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Women’s Authority and Leadership in a Hindu Goddess Tradition

2017-02-28
Women’s Authority and Leadership in a Hindu Goddess Tradition

Author: Nanette R. Spina

Publisher: Springer

ISBN: 9781137589095

Category: Religion

Page: 327

View: 181

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This book investigates women’s ritual authority and the common boundaries between religion and notions of gender, ethnicity, and identity. Nanette R. Spina situates her study within the transnational Melmaruvathur Adhiparasakthi movement established by the Tamil Indian guru, Bangaru Adigalar. One of the most prominent, defining elements of this tradition is that women are privileged with positions of leadership and ritual authority. This represents an extraordinary shift from orthodox tradition in which religious authority has been the exclusive domain of male Brahmin priests. Presenting historical and contemporary perspectives on the transnational Adhiparasakthi organization, Spina analyzes women’s roles and means of expression within the tradition. The book takes a close look at the Adhiparasakthi society in Toronto, Canada (a Hindu community in both its transnational and diasporic dimensions), and how this Canadian temple has both shaped and demonstrated their own diasporic Hindu identity. The Toronto Adhiparasakthi society illustrates how Goddess theology, women's ritual authority, and “inclusivity” ethics have dynamically shaped the identity of this prominent movement overseas. Based on years of ethnographic fieldwork, the volume draws the reader into the rich textures of culture, community, and ritual life with the Goddess.

Sacred Marriages

2008-06-23
Sacred Marriages

Author: Martti Nissinen

Publisher: Penn State Press

ISBN: 9781575065724

Category: History

Page: 556

View: 237

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The title of this volume, Sacred Marriages, consciously plays with the traditional concept of sacred marriage, but the plural form, “sacred marriages,” gives the reader an idea that something more is at stake here than a monomaniacal idea of manifestations deriving from a single prototype. Following the guidelines of one of the contributors, Ruben Zimmermann, the editors tentatively define “sacred marriage” as a “real or symbolic union of two complementary entities, imagined as gendered, in a religious context.” “Sacred marriages” (plural), then, refers to various expressions of this kind of union in different cultures that seek to overcome, to cite Zimmermann again, “the great dualism of human and cosmic existence.” The subtitle indicates that the contributors are primarily interested in different aspects of the divine-human sexual metaphor—that is, the imagining and reenactment of a gendered relationship between the human and divine worlds. This metaphor, which is essentially about relationship rather than sexual acts, can find textual, ritual, mythical, and social expressions in different times and places. Indeed, the sacred marriage ritual itself should be considered not a manifestation of the “sacralized power of sexuality experienced in sexual intercourse” but one way of objectifying the divine-human sexual metaphor.

Hindu Goddesses

2009-07-03
Hindu Goddesses

Author: Lynn Foulston

Publisher: Liverpool University Press

ISBN: 9781782847205

Category: Religion

Page: 306

View: 131

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Explores the diversity of Hindu goddesses and the variety of ways in which they are worshipped. Although they undoubtedly have ancient origins, Hindu goddesses and their worship is still very much a part of the fabric of religious engagement in India today. This book offers an introduction to a complex and often baffling field of study.

Hosea 2

2005
Hosea 2

Author: Brad E. Kelle

Publisher: BRILL

ISBN: 9789004146693

Category: Religion

Page: 371

View: 222

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The complex and, at times, violent metaphorical discourse of Hosea 2 has elicited a variety of interpretive approaches. This study explores the text from the perspective of rhetorical criticism. The classical conception of rhetoric as the art of persuasion and the function of metaphor within persuasive discourses and social settings correlate with the oracular characteristics of Hosea 2 and illuminate its use of specific metaphors. A reading of Hosea 2 from this perspective proposes that the prophets of Israel may have functioned in a manner similar to the orators of ancient Greece, who delivered extended rhetorical discourses designed to discern meaning in contemporary events and to persuade audiences. This study offers a distinctively political reading of Hosea 2 that explores the text as a metaphorical and theological commentary on the political and religious dynamics in Israel at the close of the Syro-Ephraimitic War (731-730 BCE). "Paperback edition is available from the Society of Biblical Literature (www.sbl-site.org)"

Goddesses Who Rule

2000-09-21
Goddesses Who Rule

Author: Elisabeth Benard

Publisher: Oxford University Press

ISBN: 9780195352948

Category: Religion

Page: 272

View: 438

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Goddesses often are labeled as one-dimensional forces of nature or fertility. In examining a number of goddesses whose primary role is sovereignty, this volume reveals the rich diversity of goddess traditions. Drawn from a variety of cultural and historical settings, the goddesses described here include Inanna of ancient Sumer, Oshun of Nigeria, and Cihuacoatl of pre-historical America.

