This book is a simple introduction to the history and various systems of Psychology. It provides a basic understanding of major systems and theories in psychology in a comprehensive way. It covers in detail the historiecal backgrounds taking plave before the emgergence of each system. As such, it provides a better understanding about the historical emergence of status of psychology and in beginning its separation from philosophical traditions. It covers a lucid discussion with emphasis on the antecednet forces of all the important system of psychology. Besides the traditional systems, it alos includes in separate chapters a discussion on the CONGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY, the EXISTENTIAL PSYCHOLOGY, the HUMANISTIC PSYCHOLOGY and the INTERNATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY. An overview of psychology in India has also been one of the salient features of the book. This will briefly introduce to teachers and students about what the Indian psychologists are doing.

The Yoga-Sutra is a significant landmark in the protracted evolution of the yogic tradition. It formed the foundation text for an extensive commentarial literature stretching from the Yoga-Bhasya of Vyasa to modern traditionalist interpretations in Hindi and other Indic vernaculars as well as various European languages, notably English.

The present volume by Swami Veda Bharati provides a learned commentary on the second chapter of the Yoga-Sutra i.e., Sadhana Pada. This contains the core of Patanjali’s philosophical and meta-psychological framework, and it also defines both the components of kriya-yoga and the first five components of eight limbed astanga-yoga. This chapter demonstrates very clearly that in Yoga, theory and practice form a homogenous whole. The theoretical concepts were largely distilled from practical experience and, in turn, informed further experimentation on the path. How could we hope to travel the path mapped out by Patanjali without recourse to such pregnant concepts as citta, vrtti, pratyaya, samskara, vasana, asaya, nirodha, parinama, guna, pratiprasava? All these ideas were shaped in the intense practice environment of Yoga over many generations.

Swami Veda Bharati brings to his exegesis a singular sensitivity and wonderful comprehension of yogic concepts, which are rooted in his extensive traditional training as a Sanskrit scholar and also his personal yogic practice. This latest contribution to our comprehension of Patanjali’s teachings takes us a lot further than other similar endeavors.

About the Author

Born in a Sanskrit-speaking family in 1933, Swam Veda Bharati started teaching the Yoga-Sutras of Patanjali from 1942, at the age of nine. In 1946 a number of article appeared in the Hindi press proclaiming this child prodigy's exceptional knowledge of the Vedas. He then began to be invited to address crowds of thousand as well as colleges and universities throughout north India.

From February 1947 he travelled worldwide giving discourses and establishing meditation centres. He has, to his credit. 4,000 hours of recorded lectures on history, philosophy and practices of meditation and has written eighteen boo including a 1,500 page commentary on the first two padas of the Yoga-Sutras, a highly scholarly and meticulous work.

Between 1965 and 1967 he obtained all his degree: BA (Honours) London, MA (London), D.Litt. (Holland), and FARS. He has varying degree of depth in seventeen languages.

In 1969 he met his yoga guru Swami Rama of Himalayas (author of Living with Himalayan Masters) who initiated him into the highest path of dhyana-Yoga.

Swami Veda Bharati taught meditation from within the religious. spiritual and literary traditions of different world cultures-from China to Africa to different parts of Europe. In each culture he taught meditation from within that culture, for example, in Italy he taught Dante' Il Paradiso as a text of the experience of divine light in meditation; he was visited by masters of the Sufi orders; and has forty-five hours of recordings of lectures on Christian tradition of meditation.

He has also been engaged in neurological research in meditation and maintains a sophisticated laboratory in his asrama for testing brain waves and other neuro-physiological patterns during meditation.

He run over fifty meditation groups and centres in twenty-five countries; hold the prestigious title of Mahamandalesvara in the community of the Swami Order of monks. He was spiritual guide to two asramas in Rishikesh where seekers from twenty-five countries come to learn meditation and undergo varying periods of guided silence.

Swami Veda Bharati also maintained keen interest in the relationship of science and meditation, run a research laboratory practices of meditation.

In that context, he has been the subject of several experiments in the neurology of meditation in institutions like the Institute of Noetic Sciences, California; in a unique experiment, sitting outside a Faraday Chamber, nine times in a row, proving the power of the volition of consciousness over material energies. The result of this experiments have been published in the Scientific Press.

He spent much of his time travelling worldwide, lecturing and participating in relevant conferences and giving guidance to sixty meditation groups on all continents. Swamiji passed away on July 14th, 2015 in Rishikesh at his asrama.

