Download or read book Folk Deities and Matrika Cult of South West Bengal written by Bina Kumari Sarma and published by . This book was released on 2004 with total page 160 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Books Closely At Folk Deities Of South Bengal, Particularly Manifestation Of Mother Goddess In The 2 Districts-Bankura And Purulia. Based On Field Work And A Review Of Exiting Literature. Has 7 Chapters, The Best Being On Conclusions.
Download or read book The Changing World of Caste and Hierarchy in Bengal written by Sudarshana Bhaumik and published by Taylor & Francis. This book was released on 2022-08-26 with total page 317 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book challenges the prevalent assumptions of caste, hierarchy and social mobility in pre-colonial and colonial Bengal. It studies the writings of colonial ethnographers, Orientalist scholars, Christian missionaries and pre-colonial literary texts like the Mangalkavyas to show how the concept of caste emerged and argues that the jati order in Bengal was far from being a rigidly reified structure, but one which had room for spatial and social mobility. The volume highlights the processes through which popular myths and beliefs of the lower caste orders of Bengal were Sanskritized. It delineates the linkages between sedantized peasant culture and the emergence of new agricultural castes in colonial Bengal. Moreover, the author discusses a wide spectrum of issues like marginality and hierarchy, the spread of Brahmanical hegemony, the creation of deities and the process of Sanskritization, popular Saivism, the cult of Manasa in Bengal and the revolt of 1857 and the caste question. Rich in archival sources, this book will be an essential read for scholars and researchers of colonial history, Indian history, political sociology, caste studies, exclusion studies, cultural studies, social history, cultural history and South Asian studies, especially those interested in undivided Bengal.
Download or read book Fantasy Fictions from the Bengal Renaissance written by Abanindranath Tagore and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2018-06-09 with total page 392 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Fantasy Fictions from the Bengal Renaissance presents two masterpieces of Bengali literature by Rabindranath Tagore’s nephews, Abanindranath Tagore and Gaganendranath Tagore. The Make-Believe Prince is the delightful story of a king, his two wives, a trickster monkey, a witch, and a helper from another world who is not a ‘fairy godmother’. Abanindranath deploys traditional children’s rhymes and paints exquisite word-pictures in his original rendering of a tale which has its roots in Bengali folktale materials in various genres. Toddy-Cat the Bold sees a group of brave comrades seek help from a young boy to rescue the son of their leader from the Two-Faced Rakshasa of the forest. Here, a more numinous supernatural helper appears. Inspired by Lewis Carroll’s Alice books, it presents a comic, exciting, and mysterious journey quite unlike Carroll’s, with many traditional local touches and an unexpected ending.
Download or read book Transformations and Transfer of Tantra in Asia and Beyond written by István Keul and published by Walter de Gruyter. This book was released on 2012-01-27 with total page 545 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The essays in this volume, written by specialists working in the field of tantric studies, attempt to trace processes of transformation and transfer that occurred in the history of tantra from around the seventh century and up to the present. The volume gathers contributions on South Asia, Tibet, China, Mongolia, Japan, North America, and Western Europe by scholars from various academic disciplines, who present ongoing research and encourage discussion on significant themes in the growing field of tantric studies. In addition to the extensive geographical and temporal range, the chapters of the volume cover a wide thematic area, which includes modern Bengali tantric practitioners, tantric ritual in medieval China, the South Asian cults of the mother goddesses, the way of Buddhism into Mongolia, and countercultural echoes of contemporary tantric studies.
Download or read book Royal Mughal Ladies and Their Contributions written by Soma Mukherjee and published by Gyan Books. This book was released on 2001 with total page 302 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The present study deals with the royal Mughal ladies in details and is concerned with their achievements and contributions which till today form a part of rich cultural heritage. It provides a detailed account of the life and contributions of the royal Mughal ladies from the times of Babar to Aurangzeb's, with special emphasis on the most prominent among them.
Download or read book Change Continuity and Complexity written by Jae-Eun Shin and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2018-05-30 with total page 289 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Mahāvidyās are the representative Tantric feminine pantheon consisting of ten goddesses. It is formed by divergent religious strands and elements: the mātṛ and yoginī worship, the cult of Kālī and Tripurasundarī, Vajrayāna Buddhism, Jain Vidyādevīs, Śaiva and Vaiṣṇava faith, Śrīvidyā, the Brahmanical strand of Puranic traditions, etc. This volume is the first attempt to explore the historical process, through which these traditions culminated in the Mahāvidyā cult and the goddesses with different origins and contradictory attributes were brought into a cluster, with special reference to socio-political changes in the lower Gaṅgā and Brahmaputra Valley between the 9th and 15th centuries CE. Based on a close analysis of Purāṇas, Tantras and inscriptional evidence, and on extensive field research on archaeological remains as well as sacred sites, Jae-Eun Shin discusses the two trajectories of the Mahāvidyās in eastern Śākta traditions. Each led to the systematization of Daśamahāvidyās in a specific way: one, as ten manifestations of Durgā upholding dharma in the cosmic dimension, and the other, as ten mandalic goddesses bearing magical powers in the actual sacred site. Their attributes and characteristics have neither been static nor monolithic, and the mode of worship prescribed for them has changed in a dialectical religious process between Brahmanical and Tantric traditions of the region. This is the definitive work for anyone seeking to understand goddess cults of South Asia in general and the history of eastern Śākta traditions in particular. To aid study, the volume includes images, diagrams and maps. Please note: Taylor & Francis does not sell or distribute the Hardback in India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.
