Hinduism has always been noted for its ability to absorb potentially schismatic developments. The assimilation of heresies (pākhaṇḍa- dharmas) was made possible in part by the open-ended quality of the religion itself but also by the vagueness of the Hindu definition of heresy. The two primary, ostensible criteria of orthodoxy are the acceptance of the Vedas as the sacred canon and adherence to the basic law of society -- varṇāśrama dharma, the regulation of class and stage of life. By these criteria, heresy would seem to be a fairly straightforward matter, separating Hindus from non-Hindus, but this is not the case. To the Hindus as a whole, Buddhists arid Jains (and Cārvākas or Materialists, with which these two religions are often confused) are heretics. To most Hindus but Śaiva Kāpālikas, Kāpālikas are heretics. To the Brahmin Kāpālikas, the Śudra Kāpālikas, are heretics. To most non-Tantric Hindus, Tantrics are heretics. Levels of heresy and hierarchical concepts of status cloud the issue and invalidate any single definition. [Continued in text ...]

Inaug.-diss.--Leipzig. / Lebenslauf.

Thesis (M.A.)--Boston University / PLEASE NOTE: Boston University Libraries did not receive an Authorization To Manage form for this thesis or dissertation. It is therefore not openly accessible, though it may be available by request. If you are the author or principal advisor of this work and would like to request open access for it, please contact us at open-help@bu.edu. Thank you. / I. PROBLEM: To construct three units in mythology, Greek, Norse and Hindu, in order to increase students' awareness of the nature of literature and of the influence of these three cultures as represented in their mythologies on English language and literature. II. SCOPE AND LIMITATION: The units were designed for use in the junior high school in the following sequence: Seventh year - Greek Eighth year - Norse Ninth year - Hindu to obtain the benefit of cumulative effect upon the learnings. Each section however, is a complete unit and can be used independently of the others. The units are not all inclusive, but the selection of materials in each unit is such that a logical framework is imposed. The units make no provision for formal instruction in language. The units are untested. III. PROCEDURE: The units were designed for use in a team teaching situation. Each unit is introduced with a lecture to the entire' group for the purpose of providing background information, motivational aids and distributing materials. Groups then read and discuss the various creation stories around certain themes in their separate classrooms. The activities are discussed and groups are formed according to three activity sections each under the direction of a different teacher, one for reading, one for writing, and one for oral activities. IV. MAJOR FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS: The "classical" literatures contain materials appropriate to the reading interests and abilities of junior high school students and by arranging this material in units the teacher has an opportunity to guide students toward realizing the goals of the English language arts. V. SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER STUDY: The writer recommends that these materials be tested both in independent and sequential units and in both traditional teaching and team-teaching situations for the purpose of evaluation and revision. The writer also suggests that similar materials be constructed from the biblical, classical, and medieval epics. / 2031-01-01

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Chicago, Committee on Social Thought, August 2001. / Includes bibliographical references. Also available on the Internet.

"Thesis approved for the degree of doctor of philosophy, University of Calcutta." / "Bibliographical index": p. [433]-437.

The objective of this thesis is to isolate the symbolism of ornaments and armaments in the epics and in the rituals of Kannaki and Draupadi A detailed comparison of ornaments and armaments in the Cilappatikaram and in the Mahabharata will be provided, as well as an analysis of the function and meaning of these objects in the ritual traditions of Kannaki and Draupadi A study of the epic and ritual significance of ornaments and armaments will not only contribute tn the understanding of the nature and the role of these symbols, but should also shed light on the interaction between the Tamilian and Sanskritic goddess traditions. / It would appear that ornaments and armaments have religious significance, signaling, by their presence or absence, transitions from auspiciousness to inauspiciousness on individual, social, and cosmic levels. In this respect, they are the vehicles of divine powers and energies.

No description available.

Raja Krishnacandra Ray (1710-1782) was a relatively high-ranking aristocrat in eastern India who emerged as a local culture hero during the nineteenth century. He became renowned as Bengal's preeminent patron of Sanskrit and as an ardent champion of goddess worship who established the region's famous puja festivals, patronized major innovations in vernacular literature, and revived archaic Vedic sacrifices while pursuing an archconservative agenda as leader of Hindu society in the area. He is even alleged in certain circles to have orchestrated a conspiracy that birthed British colonialism in South Asia, and humorous tales starring his court jester are ubiquitous wherever Bengali is spoken. This dissertation explores the process of myth-making as it coalesced around Krishncandra in the early modern period, emphasizing the roles played by classical ideals of Hindu kingship and print culture as well as both colonial and nationalist historiography.

Hindu religious culture has a rich and long-standing performance tradition containing many genres and regional types that contribute significantly to an understanding of the living vitality of the religion. Because the field of religious studies has focused on texts, the assumption exists that these are primary, and performances based on them are mere enactments and therefore derivative. This thesis will challenge this common assumption by arguing that performances themselves can be constitutive events in which religious worldviews, social histories, and group and personal identities are created or re-negotiated. In this work, I examine the history of performance cultures (understood both as genres and the groups that develop and perform them) in the Telugu-speaking regions of South India from the sixteenth century to the present in order to elucidate the cross-fertilization among various performance spheres over time. / My specific focus is on the figure of Satyabhama (lit. True Woman or Woman of Truth), the favourite wife of the god Kṛṣṇa. Satyabhama represents a range of emotions, which makes her character popular with dramatists and other artists in the Telugu-speaking regions of South India where poets composed hundreds of performance-texts about her, and several caste groups have enacted her character through narrative drama. / The dissertation is composed of four substantive parts - text, context, memory, and mimesis. The first part explores the figure of Satyabhama in the Mahabharata and in three Sanskrit Puraṇic texts. The second examines the courtly traditions of poetry and village performances in the Telugu language, where Satyabhama is innovatively portrayed through aesthetic categories. The third is based on ethnographic work with women of the contemporary kalavantula (devadasi) community and looks at the ways in which they identify with Satyabhama and other female aesthetic archetypes (nayikas). The final section is based on fieldwork with the smarta Brahmin male community in Kuchipudi village, where men continue to perform mimetic representations of Satyabhama through a performative modality known as stri-veṣam ("guise of a woman").

No description available.