Specification

• Product Code :BK7122
• Size :8.5" x 5.5"
• Weight :550 gm.
• Author :Paul Deussen / Rev. A. S. Geden
• ISBN :9788120816206
• Publisher :Motilal Banarsidass Publishers Pvt. Ltd.
• Edition :2011
• Cover :Paperback
• Language :English
• Pages :444

Description

Paul J. Deussen

The book would create a great interest in the study and research in Indology. …the people interested in Upanishadic studies should read this book for getting better insights to the philosophy and philosophical history of Upanishads.
Godabarisha Mishra, Indian Philosophical Annual Vol. 23, 2001-2002

Paul Deussen’s study of the Upanishads is indeed ‘a work of very high ability and of surpassing interest’. …it has been recognized as a standard on the subject and remains so till today.
Journal of Indian Council of Philosophical Research Vol. 19, No. 2, April-June 2002

Preface

Dr. DELJSSEN’S treatise on the Upanishads needs no formal introduction or commendation to students of Indian thought who are familiar with the German language. To others I would fain hope that the translation here presented, winch appears with the author’s sanction, may serve to make known a work of very marked ability and of surpassing interest. As far as my knowledge extends, there is no adequate exposition of the Upanishads available in English. The best was published by Messrs. Trubner more than a quarter of a century ago, and is in many res1jects out of date. As traced here by the master-hand of the author, the teaching of the ancient Indian seers presents itself in clearest light, and claims the sympathetic study of all lovers of truth.

For the English rendering I am alone responsible. And where I may have failed to catch the precise meaning of the original, or adequately to represent the turn of phrase, I can only ask the indulgence of the reader. Dr. Deussen’s style is not easy. And if a more capable hand than mine had been willing to essay the task of translation, I would gladly have resigned my office. With whatsoever care I can hardly hope entirely to have escaped error. But for any indication of oversight or mistake, and any suggestion for improvement, I shall be most grateful. The work has exacted many hours that could be ill spared from a very full life. If however it conduce in any way to a better understanding of the mind and heart of India I shall be amply repaid.

About the Book

Brahmavaivartapurana figures as the tenth in the traditional list of the Puranas. It is divided into four parts called khandas, comprising 267 chapters. The khandas are: Brahmakhanda: 30 chapters, Prakrtikhanda: 67 chapters, Ganapatikhanda: 46 chapters and Srikrsnajanmakhanda 133 chapters.

It is well known that the Brahmavaivarta is a Vaisnavite Purana and the sole objective of the work is to glorify the life and achievements of Sri Krsna, an incarnation of Visnu and his Sakti Radha. Many episodes and topics have been interwoven to embellish the main theme of the work. In this Purana, Krsna is not simply an incarnation, he is far superior to and even creator of Prakrti. He is God above all gods.

Part I, i.e., Brahmakhanda deals with the creation of the universe including the gods and animate and inanimate beings by Brahman, the creator God, who is, according to this Purana, none other than a manifestation of Krsna and acts under the guidance of the latter.

Part II, i.e., Prahrtikhanda deals with Prakrti, the primordial matter. According to this Purana, Prakrti is not inert as she is conceived by the Sankhya philosophy, but is intelligent; she is the primary goddess of creation. In compliance with Krsna’s desire, she is manifested as the five goddesses, viz., Durga, Radha, Laksmi, Sarasvati, and Savitri. Many stories about these deities have been narrated and rituals for their worship described in this part.

Part III, i.e., Ganapatikhanda narrates many legends about Ganesa, the elephant- headed god, widely worshipped throughout India and even outside. Though named Ganapatikhanda, this part deals with the birth and life of both sons of Siva, viz., Ganesa and Skanda Karttikeya. According to this Purana, Ganesa is also a manifestation of Krsna. Hence, there is no mention of Ganapatya sects who worshipped Ganesa as the Supreme Godhead. The variations in the images of this deity, found in literature and on icons find no mention in the Purana.

Part IV, i.e., Srikrsnajanmakhanda is the most important of all books of this Purana. It deals not only with the birth of Krsna, as signified by the title, but also his whole life, especially his battles and love dalliances with the cowherdesses (gopis), in particular, with Radha. Radha, who is not even mentioned in the major Vaisnava Puranas like Bhagavata, Visnu, and Harivamsa, has risen in this Purana, to a great importance. It is interesting to note that she is depicted here as a married wife of Krsna.

Introduction

It is believed that the study of the Puranas is beneficial to the knowledge of the vedas. As the Mahabharata states, the veda should be supplemented with the Itihasa and Purana, for the veda is afraid of being hurt by a person who is not well versed (in the mythological and traditional lore). The traditionalists take the word Purana to mean the Puranic texts like Matsya, Kurma, etc. and attach to them great authority and veneration. They hold that the Puranic texts are repositories of very ancient knowledge because they have been referred to in the Brhadaranyaka Upanisad. Modern Scholars dispute this claim and say that not the extant Puranic texts but some parts of the Vedas which preserve very old traditions, alluded to in other places of the vedas, are referred to in the. Brhadaranyaka Upanisad, as the Purana. They quote, in support of their thesis, Sankaracarya’s interpretation of the said passage of the Brhadaranyaka Upanisad: "Mythology, such as "The universe was in the beginning unmanifest etc."

Introduction:

This book is Hindu Canons of Engineering and Architecture though first in the series of my research publications in English is seeing the light of the day after the Vastu Sastra Vol II. Hindu Canons of Iconography and Painting had already been presented to the scholarly world more than a year back. Both these Volumes have for their nuclei my Doctoral Theses Ph. D and D. Litt. In this way this Volume may be said to have come out after a long interval.