Meeting God

1999-01-01
Meeting God

Author:

Publisher: Yale University Press

ISBN: 0300089058

Category: Photography

Page: 280

View: 288

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Huyler provides an introduction to the scope of Hindu beliefs and practices, accompanied by his arresting photographs documenting the spirituality of common men and women in India. 200 color illustrations.

Images of Indian Goddesses

2003
Images of Indian Goddesses

Author: Madhu Bazaz Wangu

Publisher: Abhinav Publications

ISBN: 8170174163

Category: Art

Page: 290

View: 562

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Goddess Images Are Omnipresent Within The Cultural Fabric Of India, Yet Most Indians Are Unaware Of Uplifting Meanings These Images Convey. In The Book, Images Of Indian Goddesses,. Dr. Madhu Bazaz Wangu Explains The Emergence Of Indian Goddesses Within The Changing Social, Political And Cultural Environment From The Prehistoric To The Present Times And Explains Their Metaphysical Meanings. Why Are Hindu Goddesses Paradoxical In Nature? Why Are They Portrayed As Erotic And Maternal Simultaneously? Why Do They Have Multiple Arms? Why Do Some Of Them Have Their Own Vehicle (Vahana) And Some Do Not? Why Are Such Images Portrayed On The Popular Calendar- Posters? The Book Answers Such Questions And Helps The Reader Understand Their Meanings. The Goddesses Discussed Range From The Devoted Sita To The Sinister Kali; From The Warrior Durga To The Auspicious Shri Lakshmi; From The Erotic Radha To The Serene Sarasvati And Many Others. Dr. Wangu Firmly Feels That If Experienced Hindu Goddesses Have A Potential For Stimulating The Onlooker'S Innermost Self. Experiencing Goddess Imagery Uplifts This Worldly Life And Ponders The Nature Of The Other -Worldly Existence. Furthermore, The Book Argues That The Goddesses Are Stimulating And Empowering Models Not Only For Indian Women But For All. Images Of Indian Goddesses Helps A Common Person Understand And Appreciate The Bewildering Number Of Female Images Expressed In India'S Sacred Art. The Book Is Not Only Absorbing And Inspiring, It Also Offers A Visual Treasury Of Goddess Art Images. Its Text Is Food For The Mind And The Illustrations Are A Feast For The Eyes.

Encyclopedia of Hinduism

2006
Encyclopedia of Hinduism

Author: Constance Jones

Publisher: Infobase Publishing

ISBN: 9780816075645

Category: Juvenile Nonfiction

Page: 593

View: 850

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An illustrated A to Z reference containing more than 700 entries providing information on the theology, people, historical events, institutions and movements related to Hinduism.

The Study of Hinduism

2003
The Study of Hinduism

Author: Arvind Sharma

Publisher: Univ of South Carolina Press

ISBN: 1570034494

Category: Religion

Page: 352

View: 695

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In this text, leading scholars from around the world take stock of two centuries of international intellectual investment in Hinduism. Since the early 19th century, when the scholarly investigation of Hinduism began to take shape as a modern academic discipline, Hindu studies has evolved from its concentration on description and analysis to an emphasis on understanding Hindu traditions in the context of the religion's own values, concepts and history. Offering an assessment of the current state of Hindu studies, the contributors to this volume identify past achievements and chart the course for what remains to be accomplished in the field.

Encyclopedia of Goddesses and Heroines [2 volumes]

2009-12-18
Encyclopedia of Goddesses and Heroines [2 volumes]

Author: Patricia Monaghan

Publisher: ABC-CLIO

ISBN: 9780313349904

Category: Body, Mind & Spirit

Page: 641

View: 814

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This two-volume set provides a comprehensive guide to the vast array of feminine divine figures found throughout the world. • Coverage of thousands of goddesses describe their myths and images, as well as how they were honored by their worshipers • Organization by region permits in-depth study of specific religious traditions • Includes 40 line drawings by renowned mythic artist Hrana Janto, based on original works from various cultures • Extensive bibliographies on each of the 30 cultures represented draw from the fields of classics, anthropology, folklore, literature, and psychology

Goddesses And Women In The Indic Religious Tradition

2005
Goddesses And Women In The Indic Religious Tradition

Author: Arvind Sharma

Publisher: BRILL

ISBN: 9789004124660

Category: History

Page: 183

View: 734

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Following the lead of a "hermeneutics of surprise" the book identifies, indeed, surprising new material, and offers unexpected new insights essential to the debate on the position of goddesses and women in ancient India.