The image of Yama, the god of death in Hindu mythology, has come to have many variants. Dr. Merh's study tries to capture these against their essential literary settings to explore all possible traits of Yama's personality. In the Hindu pantheon, Yama holds a unique place. A counterpart, in the indigenous tradition, of Avestan Yima, Egyptian Osiris or Greek Pluto, he inspires terror in the heart of an average mortal : not only owing to his overlordship of the abode of the dead, but also for his identification with death itself. Yama's image in Hindu mythology, however, has come to have full many variants which Dr. Merh's study tries to capture against their essential literary settings. Based on the prodigious mass of India's old-world scriptural literature - the Vedas, Samhitas, Brahmanas, Aranyakas and Upanishads; besides the puranic texts, the book meticulously explores all possible traits of Yama's personality, highlighting how the mythical view of this glorious, other-world god passes through a striking change over the millennia between the Rigveda and the later Puranas. Unfolding the deity's Vedic and Puranic descriptions respectively in part 1 and part 2 of the book, the author focusses specially on Yama, the creator, preacher, the philosopher, the law-giver, the punisher and above all, on his role as an eschatologist. Invaluable to the scholars of Indology, Hindu mythology and comparative religion.

Yama: The Glorious Lord of the Other World

Politics & Social Sciences

Kusum P. Merh

Philosophy

D.K. Print World

Fundamentals of Indian Philosophy

Indian philosophy reflects some of the earliest thought-traditions in human history. Its foundations can be traced to ancient minds and their capacity for insatiable curiosity and constant meditation. The Indian thinkers of old aimed their pragmatic philosophies at not just the satisfaction of intellectual curiosity or pursuit of theoretical truths but actually the assimilation of intellectually discerned and established truths into one s own personality for a life of freedom and enlightenment. This is true of modern Indian philosophers, like Sri Aurobindo and Dr. Radhakrishnan, as well. Fundamentals of Indian Philosophy reflects the vastness and richness of this philosophic tradition in a comprehensive and all-embracing yet compact presentation that lays bare the essentials of Indian philosophy. Dr. R. Puligandla takes special care to emphasise the methods, temper and goals of Indian philosophy even while delving into the specificities. All the major schools of the philosophic tradition are objectively and thoroughly analysed the Carvaka materialism, Jainism, Buddhism, Yoga, Vedanta among them. The author details the undeniably bold and original ideas of the Indian thinkers that awe the reader at times with their brilliant insight and element of truth in an approach sincerely aimed at an all-round understanding of the basics of Indian philosophy. This survey not only introduces the readers to issues and answers but also goes to provide the necessary motivation and resources for further study. Complete with an extensive index and a glossary of Sanskrit terms, this text book would prove to be invaluable for students keen to acquire a thorough grounding in the subject. It will also serve as an indispensable reference book for professors and scholars of Indian philosophy.

R. Puligandla

RAMAKRISHNA PULIGANDIA

PULIGANDIA, RAMAKRISHNA

Scholarly comparative study, essays by ten specialists. wide range of perspectives, balanced. seminar proceedings

Mysticism in Shaivism and Christianity

Religion & Spirituality

Bettina Bäumer

Baümer, Bettina

Hinduism

Tibetan Buddhism has held a place of its own in the Buddhist tradition, having preserved and evolved the religious culture of the Vajrayana, the final phase of Buddhism in India. Within that, the Tibetan Tantric belief has a unique significance and it has made a memorable contribution to the literature on Tibetan Buddhism. This authoritative work deals with the theory and practice of Tibetan Buddhism in a comprehensive manner. It presents a study of Tibetan Tantricism beginning with an account of the historical, religious and cultural evolution of Tibetan Buddhism and delving into the intricacies of practice of the religion. Dr. Krishna Ghosh discusses the many deities of the tradition as representing a wide range of religious experience from the primitive to the sublime. She lays bare the complex vision of Tibetan Tantric Buddhist philosophy and sadhana, clearing it of the obscurantism associated with the belief system for long. The work abounds in illustrations line drawings and photographs and has numerous references to original works by Tibetan and other scholars. The book is written in an easy-accessible style to allow a broad range of readers to familiarise themselves with Tibetan Tantric Buddhism. Its penetrating insights into the subject would make it an invaluable work for scholars and practitioners of the tradition.

Tibetan Tantric Vision

Krishna Ghosh Della Santina

Buddhism

Textiles from Laos, Lan Na and the Isan are prized for their artistic brilliance and aesthetic beauty. They speak volumes on a weaving tradition that has evolved through centuries and shaped the socio-cultural life of the people associated with it. This book studies the iconography of the design elements typically employed by craftspersons of textiles from these areas: it deals with their art of weaving, various textile forms to be found in the region and the suitable and inherently powerful motifs woven. With numerous splendid illustrations of the designs, it involves study of design elements on articles of daily use as well as those used for ceremonial purposes and the kind of forms and iconography depicted -- like ancestor figures, animal and plant forms, water creatures, objects used in ceremonies and geometric forms. Viewing Buddhism as the prime influence upon the objects though Hinduism is also an important referent, it explores the symbols the design elements involve and their many meanings and the dimensions they encompass -- their fertility-related, religious and universal associations, for instance. The designs considered in the study are based upon the square grid and the design elements are shown in the typical graph form employed by weavers. It also gives Indian (Sanskrit) and Thai equivalents for English terms of plant and animal species and clarifies a number of terms all of which make this painstakingly-conducted research a thorough work on the subject. The book will be very useful to scholars of Textile designs, Buddhist art and culture; and the cultural traditions of South-east Asia.

Buddhist Textiles of Laos: Lan Na the Isan

Crafts, Hobbies & Home

Fredrick William Bunce

Crafts & Hobbies

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