A study of Bhoja's Samarangana-Sutradhara a treatise on the science of architecture was submitted as my Ph. D thesis some six years back. I was very much encouraged by the glowing tributes to this thesis being acclaimed as a pioneer work vide the reports of the examiners appended at the end of this introduction. I therefore set for myself to extend the study from a single text to at least half a dozen representative texts like Visvakarma-prakasa, Aparajita-prccham and Silparatna. Naturally this very ambitious undertaking needed some more concentrated time the availability of which has been a very distant hope for the last so many years as I have been busy not only with D. Litt. Researches but also with my research publication I Hindi as well, with the then (1954-56) vice-Chancellor of Lucknow University took great fancy in my theses on account of their high merit and higher tributes and recommended their publication to the U. G. C. which sanctioned a grant for Rs. 6000 for the publication of my theses. Prof. Iyer the next Vice-Chancellor also agreed to recommend for some more help towards the completion of work. Hence a further subsidy of Rs. 4000 enabled me to undertake the publication of this volume also. Both these Volumes in a way may be said to complete the grand edifice of Vastu- sastra, which is not only the science of architecture engineering but also that of sculpture and painting. Accordingly all these three broad divisions of Vastu Sastra, namely Vastu, Silpa and Citra have been surveyed in both these Volumes.

The Vastu i.e. architecture being the subject matter of the first Volume and Silpa and Citra that of the second. Further again Vastu I its wider application has at least five principal branches namely Engineering, Town planning, Secular or civil architecture, Palace-architecture and Temple-architecture. It is in accordance with these broad topics of Vastu Sastra that this Volume has been divided into five principal parts namely Introductory, Town-planning, House-architecture and Temple-architecture.

From the Jacket:

Consciousness is the most intimate experience of life, the essence of life itself. Among the many spiritual traditions born and developed in India, one ancient philosophy - Kashmir Shaivism - has explored it completely.

Until now, Kashmir Shaivism was an esoteric field accessible only to a few scholars and other specialist. Here, for the first time, Swami Shankarananda, a self-realised spiritual master, presents the wisdom of this powerful tradition in a form that will delight and inspire all spiritual seekers. He explores the teachings in rich detail, elucidating ideas and meditative practices while drawing upon a vast canvas of many great beings, wisdom tradition and personal experience.

The Yoga of Kashmir Shaivism is a book that will transform you. It is a resource and guide towards investigating and deepening your own Consciousness.

About the Author:

Swami Shankarananda (Swamiji) grew up in Brooklyn, New York, and as a graduate of both Columbia and New York Universities, began a promising career in English Literature at Indiana University. However, in the late sixties, a dramatic turn of events profoundly altered the direction of his life.

In 1970, he traveled to India in search of a great teacher and a spiritual path. His search culminated in the meeting of the powerful and charismatic Baba Muktananda, under whom he studied for 12 years until Muktananda's death.

Swamiji is author of the Australian best-seller, Happy for No Good Reason, also published in India by Motilal Banarsidass. Other titles by Swamiji include a five-CD lectures series, The Yoga of Gurdjieff, and the audio and video series, Great Beings, including Volume I: The Wisdom of Anandmayi Ma.

From the Jacket

The Brhadaranyaka, the Great Forest, Upanisad is the revelation of the forest in the forest. For that is the truth about our life, the forest, where we find ourselves lost, with no hope of escape from the labyrinth that it is. We live in death and for death, that condition of our being. Can we ever imagine our life except as linked to death, linked in terms of struggle against it, struggle that we wage in vain? We are because death is, our life is a mere celebration of it. To it are we eternally wedded, to this sleep the eternal. As long as we do not perceive this truth about our life, as long as we do not join this celebration our life remains barren and a choking. And a chaos and confusion. In being this confusion and chaos lies our enlightenment, in being dead in life lies our immortality. This is all this Upanisad teaches us; in its denial of all that we are and know lies the true affirmation of our truth and being.

Volume 5 (in its two parts) brings to conclusion the author's contemplation of the revelatory part of the Prasthanatrayi. It has been a long and absorbing contemplation for him, elevating and ecstatic. It is hoped that the same spirit of elevation and ecstasy will accompany his contemplation of the Bhagavadgita and the Brahmasutras and that thoughtful minds will value that contemplation as they have valued his contemplation of the Upanisads.

Before his retirement in the year 2000, Som Gupta taught English at Kirori Mal College, University of Delhi.

Back of the Book

The Word Speaks to the Faustian Man has been acclaimed the world over not only as a masterly exposition and interpretation of the Upanisadic vision but also a work that contains in itself the seeds of a future philosophy. At once a work of thought, insight and experience this work has put a disturbing question mark against many an assumption of modern thought and civilization calling upon modern man to be still and silent instead of being thoughtful and communicative. An incisive critique of modern civilization and culture, the reader will find in the volumes of this work, a critique that has evoked deep appreciation from prominent thinkers and scholars such as Paul Ricoeur, Jean F. Lyotard, Raimundo Panikkar, J.N. Mohanty, Fred Dallmyr, Alex Wayman and other eminent scholars in the field of philosophy and Indology. The work has also received detailed reviews in eminent journals of philosophy like Philosophy East and West, Journal of Indian Council of Philosophical Research and Revue Philosophique. Interested readers will find excerpts from some of these reviews quoted in the covers of the preceding volumes of this much discussed, provocative and meditative work.

