Tyagaraja (1767-1847) is undoubtedly South India's most celebrated musician-saint. His songs, remarkable for their beauty as well as for their sheer quantity, have been a source of inspiration to countless generations of Hindus. This study attempts to deepen our understanding of Tyagaraja's life and lyrics by providing fresh insights into the meaning this saint holds for South Indians. For the first time in Tyagaraja scholarship, the saint's life and works have been contextualized within a historical, social, and cultural framework. The book reconstructs the Maratha reign in the Kaveri delta in a comprehensive manner, and tries to establish links between Tyagaraja's works and the troubled history of this region. The volume also explores Tyagaraja's accomplishments as a composer, and contains faithful and lively translations in English of one hundred sixty of Tyagaraja's lyrics.

Tyagaraja: Life and Lyrics

Arts & Photography

Jackson, William J.

Music

Oxford University Press

Tyagaraja (1767-1847) is undoubtedly South India's most celebrated musician-saint. His songs, remarkable for their beauty as well as for their sheer quantity, have been a source of inspiration to countless generations of Hindus. This study attempts to deepen our understanding of Tyagaraja's life and lyrics by providing fresh insights into the meaning this saint holds for South Indians. For the first time in Tyagaraja scholarship, the saint's life and works have been contextualized within a historical, social, and cultural framework. The book reconstructs the Maratha reign in the Kaveri delta in a comprehensive manner, and tries to establish links between Tyagaraja's works and the troubled history of this region. The volume also explores Tyagaraja's accomplishments as a composer, and contains faithful and lively translations in English of 160 of Tyagaraja's lyrics.

Tyāgarāja: Life and Lyrics

Biographies & Memoirs

Arts & Literature

Songs of Three Great South Indian Saints

Jackson's new book looks at the life and songs of Annamacharya, Purandaradasa, and Kanakadasa. It provides biographical and critical essays on the singer-saints along with fresh translations of their songs, and general introduction, and an essay on Bhakti literature.

Jackson's new book looks at the life and songs of Annamacharya, Purandaradasa, and Kanakadasa. It provides biographical and critical essays on the singer-saints along with fresh translations of their songs, and general introduction, and an essay on Bhakti literature.

The book explores the religious imagination of the old Vijaynagar empire by investigating the culture of bhakti and the visionary experiences of bhakti saints.

Vijayanagara Visions: Religious Experience and Cultural Creativity in a South Indian Empire

Literature & Fiction

History & Criticism

"Fractal" is a term coined by mathematician Benoit Mandelbrot to denote the geometry of nature, which traces inherent order in chaotic shapes and processes. Fractal concepts are part of our emerging vocabulary and can be useful in identifying patterns of human behavior, culture, and history, while enhancing our understanding of the nature of consciousness.
According to William J. Jackson, the more one studies fractals, the more apparent their connections to the humanities become. In the recursive patterns of religious music, in temple architecture in India, in cathedral structures in Europe and America, in the imagery of religious literature depicting infinity and abundance, and in poetic descriptions of the nature of consciousness, fractal-like configurations are pervasive. Recognition of this structure, which is also found in social organizations and ritual symbolism, requires only that one develop "an eye for fractals" by studying the work of researchers and observing nature. One then begins to see that the separation of humanities and science is convenient oversimplification, not an ultimate fact. Includes a DVD of animated fractals.

Heaven's Fractal Net: Retrieving Lost Visions in the Humanities

Politics & Social Sciences

Philosophy

Indiana University Press

"Fractal" is a term coined by mathematician Benoit Mandelbrot to denote the geometry of nature, which traces inherent order in chaotic shapes and processes. Fractal concepts are part of our emerging vocabulary and can be useful in identifying patterns of human behavior, culture, and history, while enhancing our understanding of the nature of consciousness.According to William J. Jackson, the more one studies fractals, the more apparent their connections to the humanities become. In the recursive patterns of religious music, in temple architecture in India, in cathedral structures in Europe and America, in the imagery of religious literature depicting infinity and abundance, and in poetic descriptions of the nature of consciousness, fractal-like configurations are pervasive. Recognition of this structure, which is also found in social organizations and ritual symbolism, requires only that one develop "an eye for fractals" by studying the work of researchers and observing nature. One then begins to see that the separation of humanities and science is convenient oversimplification, not an ultimate fact. Includes a DVD of animated fractals.

The Vijayanagara Empire flourished in South India between 1336 and 1565. Conveying the depth and creativity of Hindu religious and literary expression during that time, Vijayanagara Voices explores some of the contributions made by poets, singer-saints, and philosophers. Through translations and discussions of their lives and times, Jackson presents the voices of these cultural figures and reflects on the concerns of their era, looking especially into the vivid images in their works and their legends. He examines how these images convey both spiritual insights and physical experiences with memorable candour. The studies also raise intriguing questions about the empire's origins and its response to Muslim invaders, its 'Hinduness', and reasons for its ultimate decline. Vijayanagara Voices is a book about patterns in history, literature and life in South India. By examining the culture's archetypal displays, by understanding the culture in its own terms, and by comparing associated images and ideas from other cultures, this book offers unique insights into a rich and influential period in Indian history.

Vijayanagara Voices: Exploring South Indian History and Hindu Literature

History

Asia

Routledge

New Jerseyans in the Civil War: For Union and Liberty

The Civil War divided New Jersey just as it did the nation. As a small state sandwiched between two large and powerful neighbors, New Jersey had always enthusiastically supported the creation of a strong central government. On the other hand, many New Jersey citizens did not share the anti-slavery sentiments of the North; they supported property rights of slave owners and believed in the natural inferiority of blacks. Subsequently, when southern states began to secede from the Union to form the Confederacy, New Jerseyans were left divided and confused.
William J. Jackson examines the ironies, paradoxes, and contradictions that characterized New Jersey's unique historical role in the war. This is the only book to incorporate social and political history with that of military history and strategy. Civil War aficionados and historians will also welcome Jackson's analysis of the participation of New Jersey African Americans on the home front and in the military.

Americas

Rivergate Books

Saikrishnalila: Tales of the li'l butterthief: a play in verse based largely on stories from Shri Sathya Sai Baba's discourses

Birth Day Pub. Co

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Jackson, William J.. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Jackson, William J.

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Jackson, William J.. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Tyagaraja: Life and Lyrics

Tyāgarāja: Life and Lyrics

Songs of Three Great South Indian Saints

Songs of Three Great South Indian Saints

Vijayanagara Visions: Religious Experience and Cultural Creativity in a South Indian Empire

Heaven's Fractal Net: Retrieving Lost Visions in the Humanities

Heaven's Fractal Net: Retrieving Lost Visions in the Humanities

Vijayanagara Voices: Exploring South Indian History and Hindu Literature

New Jerseyans in the Civil War: For Union and Liberty

Saikrishnalila: Tales of the li'l butterthief: a play in verse based largely on stories from Shri Sathya Sai Baba's discourses