The Navel of the Demoness

The Navel of the Demoness PDF Author: Charles Ramble
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 019803508X
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 406

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Book Description
This groundbreaking study focuses on a village called Te in a "Tibetanized" region of northern Nepal. While Te's people are nominally Buddhist, and engage the services of resident Tibetan Tantric priests for a range of rituals, they are also exponents of a local religion that involves blood sacrifices to wild, unconverted territorial gods and goddesses. The village is unusual in the extent to which it has maintained its local autonomy and also in the degree to which both Buddhism and the cults of local gods have been subordinated to the pragmatic demands of the village community. Charles Ramble draws on extensive fieldwork, as well as 300 years' worth of local historical archives (in Tibetan and Nepali), to re-examine the subject of confrontation between Buddhism and indigenous popular traditions in the Tibetan cultural sphere. He argues that Buddhist ritual and sacrificial cults are just two elements in a complex system of self-government that has evolved over the centuries and has developed the character of a civil religion. This civil religion, he shows, is remarkably well adapted to the preservation of the community against the constant threats posed by external attack and the self-interest of its own members. The beliefs and practices of the local popular religion, a highly developed legal tradition, and a form of government that is both democratic and accountable to its people all these are shown to have developed to promote survival in the face of past and present dangers. Ramble's account of how both secular and religious institutions serve as the building blocks of civil society opens up vistas with important implications for Tibetan culture as a whole.

The Navel of the Demoness

The Navel of the Demoness PDF Author: Charles Ramble
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 019803508X
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 406

Get Book Here

Book Description
This groundbreaking study focuses on a village called Te in a "Tibetanized" region of northern Nepal. While Te's people are nominally Buddhist, and engage the services of resident Tibetan Tantric priests for a range of rituals, they are also exponents of a local religion that involves blood sacrifices to wild, unconverted territorial gods and goddesses. The village is unusual in the extent to which it has maintained its local autonomy and also in the degree to which both Buddhism and the cults of local gods have been subordinated to the pragmatic demands of the village community. Charles Ramble draws on extensive fieldwork, as well as 300 years' worth of local historical archives (in Tibetan and Nepali), to re-examine the subject of confrontation between Buddhism and indigenous popular traditions in the Tibetan cultural sphere. He argues that Buddhist ritual and sacrificial cults are just two elements in a complex system of self-government that has evolved over the centuries and has developed the character of a civil religion. This civil religion, he shows, is remarkably well adapted to the preservation of the community against the constant threats posed by external attack and the self-interest of its own members. The beliefs and practices of the local popular religion, a highly developed legal tradition, and a form of government that is both democratic and accountable to its people all these are shown to have developed to promote survival in the face of past and present dangers. Ramble's account of how both secular and religious institutions serve as the building blocks of civil society opens up vistas with important implications for Tibetan culture as a whole.

The Disguises of the Demon

The Disguises of the Demon PDF Author: Gail Hinich Sutherland
Publisher: SUNY Press
ISBN: 9780791406212
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 258

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Book Description
Among the most ancient deities of South Asia, the yakshas straddle the boundaries between popular and textual traditions in both Hinduism and Buddhism and both benevolent and malevolent facets. As a figure of material plenty, the yaksis epitomized as Kubera, god of wealth and king of the yaks In demonic guise, the yaksis related to a large family of demonic and quasi-demonic beings, such as nagas, gandharvas, raks, and the man-eating pisaacas. Translating and interpreting texts and passages from the Vedic literature, the Hindu epics, the Puranas, Kālidāsa's Meghadūta, and the Buddhist Jātaka Tales, Sutherland traces the development and transformation of the elusive yaks from an early identification with the impersonal absolute itself to a progressively more demonic and diminished terrestrial characterization. Her investigation is set within the framework of a larger inquiry into the nature of evil, misfortune, and causation in Indian myth and religion.

The Demon's Daughter

The Demon's Daughter PDF Author: Pingali Suranna
Publisher: State University of New York Press
ISBN: 0791482154
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 140

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Book Description
The Demon's Daughter (Prabhavati-pradyumnamu) is a sixteenth-century novel by the south Indian poet Pingali Suranna, originally written in Telugu, the language of present-day Andhra Pradesh. Suranna begins with a story from classical Hindu mythology in which a demon plans to overthrow the gods. Krishna's son Pradyumna is sent to foil the plot and must infiltrate the impregnable city of the demons; Krishna helps ensure his success by having a matchmaking goose cause Pradyumna to fall in love with the demon's daughter. The original story focuses on the ongoing war between gods and anti-gods, but Pingali Suranna makes it an exploration of the experience of being and falling in love. In this, the work evinces a modern sensibility, showing love as both an individualized emotion and the fullest realization of a person, transcending social and cultural barriers. The translators include an afterword that explores the cultural setting of the work and its historical and literary contexts. Anyone interested in the literature and mythology of India will find this book compelling, but all readers who love a good story will enjoy this moving book. Velcheru Narayana Rao and David Shulman have provided an elegant translation that will serve well the contemporary reader who wishes to encounter a masterwork of world literature largely unknown in the West.