Foreword

The concept of holistic health acknowledges that a human being is-and must be related to as-body, mind, and spirit. This concept has become an increasingly popular topic of conversation in Western culture over the last two decades. I began my personal journey to understand and embody it in the late 1960s and have been involved in public education on the subject since the mid-1970s. What I have noticed over the years is the frequent mistaking of “alternative” healing for “holistic” healing. Alternative simply means a method not ordinarily used in conventional treatment. A doctor may add herbal or vitamin therapy to a patient’s treatment, thereby making it more gentle and less toxic (which is wonderful and needed) but still fail to take into consideration the patient’s state of mind and lifestyle, which are inevitably contributing to the present manifestation of “disease.”

Doctors may, through “alternative” treatment, be able to alter the body’s chemistry and eliminate the symptoms of disease, but have they righted the imbalance in the body, mind, and spirit? It that imbalance is not addressed, we are not aligned with who we really are, and disease in one form or another will manifest once again.

So when we speak about healing or good health, we must look deeper and more fully at ourselves and at our methods of treatment that we generally do in this “make it easy, make it quick, and if at all possible make it something someone else can do for me” society.

The Vedas are the oldest and most complete body of knowledge to address the who, what, and why of human existence. They have covered the “how to” (using the current vernacular) through healing and attunement methods, coming from the understanding that we are body, mind, and spirit, innately and unalterably dependent on the rest of creation.

In Ayurveda: A Life of Balance, Maya introduces the Ayurvedic diet with universal flavor and shows how to awaken ahamkara (the memory of who we really are) through the proper use of wholesome foods. By understanding our individual body types, and by using foods that best support and enhance each type, we are employing a powerful and essential method of attunement.

I am truly grateful to Maya and the handful of other Vedic scholars who continue to devote their lives to sharing this knowledge with the rest of the world-a world that is in great need and that, we hope, may finally be ready.

Ayurveda A Life of Balance

Forced by cancer to reexamine and redirect her life, Maya Tiwari left a highly successful New York design career and returned to her native India to study Ayurvedic medicine. Her book, a profound but practical testament to the healing power of balanced living, shows how Ayurveda’s ancient principles of health can help you achieve the highest levels of physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being.

The traditional form of medicine in India for more than five thousand years, Ayurveda relies primarily on the proper use of foods and herbs to maintain or restore the body’s natural state of balance. While Ayurvedic healing has in recent years become increasingly well known in the West, Maya Tiwari is the first author to provide us with a comprehensive working guide to Ayurveda as a way of life.

She expands the traditional number of body types (and their respective dietary requirements) from seven to ten and discusses the psychospiritual nature of the types-an area that no other Western author addresses. A comprehensive questionnaire enable you to determine your own body type, and extensive charts identify the attributes of specific foods and their place in your diet. Seasonal menus and recipes (all vegetarian) are keyed to each of the body types, allowing you to choose the foods and spices that are ideally suited to your constitution. When we eat seasonal, fresh foods according to Ayurvedic wisdom, we attune with our most essential natures and awaken ahamkara, the memory of who we really are.

Tiwari brings every feature of Ayurveda back to its true source-the health of the spirit. She shows wholesome foods and spiritual practices (known as sadhanas) of the hearth, home, garden, and community connect us with our primal memory of a time when human beings lived in harmony with all of nature. Performed with awareness and gratitude, sadhanas enhance the nourishing and healing properties of food and act as a catalyst to our innate capacity for self-healing.

“A very complete and authoritative manual on the Vedic principles of health and nutrition, written by a well-respected authority in the field. It will be of great benefit to the layperson and professional alike.”

About the Book

Book 'Saturn: The King Maker' unravels the king maker role of Saturn in addition to Saturn's significance in timing various vital events of life. 'Saturn: The King maker', an un parallel work on the mystiques of Saturn so far, contains 14 chapters. First two chapters deal with the introduction of Saturn as a member of the solar system and its astrological connotations. Much dreaded ruthlessness of Saturn is only a one sided picture and a fuller understanding of this Graha requires systemic study. Various information regarding Saturn, its significations, and occupations & diseases etc under Saturn's control are vividly discussed. Saturn in Puranic contexts makes an interesting reading.

Next two chapters describe in detail Saturn's placement in twelve houses and twelve signs. Introducing various dimensions of different houses of birth chart we proceed discussing the appropriate results of Saturn's position in different bhavas at the time of birth. The enigmatic Saturn renders modified results when placed in different signs or Rashis. The impact of Saturn in various signs is carefully studied. How the aspect of various planets on Saturn, and vice versa, change the results to amazing extent and how the malefic Saturn becomes benefic are the subject matter of these two important chapters.

The fifth chapter unravels the 'Different positions of Mysterious Saturn' which narrates Saturn in Ascendant and Retrograde profiles as well as brief discussion on the positions of Saturn in 12 houses: as many as 26 states of Saturn are described.

Next three chapters deal broadly with the transit of Saturn. The 6th chapter discusses about proven principles about transit of Saturn which can determine the time of marriage, accurately and exactly. The 7th chapter deals with the 'Nadi principles about Saturn's transit'; expertise in which can make one predict precisely the timing of events. And the 8th chapter 'Saturn the Great Timer' contains detail event-by-event analysis of lives of great personalities and contains various rules with regard to predicting the exact spell of time interspersed with examples to explain the rules propounded.

