has traveled widely. He has participated in international conferences abroad, and addressed learned assemblies at University Centres on aspects of Indian philosophy and religion. He is author of Advaita and Visistadvaita and Vaisnavism

Foreword
Visistadvaita is one of the great religio-philosophical systems of the world. There are very few modern critical expositions of it based on the bhasya, supplement by later erudite works.

Dr. Srinivasa Chari has acquired quite a profound knowledge of Visistadvaita from great pundits with whom he studied for years the texts in original. His modern education has endowed him with the capacity to present classical ideas in a lucid and connected way.

Depending on the original texts, in particular on Vedanta Desika's Tattva-mukta-kalapa, Dr. Chari has written an excellent monograph which authoritatively expounds Visistadvaita. Moreover, it attempts to establish that this a system of philosophy in conformity with logic and experience.

From the Jacket:

The doctrine of Visistadvaita, expounded by Ramanuja, was developed into a sound system of philosophy by the most brilliant of his successors, Venkatanatha, 'popularly known as Vedanta Desika.' His chief contribution to the intellectual foundation of the system lay in the composition of the text of Tattva-mukta-kalapa, a treatise of significant philosophical import left for posterity.

In this volume, which is a study of Visistadvaita based on Tattva-mukta-kalapa, the line of arguments advanced by Vedanta Desika is closely followed. The major and important issues related to the philosophy of Visistadvaita are brought within the purview of discussion. The contemporary rival schools represented by Carvakas, Buddhists and Jainas, Nayaya-Vaisesikas, Mimamsakas and the Advaitins, of both orthodox and unorthodox camps, are successfully encountered. In the textual light of Tattva-mukta-kalapa, the notion that Visistadvaita is a theological system is dispelled, and its philosophic core is established beyond doubt.

The author maintains 'the original orthodox style, so characteristic of the ancient Acaryas', in his delineation of topics; yet the exposition remains free from all kinds of scholastic trappings.

The volume is a definitive study of Visistadvaita doctrine, both in their 'philosophical as well as theological aspects'. Its in-depth probe of 'the fundamental epistemological and philosophical issues…common to all schools' both I the East and the West makes its appeal to those interested 'in understanding the basic problems of philosophy'

 

The philosophical significance of Jainism extends far beyond its statistical presence in India and the world, for it lies in the unique quality of its thought. This book is an attempt to take its insights into account for the light they shed on issues customarily debated in the Philosophy of Religion as it has evolved in the West.

"The book presents the history and the doctrines of the Ajivikas who formed a third heretical sect besides the sect of Gautama Buddha, the founder of Buddhism and that of Mahavira Vardhamana, the twenty-fourth Tirthankara of the Jainas. The three heterodox sects react against the ritualistic creed of the Vedists.

The cult of Ajivikas was founded by Makkhali Gosal, the contemporary of Mahavira Vardhamana, on the basis of strict determinism with a belief in the all-embracing rule of Niyati (principle of order). According to Gosal, it was Niyati which ultimately governed our action, controlled phenomena and left no room for human volition.

It will throw new light on an interesting and significant aspect of India’s past, and will encourage further research.

This book is divided into fifteen chapters discussing elaborately different aspects of the subject matter. The comprehensive Bibliography and Index are the added features for the researchers for comparative as well as further study of yet unexplored areas."

In an integrated and comprehensive framework, Jainism: The World of Conquerors-II deals in depth with different dimensions of one of the most ancient surviving religions of the world. The book opens up a world of inner and outer space not to be overwhelmed by greed, malice, domination, violence and struggle but waiting to be conquered by peaceful revolution through principled living and respect for ideals of compassion, non-violence and equanimity.