In Praise of the Goddess

In Praise of the Goddess PDF Author:
Publisher: Nicolas-Hays, Inc.
ISBN: 0892546166
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 407

Get Book Here

Book Description
About 16 centuries ago, an unknown Indian author or authors gathered together the diverse threads of already ancient traditions and wove them into a verbal tapestry that today is still the central text for worshippers of the Hindu Devi, the Divine Mother. This spiritual classic, the Devimahatmya, addresses the perennial questions of the nature of the universe, humankind, and divinity. How are they related, how do we live in a world torn between good and evil, and how do we find lasting satisfaction and inner peace? These questions and their answers form the substance of the Devimahatmya. Its narrative of a dispossessed king, a merchant betrayed by the family he loves, and a seer whose teaching leads beyond existential suffering sets the stage for a trilogy of myths concerning the all-powerful Divine Mother, Durga, and the fierce battles she wages against throngs of demonic foes. In these allegories, her adversaries represent our all-too-human impulses toward power, possessions, and pleasure. The battlefields symbolize the field of human consciousness on which our lives' dramas play out in joy and sorrow, in wisdom and folly. The Devimahatmya speaks to us across the ages of the experiences and beliefs of our ancient ancestors. We sense their enchantment at nature's bounty and their terror before its destructive fury, their recognition of the good and evil in the human heart, and their understanding that everything in our experience is the expression of a greater reality, personified as the Divine Mother.

In Praise of the Goddess

In Praise of the Goddess PDF Author:
Publisher: Nicolas-Hays, Inc.
ISBN: 0892546166
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 407

Get Book Here

Book Description
About 16 centuries ago, an unknown Indian author or authors gathered together the diverse threads of already ancient traditions and wove them into a verbal tapestry that today is still the central text for worshippers of the Hindu Devi, the Divine Mother. This spiritual classic, the Devimahatmya, addresses the perennial questions of the nature of the universe, humankind, and divinity. How are they related, how do we live in a world torn between good and evil, and how do we find lasting satisfaction and inner peace? These questions and their answers form the substance of the Devimahatmya. Its narrative of a dispossessed king, a merchant betrayed by the family he loves, and a seer whose teaching leads beyond existential suffering sets the stage for a trilogy of myths concerning the all-powerful Divine Mother, Durga, and the fierce battles she wages against throngs of demonic foes. In these allegories, her adversaries represent our all-too-human impulses toward power, possessions, and pleasure. The battlefields symbolize the field of human consciousness on which our lives' dramas play out in joy and sorrow, in wisdom and folly. The Devimahatmya speaks to us across the ages of the experiences and beliefs of our ancient ancestors. We sense their enchantment at nature's bounty and their terror before its destructive fury, their recognition of the good and evil in the human heart, and their understanding that everything in our experience is the expression of a greater reality, personified as the Divine Mother.

The Book of Kali

The Book of Kali PDF Author: Seema Mohanty
Publisher: Penguin Books India
ISBN: 9780143067641
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 172

Get Book Here

Book Description
One of the most unconventional yet immensely popular deities in the Hindu pantheon, goddess Kali essentially represents the dark and contrary aspects of the cosmos. Her naked form and association with violence, blood and gore challenge the very concept of divinity. Yet, over the centuries, she has come to represent a whole gamut of conflicting images-from bloodthirsty ogress to benign goddess. So today while she is venerated as Chamunda, a deity who verges on the macabre and grotesque, she is also adored in household shrines in one of her milder forms, Dakshina-Kali. It is this evolution of Kali-from her origin as a tantric goddess to her metamorphosis into a divinity in mainstream religion-that Seema Mohanty captures brilliantly in this book. Drawing upon a variety of sources-rituals associated with the worship of Kali, tales from the Ramayana, the Mahabharata, the Puranas, the Tantras and Agamas, folklore and films-she has succeeded in portraying in engrossing detail the myriad manifestations of the enigmatic deity that is Kali.

The Hindu Pantheon

The Hindu Pantheon PDF Author: Edward Moor
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Art, Hindu
Languages : en
Pages : 706

Get Book Here

Book Description


New Age Purohit Darpan: Durga Puja

New Age Purohit Darpan: Durga Puja PDF Author: Kanai Mukherjee
Publisher: Association of Grandparents of Indian Immigrants
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 221

Get Book Here

Book Description
This book is compiled with the goal of explaining the hidden history, significance, and meaning of the mantras used in common Hindu puja rituals performed by the Bengalis to the Bengali immigrants.

Bliss Divine

Bliss Divine PDF Author: Swami Sivananda
Publisher:
ISBN: 9788170520047
Category : Religious life
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Get Book Here

Book Description


Saundaryalahari

Saundaryalahari PDF Author: Śaṅkarācārya
Publisher:
ISBN: 9788170816003
Category : Hindu hymns, Sanskrit
Languages : en
Pages : 300

Get Book Here

Book Description
Hymn to Tripurasundarī (Hindu deity).

Bliss is Within

Bliss is Within PDF Author: Swami Chidananda
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Spiritual life
Languages : en
Pages : 272

Get Book Here

Book Description


Vicissitudes of the Goddess

Vicissitudes of the Goddess PDF Author: Sree Padma
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0199325049
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 382

Get Book Here

Book Description
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.

Tantric Visions of the Divine Feminine

Tantric Visions of the Divine Feminine PDF Author: David Kinsley
Publisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 0520917723
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 328

Get Book Here

Book Description
The Hindu pantheon is rich in images of the divine feminine—deities representing a wide range of symbolic, social, and meditative meanings. David Kinsley's new book documents a highly unusual group of ten Hindu tantric goddesses, the Mahavidyas, many of whom are strongly associated with sexuality and violence. What is one to make of a goddess who cuts her own head off, or one who prefers sex with a corpse? The Mahavidyas embody habits, attributes, or identities usually considered repulsive or socially subversive and can be viewed as "antimodels" for women. Yet it is within the context of tantric worship that devotees seek to identify themselves with these forbidding goddesses. The Mahavidyas seem to function as "awakeners"—symbols which help to project one's consciousness beyond the socially acceptable or predictable. Drawing on a broad range of Sanskrit and vernacular texts as well as extensive research in India, including written and oral interpretations of contemporary Hindu practitioners, Kinsley describes the unusual qualities of each of the Mahavidyas and traces the parallels between their underlying themes. Especially valuable are the many rare and fascinating images he presents—each important to grasping the significance of the goddesses. Written in an accessible, engaging style, Kinsley's book provides a comprehensive understanding of the Mahavidyas and is also an overview of Hindu tantric practice.

Kali

Kali PDF Author: Ajit Mookerjee
Publisher: Brill Archive
ISBN:
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 20

Get Book Here

Book Description
"Although she is often presented (in her warrior aspect) as cruel and horrific, with her lolling red tongue and necklace of severed heads, Kali is creator and nurturer - the essence of Mother-love and feminine energy (Sakti). As Divine Mother Lotus-goddess, she brings worlds to birth, sustains them and absorbs them, in a never-ending cycle of her own opening and closing."--Back cover.