The chapter on 'Saturn: The King Maker' deals with crux of the theme, the most marvelous and amazing role of Saturn in elevating one to the position of King, minister, head of the state or of the industries. On the contrary, adverse disposition of Saturn brings fall from power, miseries and losses which is the point of discussion in the chapter Saturn in the 10th house: Fall from power.

Next 4 chapters shed light on the relationship of Saturn with other planets such as Sun and Jupiter which play an important role in deciding events related to marriage, progeny and profession. Thus, in totality, the book demystifies the commonly held view about Saturn's enigmatic character and describes at length its constructive role in molding the basic pattern of life. It is a must read to gain comprehensive knowledge about Saturn and to remove the myths about its malfeasance.

About the Author

Mrs. Mridula Trivedi, a Post Graduate from the University of Lacknow, graduated to become a very highly acclaimed astrology of international renown. Honour with ‘Doctor of Astrology’ by the world development Council in 1987, she did not look back in the march of adding further feathers to her cap. She was honoured with the title of ‘Ved Vyas’ by Spiritual and Astrological Research Institute, Lucknow in 2001. She was also awarded ‘the Best Astrologer and Best Writer of the Country’ by planets and forecast in 2007. She is associated Editor.

Mr. T.P. Trivedi, a retired engineer with U.P. Power Corporation Ltd., has dedicated his life to the promotion of excellence in astrology. Awards like 'Best Astrologer of India Award', 'Dr. Manorama Sharma Jyotish Puraskar' by Gopal Das Neeraj foundation are just two stray examples from a rather long list of awardsa bestowed on him. Based on his lifetime achievments, he has also been honoured with the most prestigious awards of uttat pradesh, Yash Bharati in 2015.

About the Book:

The Yajurveda Samhita or the prayer book of the Adhvaryu priest is recorded to have had as many as 101 recensions at the time of the grammarian Patanjali, out of which, only 5 have survived and are available at present, viz., Kathaka, Kapisthala, Maitrayani, Taittiriya, and Vajasaneyi, the first four belonging to the 'Black Yajurveda' and the fifth to what is designated as 'White Yajurveda'. The Vajasaneyi Samhita which takes its name from Yajnavalkya Vajasaneya, the chief teacher of this Veda, has come down in two slightly differing versions known as the Kanva and the Madhyandina Samhitas.

The Chief difference between the texts of the 'Black' and 'White' Yajurveda lies in the fact that the latter contains only the Mantras, i.e. the prayers and sacrificial formulae which the priest has to utter, while the former contains in addition a presentation of the sacrificial rites belonging to them as well as the Brahmana or theological discussion on the same.

The present volume contains the text belonging to the Madhyandina school of the White Yajurveda along with the commentaries of Uvata and Mahidhara well known as the Mantra-Bhasya and the Vedadipa-Bhasya respectively, preceded by a short Introduction in Sanskrit giving besides other things the traditional mythological explanation of the division of the Veda into 'Black' and 'White' etc.

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.

From the Jacket

This contemporary companion to the Bhagavad Gita addresses the heart of human yearning. T offers the possibility of transforming the battle of life into a path to Truth, a living process. Each chapter presents a road toward our inner, universal Self, bringing a deeper and wider perspective along the way. A psychological orientation invites the reader to move from abstract idea to individual insight. As the book proceeds, the relationship between the personal and the eternal gradually unfolds in an ever-expanding process of self-discovery.

Quotes from the great teachers are included in the text to inspire, uplift and help us cross over the sea of illusion.

Naina Lepes has been receiving inspiration and wisdom from the Bhagavad Gita since 1970, and studied Vedanta with Swami Chinmayananda. Her longtime guru is Sri Sathya Sai Baba. Other major influences in her life have been the work of G.I. Gurdjieff and C.G. Jung. Naina is the author of The Cat Guru, and for many years, she worked as a Jungian trained psychotherapist in New York.

Her formal education includes a degree in Music, an M.A. in Psychology, and a Ph. D. in Counseling. She was born in Fall River,

About the Book:

Vaisnavism : Contemporary Scholars Discuss the Gaudiya Tradition focuses on an ancient religious heritage in the light of modern scholarship. Though a series of lively conversations, Steven J. Rosen and twenty-five distinguished academics explore the many sides of Gaudiya Vaisnavism - its literature, historical development, theology and practice. Thoughtful and indeed illuminating perspectives emerge as the scholars reveal insights gained from years of research. In discussing subjects such as the nature of the Absolute, devotional poetry, sacred space, mystical states and sonic theology, the abundant beauty and profundity of this venerable East Indian tradition is brought to light.

"Steven Rosen has brought together an overview of a highly technical subject as interpreted by acknowledged experts in the field, thus informing further the already informed and, it is to be hoped, stimulating the uninformed to inform themselves of a highly rewarding system of thought and instructive slice of religious history."