Download or read book Power Places of Kathmandu written by and published by Inner Traditions. This book was released on 1995-09-01 with total page 144 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Award-winning photographer Kevin Bubriski captures in stunning detail the sacred places of Nepal's Kathmandu Valley. Noted scholar Keith Dowman provides history and commentary on the significance of the sites.
Download or read book Vicissitudes of the Goddess written by Sree Padma and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2013-09-17 with total page 382 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book provides a detailed history of Hindu goddess traditions with a special focus on the local goddesses of Andhra Pradesh, past and present. The antiquity and the evolution of these goddess traditions are illustrated and documented with the help of archaeological reports, literary sources, inscriptions and art. Tracing the symbols and images of goddess into the brahmanical (Saiva and Vaisnava), Buddhist, and Jaina religious traditions, the book argues effectively how and with what motivations goddesses and their symbolizations were appropriated and transformed. The book also examines the evolution of popular Hindu goddesses such as Durga and Kali, discussing their tribal and agricultural backgrounds. It also deals extensively with how and in what circumstances women are deified and shows how these deified women cults share characteristics with the village goddesses.
Download or read book The Defining Moments in Bengal written by Sabyasachi Bhattacharya and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2014-05-27 with total page 553 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This work explores some of the constitutive elements in the life and mind of Bengal in the twentieth century. The author addresses some frequently unasked questions about the history of modern Bengal. In what way was twentieth-century Bengal different from 'Renaissance' Bengal of the late-nineteenth century? How was a regional identity consciousness redefined? Did the lineaments of politics in Bengal differ from the pattern in the rest of India? What social experiences drove the Muslim community's identity perception? How did Bengal cope with such crises as the impact of World War II, the famine of 1943 and the communal clashes that climaxed with the Calcutta riots of 1946? The author has chosen a significant period in the history of the region and draws on a wealth of sources archival and published documents, mainstream dailies, a host of rare Bengali magazines, memoirs and the literature of the time to tell his story. Looking closely at the momentous changes taking place in the region's economy, politics and socio-cultural milieu in the historically transformative years 1920-47, this book highlights myriad issues that cast a shadow on the decades that followed, arguably till our times.
Download or read book The N B P Culture of Eastern India written by Durga Basu and published by . This book was released on 2005 with total page 240 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book A Survey of Jainism and Jaina Art of Eastern India written by Devayani Mitra Dutta and published by Spotlight Poets. This book was released on 2004 with total page 172 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This Study Proposes To Find Out The Infrastructure Of Jain History In Eastern India, Especially Bengal, From The Earliest Times To Mid-14Th Century A.D., Based On The Available Sculptural Materials.
Download or read book Literary History of Sanskrit Buddhism from Winternitz Sylvain Levi Huber written by Gushtaspshah Kaikhushro Nariman and published by Motilal Banarsidass Publ.. This book was released on 1972 with total page 428 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The World of Courtesans written by Moti Chandra and published by International Book Distributors. This book was released on 1973 with total page 272 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: On the institution of the courtesan and its role in ancient and medieval Indian society.
Download or read book Yaksha Cult and Iconography written by R. N. Misra and published by . This book was released on 1981 with total page 286 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Study on a class of Hindu demigods.
Download or read book Philosophy of Gorakhnath written by Akshaya Kumar Banerjea and published by Motilal Banarsidass. This book was released on 2017-01-01 with total page 397 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume contains the essence of the writings and teachings of Mahayogi Gorakhnath. It is well pointed out that while the ultimate object of the search is the same for a Yogi and a philosopher, their modes of approach are different, the latterês being intellectual and the formerês intuitive and spiritual. The task of a Yogi does not require any subtle intellectual speculation or the framing of hypotheses and theories. The quest of the Yogi is a direct spiritual experience of truth on a high plane of consciousness. The highest state of Samadhi attained by the Yogi is neither purely subjective nor objective. It transcends both categories and it is an integrated experience beyond formal description. Such a transcendent state of consciousness is alone called Samadhi. This book analyses in detail the nature of Samadhi Experience. The term –Experience” is perhaps inaccurate because, in this state of Samadhi, there is no relation between subject and object, the experiencer and the experienced. It is the fulfilment of life as described in the Yogasutras. The Yogi who comes back from Samadhi may not have attained Kaivalya or Moksha, but he is illuminated by his experience. If he assumes the role of a teacher or preacher, he gives expression to his experience in such forms as may be easily intelligible to the people at large. Gorakhnath was a Maha-Yogi. The cult of the Kanphata Yogis is a definite unite within Hinduism, and its study is essential for understanding this phase of the religious life of India. the book is divided into three sections. The first two sections comprising chapters 1 - 13 deal with the cult and history of this sec. the third section containing chapters 14 - 16 opens with the Sanskrit Text Goraksastaka and its English rendering and annotations. The book is fully documented. It has a preface, Glossary, Bibliography, Plates and General Index. This book is an attempt to present a systematic and consistent account of the philosophical background of the spiritual culture associated with the names of Yogi Gorakhnath and other adepts of the Natha school.
Download or read book Bihar Through the Ages written by Ritu Chaturvedi and published by Sarup & Sons. This book was released on 2007 with total page 398 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Across the Himalayan Gap written by Tan Chung and published by Gyan Publishing House. This book was released on 1998-12 with total page 608 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An anthology of 40 Indian authors that parades various Indian perspectives on China, her civilization, history, society and development. It is a fruition of a project launched by the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA) where Sino-Indian studies is a special window. A scholarly work.