The Desert Spear: Book Two of The Demon Cycle

The Desert Spear: Book Two of The Demon Cycle PDF Author: Peter V. Brett
Publisher: Del Rey
ISBN: 0345524144
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 674

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Book Description
INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER • “[Peter V. Brett] confirms his place among epic fantasy’s pantheon of greats amid the likes of George R. R. Martin, Steven Erikson, and Robert Jordan.”—Fantasy Book Critic The second volume in the internationally bestselling Demon Cycle series continues the epic tale of humanity’s last stand against an army of demons—and reveals a new contender for the role of savior. The sun is setting on humanity. The night now belongs to voracious demons that prey upon a dwindling population forced to cower behind half-forgotten symbols of power. Legends tell of a Deliverer: a general who once bound all mankind into a single force that defeated the demons. But is the return of the Deliverer just another myth? Out of the sands rides Ahmann Jardir, who has forged the desert tribes of Krasia into a demon-killing army. He has proclaimed himself Shar’Dama Ka, the Deliverer, and carries ancient weapons—a spear and a crown—that give credence to his claim. But the Northerners claim their own Deliverer: the Warded Man, a dark, forbidding figure. Once, the Shar’Dama Ka and the Warded Man were friends. Now they are fierce adversaries. Yet as old allegiances are tested and fresh alliances forged, all are unaware of the appearance of a new breed of demon, more intelligent—and deadly—than any that have come before. BONUS: Now with twenty pages of bonus material, including an exclusive interview with Peter V. Brett, and an excerpt from Peter V. Brett's The Daylight War. Don’t miss any of the thrilling novels in Peter V. Brett’s Demon Cycle THE WARDED MAN • THE DESERT SPEAR • THE DAYLIGHT WAR • THE SKULL THRONE • THE CORE

Denver Demon

Denver Demon PDF Author: Donovan Edwards
Publisher: Author House
ISBN: 1481773585
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 203

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Book Description
David Arbor a gay man living in rual Wyoming is drawn back to the life he had left behind when a serial killer murdering gay men in the Denver area has claimed the lives of several of his close friends. Having some schooling in criminology and psychology David decides he must head to Denver to help find this crazed killer before anymore of his friends turn up dead. It isn't long before David's need for love, answers, and sense of purpose leads him into a dark world of sex, lies, death, and the supernatural.

Demon Master Becomes a Saint

Demon Master Becomes a Saint PDF Author: Fo Xie
Publisher: Funstory
ISBN: 1648465897
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 894

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Book Description
A modern man traversing space and time had arrived at the prehistoric period, he did not expect that he would actually become the great villain of the Demon Master, Kun Peng. In order to become a saint, he went through many plans, and finally became a saint.

Kiss of a Demon King

Kiss of a Demon King PDF Author: Kresley Cole
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1849834385
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 331

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Book Description
From New York Timesbestselling author Kresley Cole comes this spellbinding story of a demon king trapped by an enchantress for her wanton purposes -- and the scorching aftermath that follows when he turns the tables and claims her as his captive. HIS OBSESSION... Sabine, Sorceress of Illusions: the evil beauty who surrenders her body, but not her heart. HER DOWNFALL... Rydstrom Woede: the ruthless warrior who vows to keep her at all costs. THEY WERE NEVER SUPPOSED TO WANT EACH OTHER THIS MUCH... With each smoldering encounter, their shared hunger only increases. If they can defeat the sinister enemy that stands between them, will Sabine make the ultimate sacrifice for her demon? Or will the proud king lay down his crown and arms to save his sorceress?

Demon Ash

Demon Ash PDF Author: M.J. Haag
Publisher: Shattered Glass Publishing LLC
ISBN: 1943051038
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 236

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Book Description
The world is nothing like Mya remembers. While in Ernisi, cities have been bombed and burned in an attempt to stop the hellhounds and the plague. The survivors are doing everything they can to win back their world from the hell that was unleashed with the first quake. With Drav's help, Mya reunites with her family, but they are far from safe. Marauders, hellhounds, and the infected are doing their best to destroy what's left of the world, and it's up to Mya and Drav to save it.

The Demon's Daughter

The Demon's Daughter PDF Author: Emma Holly
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 9780425199183
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 340

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Book Description
It's Inspector Adrian Philips's job to keep the peace between humans and demons in Avvar. Part demon, part human, he's hated by both sides. But when he meets Roxanne, a fellow outcast, he finds in her everything his soul needs--and his body yearns for. The question is, will the exquisite pleasure they find together be worth the dangerous wrath of their enemies?

Legend of Demon Master Kunpeng

Legend of Demon Master Kunpeng PDF Author: Pu ShiDeHuangNiu
Publisher: Funstory
ISBN: 1649354002
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 890

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Book Description
A modern man traversing space and time had arrived at the prehistoric period. Who would have thought that he would actually become a great villain of the demon master, Kun Peng. In order to become a saint, many schemes were carried out, and finally, the story of becoming a saint was told ...