- from the Foreword by Edward C. Dimock, Jr.,
University of Chicago

From the jacket

The Vedic Literature the most ancient product of the Aryan mind held in the highest esteem and regarded as the most sacred by the Hindus presents a panorama of the life of the ancient population of India in all its facets. The scared literature was subjected to analytical study for the first time in the recent centuries by European scholars mainly Germans the foremost among then being Herman Oldenberg His magnum opus-Die Religion des Veda first appeared in print in 1894 and in a revised edition in 1916. He made use of linguistic methods, ethnology and folklore in his exhaustive and penetrating study of the Vedic religion. This work has had a great impact on subsequent Vedic studies and has an abiding interest to the student of the Veda, as is amply evident from the fact that even after nearly a century of its first publication it continues to attract the attention of Vedic researchers and is very frequently sought for guidance and consultation by them, and here is the first ever English translation of this four classic

The work is complete in four chapter preceded by an introduction discussing in detail the source, viz, the Vedas Brahmanas and sutra. The first chapter deals with the Vedic gods and demons in general the second one with the individual gods such as Agni, Indra Vruna Mitra and others the evil demons the origin of the world and the divine and the moral worlds the third treats at length of the cult of sacrifice magic observances festivals prayer priests and the like and the fourth one of the dead, soul heaven and ell, ghosts fathers funeral rites and animism.

Author of the book

Hermann Oldenberg (1854-1920) is considered as one of the greatest Indologists of Germany. After studying classical and Indian philology in Gottingen ands Berlin he became university professor at Kiel and Berlin. He visited India in 1912-13. His contributions to Vedic and Buddhistic studies are vast. He translated the Dipavaqmsa rgveda and Grhyasutras into German.

Of his many books like Buddha sein Leben , sein Lehre, sein Gemeide, Die Lehre des Upanischadern und die Anfange des Buddhism Die Literature des alten Indiens among other Die Religion des Veda (1894) in most outstanding and oft-quoted work.

Shridhar B. Shrotri (b.1934) had his education at Pune. He was the first to have obtained a doctorate degree in Geman from an Indian University in 1965. He has also studies at Heideberg and Munich. He taught at rajaram college Kolhapur and M.E.S and fergusson colleges at pune before joining Karnatak University Dharwad in 1962 where he rose to the position of professor in the foreign languages Department in 1985. Dr. Shrotri has several research papers and translations to his credit.

From the Jacket:

Vimala Thakar gave a series of inspired talks on the Bhagavad Gita in three separate seminars, during 1992 and 1993 in Italy. To her Bhagavad Gita is very sacred because it deals with the organic wholeness of life; and the inbuilt complexity of life, It affirms the interplay between the micrecosm and macrocosm and persuadesus to remain united with the ultimate reality, not only to intellectual understanding, but through everything that we do, at every moment.

About the Author:

Vimala Thakar began her spiritual search at the tender age of five. As a young woman, she travelled and lectured for the Land Gifted Movement of Vinoba Bhave, an associate of Mahatma Gandhi. Her meetings with Krishnamurti, from 1956 to 1961, had a profound impact on her life. From the 1960s to the 1980s, she taught meditation retreats in thirty-five countries. She stopped travelling outside India in 1991, and now resides in Mount Abu, in Rajasthan.

Ganesa commands universal respect among the indigenous religious schools and sects of the Hindus, Jainas and Buddhists. He is a god who is unique in many ways--his peculiar physiognomy, his double character, as a vighnakarta (creator of obstacles) and as a vighnaharta (remover of obstacles). He is worshipped first to ensure success of all religious and secular functions and enterprieses. GAnesa is also the god of dance and music. The cult of Ganesa spread to various countries of Asia.

The rise of Ganesa to pre-eminence in the orthodox Hindu pantheon, as one of the panca devatas, is truly remarkable. it is an ancient version of mundane legend: from Log Cabin to White House.

There have been many studies of this god in recent years; this one is the most comprehensive, fully documented in original sources, textual and artistic, and profusely illustrated. It traces the origin and development of pauranika Ganesa, from pre-pauranika Vinayaka, a vighnakarta, into pauranika Ganesa, a vighnaharta analyses his distinctive features and studies his representation in art both in India and in the other countries of Asia. It seeks to unravel the enigma of a non-Vedic, non-epic and a non-Aryan god coming to occupy a place of honour in Hindu pantheon. The techniques adopted by the followers of Ganesa to promote his cult and status and the enduring results achieved make a fascinating study in 'PR' work.

About the Author:

Y. Krishnan (born 1922) M.A., LL.B is a scholar in Indology- Indian History, Religion, Philosophy and Art. He has published over 150 research papers on these topics in Journals of standing in India and abroad. These also cover the partition of India.

He had a long and distinguished record of service under the Government of India-in the Railways, Indian Administrative Service and the Audit & Accounts Departments from where he retired as Deputy Comptroller and Auditor General of India in 1980. He was a member of the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission from December 1988 to January 1995.

He has also published three books: Audit in India's Democracy; The Buddha Image: Its Origin and Development; The Doctrine of Karma: Its Origin and Development in Brahmanical, Buddhist and Jaina Traditions. At Present he is doing a book on India's partition.

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The Lord Krsna abandoned his earthly mistresses who then spent their days of separation pining for his return. This powerful theme found expression not only in myth, but also in the devotion and poetry of a religious culture which evolved in South India. From the fifth century A.D. the Tamils absorbed many elements from the classical traditions of the North, such as yoga, temple worship and Krsna myths, and the results were unique blends of the two civilizations. Viraha-bhakti, as the author styles this type of Krsna religion, imbued the theme of separation with erotic and ecstatic features and evolved as one of the highlights of Indian religion and culture. The present work is a detailed study of the multifarious origins of Viraha-bhakti in South India and its developments up to the point at which it entered the pan-Indian scene.

The study suggests a revision of the monolithic image of Indian religion implied in much scholarly literature. It differentiates a great variety of interacting traditions and milieux, and demonstrates the dynamism of Indian culture. By identifying a specific type of religion and reflecting on its significance, the author attempts, at the same time, to go beyond purely textual and historical considerations. Thus the book will be of interest to any student of Indian religion and culture.

About The Author

Friedhelm Hardy (1943-2004), was Professor of Indian Religions, teaching of King College, London. He was a linguist familiar with both classical and modern Indian languages. He was also the author of a prominent work The Religious Culture of India: Power, Love and Wisdom.

Foreword

The role of bhakti in India religion is well-known, and has been important from an early date onward. Bhakti manifests itself prominently in the Bhagavadgita, and scholars have debated whether it is already noticeable in even earlier texts. However, few readers had realized that there are different kinds of bhakti, that bhakti of the Bhagavadgita is not the same as the bhakti that finds expression in numerous more recent texts. This changed witht eh publication of Friedhelm Hardy’s Viraha-bhakti in 1983. Viraha-bhakti means “bhakti in sepration”, and this emotional form of bhakti is to be distinguished from the more intellectual bhakti that characterizes the Bhagavadgita. Hardy shows in this book how this emotional form of bhakti originated with the South Indian alvars, and only subsequently came to be adopted in the Sanskrit Bhagavata Purana and spread to North India.

Hardy’s Viraha-bhakti was landmark publication that has lost but little of its importance in the thirty years that have elapsed since its first publication. It is matter of pride and satisfaction that it is now included in the Hindu Tradition Series.

Although some aspects of the medieval bhakti movements are known or have been viewed by the historians from their own angles of vision, much remains to be known, understood and interpreted. The present volume, issued on the occasion of the Quincentenary of Mahaprabhu Sri Caitanya, is an attempt to understand a little more of the medieval bhakti movements of India. The contributors to the volume who have enthusiastically agreed to participate in this project are all specialists in their own fields and their valuable papers are expected to throw new light on many hitherto unknown or known features of the great historical movement, the far-reaching consequences of which are very much lively in the heart of the Indian masses even today. The contributors to this volume are Bimanbehari Majumdar, Niharranjan Ray, G.S. Chhabra, Manorama Kohli, G.V. Saroja, J.C. Jain, M.S. Ahluwalia, H.A. Qureshi, Manjula Bhattacharyya, Uma S. Deshpande, P.S. Mukharya, B.D. Gupta, Hafiz Md. Tahir Ali, N. Jagadesan, R. Champakalakshmi, S.K. Pathak, N. Subrahmanian, R. Meena, K.K. Kusuman, N.H. Kulkarnee, Prabhat Mukherjee, S.N. Sharma, Sarat Chandra Goswami, S. Dutta, N.N. Acharya, Bhaskar Chatterjee, Neal Delmonico, Sachin Majumdar, David Kopf and Pranabananda Jash. A detailed bibliography containing list of books and articles used by the contributors in preparing their papers and also other works pertaining to the bhakti concept has also been supplied. This handy volume has been edited by N.N. Bhattacharyya with an informative introduction. Printed Pages: 424.

About the Author:

Prof. Narendra Nath Bhattacharyya teaches in the Department of Ancient Indian History and Culture, University of Calcutta. Thought religious history in his forte he works at ease in diverse branches of ancient Indian history and civilization.

Foreword

It is owing to the grace of Mahaprabhu Sri Caitanya that we have been able to bring out the present volume on the occasion of his quincentenary commemoration in our humble capacity. We express our sincere gratitude to the scholars-all eminent in their own fields -who contributed their learned articles to this volume at our request, to the editor who devoted all his time and energy to make the project a grand success, to Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers, New Delhi who came forward to publish the work on our behalf and to those who helped us in many ways. At the same time we place on record our deep sorrow at the death of two of the contri- butors-Prof. Prabhat Mukherjee of Bhuvaneswar and Prof. Sarat Chandra Goswami of Guwahati-and our appreciation of the services rendered by them to the cause of this volume.

From the Back of the Book

Maharsi Vedavyasa was staying in his hermitage at Badarikasrama. One day the celestical hermit Narada turned up there in the course of his usual wanton rambles.the great Vyasa welcomed him with due rities and on his taking seat asked: "Prophet of Gods! The soul of man seeks to get free from the hold of pleasure and pain and craves for deliverance from the bondage of the world. But the path of Action does not leaddirectly to the goal. Knowledge of course does nevertheless without the leaven of Devotion it can achievevery little in substances. Devotion is the only way of attaining salvation; all the others have importance only insofar as they are auxiliary to it. Therefore I humbly ask you to explain to me the doctrine of Devotion." The divine Naradaat once surveyed the mind of Vyasa and replied, "Great sage! You have come down on earth for the redemption of mankind. Your present enquiry has been prompted by that desire alone. By your disciple Jaimini, you have already in the Purvamimamsa discoursed upon the problem of Action, and you have yourself completed the enquiry into the prpblem of knowledgein the Uttaramimamsa. And now you have taken up the problem of Devotion. I am going to explain it. But its full explanation will be given by you in your Srimadbhagavatam which will be a nature of a commentary upon your Brahmasutras. My sutras will be read as such an explanation of your very short description of Devotion given in the Uttaramimamsa."

So saying Narada delivered a dissourse on Devotion in eighty-four aphorisms, the collection of which forms this short treatise, known as Narada Bhaktisutram( Bhaktisutras of Narada).

In the Brahma Sutras of Badarayana, we find what is perhaps the most influential work in the history of Hindu Theology, given that the Brahma Sutras served as the basis for the theologies of all major Hindu theologians, including Sankara, Ramanuja, Nimbarka,Vallabha, and Madhva. In this work Dr. Adams examines the first of the Brahma Sutras four sections in an attempt to identify their original meaning and the theology that Badarayana attempted to express.

About the Author

George C. Adams, Jr. was born in Danville, Pennsylvania in 1953. Dr. Adams holds a B.A. degree in Sociology from Susquehanna University, and the M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in Theology from Fordham University, where he studied History of Religions and Hindu Theology under Dr. Jose Pereira. Currently Dr. Adams is an Instructor in the Evening Program at Susquehanna University, where he teaches courses in Religion and Philosophy. Dr. Adams' interests include Hindu Theology, comparative studies, and the relationship between religion and psychology.

ABOUT THE BOOK:

This book treats two representative Hindu rituals of contemporary India, Puja (offering service) and Samskara (initiation rituals at important occasions of life). amskara rites are performed at significant junctures of an individual`s life, from birth to death, by the individual`s family. Puja rites, rather than being performed in relation to the life cycle of an individual in a family, are more deeply related to the annual rituals of the cult to which an individual or the person`s family belongs. Persons may go to a temple and request priests to perform puja rites, or they may perform them themselves at home.

For people living in India, Puja and Samskara are not at all uncommon. Puja rites are performed everywhere-at temples, in private homes, on street corners-and although in recent times families observing all the traditional Samskara rites have declined in number, almost all Hindu families still perform the major Samskaras. it is difficult, however, for those living outside India to know how these rites are performed. Hence, this book presents a large number of photographs that enable readers to gain an accurate grasp of them and indicates the place of ritual in the total structure of religion.

The purpose of this book is to throw some light on the originality of the Concept of Samskara in which ritual, psychological, and philosophical aspects are intermingled. Keeping in mind the various implications of the word in the Hindu Darsanas as well as in Buddhist thought, some relevant comparisons are drawn with Western Philosophy and Psychoanalysis.

A review of texts and contexts shows that in domains as different as Rituals, Anthropology, Logic, Epistemology, Psychology, Ethics, Soteriological Philosophy, the concept of Samskara works like a universal key in the mind of Indian authors. The enquiry in this book based on Sanskrit and Pali texts helps to discern its denotation, connotation, evaluations.

The word Samskara applies not only to the Hindu Life-cycle perfective rites which imprint the psyche, but also to all sorts of "psycho-physical compositions", dynamic traces and tendencies, predispositions, habits, traits of character. These morally qualified residuelle impressions: bodily, vocal, mental, cause of memory and dreams, condition and encumber the psyche or subtle body. Although beneficial on the pragmatic level, present in instincts till refined intelligence, samskaras are considered to be obstacles in the path of deliverance (moksa), specially when, appearing as blind urges or unconscious drives. Hence the role played by samskaras, (explaining the inexplicable), in the enigmatic psycho-cosmological register of the Law of karman and the doctrine of samsara. Yoga born anti-samskaras, traceless indeed, help in de-conditioning and dis-encumbering the psyche. The book concludes that samskaras are factors of cohesion, liaison, intelligibility, mediation and continuity in space and time, mainly, factors of bondage and release.

About the Author

Mr. Lakshmi Kapani Docteur es lettres et science humaines (Parissorbonne 1987) is (Emeritus) professor of Indian and comparative philosophy at the paris X-Nanterre university.

About the Book:

Manu is variously referred to as the father of human race, as one of the ancient sages, as having established fire, as a semi-divine being who received from God Himself the laws and regulations, as a king in the Krta-yuga, as the author of a work on Arthasastra. In the Manu Smrti Manu is referred to as a king.

Manu's work has been held in high esteem. The work of Manu is an epitome of the ancient culture of India.

Comprising twelve chapters, the Manu Smrti deals with the usual Smrti topics which can be divided into four classes, viz. Acara, Prayascitta, Vyavahara and Rajadharma.

Kulluka's commentary combines the merits of brevity and lucidity. It is by far the most well-known and most widely read.