Search for Liberation is mainly comprised of interviews and conversations between His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda and John Lennon and his wife, Yoko Ono. The featured conversation takes place at John's Tittenhurst estate in mid-September of 1969, when Śrīla Prabhupāda and some of his students were staying there as guests. Many topics were discussed, including how to attain peace and liberation from material existence, the eternality of the soul, re-incarnation, the qualifications of a bonafide spiritual master, the importance of the Bhagavad-Gītā, and the supremacy of the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahāmantra. Śrīla Prabhpāda handles all the inquiries with personal concern, while addressing the issues of the times with great relevancy.
"In Search of Liberation" describes the life of Emerald, growing up under Apartheid (60's-70's). First she sets off searching for her real roots which dates back to colonial times and the slave trade. She lives mostly on the "bright side" but soon discovers some mysteries while everyone thought she "had no sense of time" and her father called her "a walking disaster". Despite the almost idyllic environment that surrounds her, she soon discovers that there is always a snake in paradise. From small she tries to make sense of whispered conversations by the grown-ups and by the way she discovers a terrible family secret which is revealed in the book. She discovers some of her grandparents, but the identity of one, Abdul Ebrahim Hassan, remains shrouded in mystery. She reflects on some personal experiences of parental oppression at home and at school that leads initially to rebellion and later conscientization when reaching University in Cape Town. Participation together with fellow students in the Soweto uprising of 1976, while studying, is an important learning experience.The death of her lover causes deep personal trauma and brings on depression and other health problems, which becomes a constant battle. Later on when forced into exile she manages to come out into the light with "a little help" from her sisters, a few women friends and her mother's loving support through letter-writing. She manages to successfully complete her studies, find the love of her life, get married and have a family, something which seemed a virtual impossibility at one point. She also comes to the conclusion that finding one's roots is important but finding oneself even moreso.
Discusses Hindu Advaita Ved?nta as a philosophy of social justice for the modern world. This expansive and accessible work provides an introduction to the Hindu tradition of Advaita Ved?nta and brings it into discussion with contemporary concerns. Advaita, the non-dual school of Indian philosophy and spirituality associated with ?a?kara, is often seen as other-worldly, regarding the world as an illusion. Anantanand Rambachan has played a central role in presenting a more authentic Advaita, one that reveals how Advaita is positive about the here and now. The first part of the book presents the hermeneutics and spirituality of Advaita, using textual sources, classical commentary, and modern scholarship. The books second section considers the implications of Advaita for ethical and social challenges: patriarchy, homophobia, ecological crisis, child abuse, and inequality. Rambachan establishes how Advaitas non-dual understanding of reality provides the ground for social activism and the values that advocate for justice, dignity, and the equality of human beings. Rambachan has written an original, creative, and provocative book that will assure that Hinduism has a greater voice in the general arena of interreligious dialogue. Paul F. Knitter, Union Theological Seminary This is an important contribution to the advancement of constructive work in Hindu theology, comparative theology, and the study of South Asian religious traditions. It has the potential to revolutionize how scholars view Hinduism generally, and Advaita Ved?nta in particular. Jeffery D. Long, Elizabethtown College
Africa has experienced two liberations: the first from colonial and racist regimes, and the second from the autocrats who often followed foreign rule. African countries now have the potential to undertake a third liberation - from political economies characterised by graft, crony capitalism, rents-seeking, elitism and social inequality. This third liberation will open up the economic space in which business can compete - a necessary condition for expanding employment. During the 2000s, the continent had its best growth decade on record since independence. High commodity prices offer a launch pad for sustained growth and employment creation. Now is the moment for African countries to act. This book asks how Africa's political leaders and interest groups can promote economic growth in their countries. Drawing on studies of countries outside Africa, Jeffrey Herbst and Greg Mills identify the factors separating the performers from the laggards worldwide. Aside from the need to create an enabling environment for business through good governance, provision of infrastructure and improvements in education, most critical is the need for a laser-like development focus by governments. In Africa's Third Liberation, Jeffrey Herbst and Greg Mills show why a new African political debate is necessary to make progress in accelerating growth and creating jobs.
This novel deals with the struggle since the times of the conquest of most Latin American countries to achieve peace, democracy and liberty. For the last 500 years, most of these countries have experienced the exploitation, repression and oppression from the hands of national and international forces. That situation has forced some of these countries to attempt to achieve democracy, freedom and peace through armed revolutions. Unfortunately, those countries have learned the hard way that violence is not the proper avenue to achieve the desired liberation.
Since the mid-1980s, the psychology of liberation movement has been a catalyst for collective and individual change in communities throughout Latin America, and beyond; and recent political developments are making its powerful, transformative ideas more relevant than ever before. Psychology of Liberation: Theory and Applications updates the activist frameworks developed by Ignacio Martin-Baro and Paulo Freire with compelling stories from the frontlines of conflict in the developing and developed worlds, as social science and psychological practice are allied with struggles for peace, justice, and equality. In these chapters, liberation is presented as both an ongoing process and a core dimension of wellbeing, entailing the reconstruction of social identity and the transformation of all parties involved, both oppressed and oppressors. It also expands the social consciousness of professionals, bringing more profound meaning to practice and enhancing related areas such as peace psychology, as shown in articles such as these: Philippines: the role of liberation movements in the transition to democracy. Venezuela: liberation psychology as a therapeutic intervention with street youth. South Africa: the movement for representational knowledge. Muslim world: religion, the state, and the gendering of human rights. Ireland: linking personal and political development. Australia: addressing issues of racism, identity, and immigration. Colombia: building cultures of peace from the devastation of war. Psychology of Liberation demonstrates the commitment to overcome social injustices and oppression. The book is a critical resource for social and community psychologists as well as policy analysts. It can also be used as a text for graduate courses in psychology, sociology, social work and community studies.
Liberation Theologies in the United States reveals how the critical use of religion can be utilized to challenge and combat oppression in America. In the nascent United States, religion often functioned as a justifier of oppression. Yet while religious discourse buttressed such oppressive activities as slavery and the destruction of native populations, oppressed communities have also made use of religion to critique and challenge this abuse. As Liberation Theologies in the United States demonstrates, this critical use of religion has often taken the form of liberation theologies, which use primarily Christian principles to address questions of social justice, including racism, poverty, and other types of oppression. Stacey M. Floyd-Thomas and Anthony B. Pinn have brought together a stellar group of liberation theology scholars to provide a synthetic introduction to the historical development, context, theory, and goals of a range of U.S.-born liberation theologies: Black Theology—Anthony B. Pinn Womanist Theology—Stacey M. Floyd-Thomas Latina Theology—Nancy Pineda-Madrid Hispanic/Latino(a) Theology—Benjamín Valentín Asian American Theology—Andrew Sung Park Asian American Feminist Theology—Grace Ji-Sun Kim Native Feminist Theology—Andrea Smith Native American Theology—George (Tink) Tinker Gay and Lesbian Theology—Robert E. Shore-Goss Feminist Theology—Mary McClintock Fulkerson “An extraordinary resource for understanding the vitality of liberation theologies and their relation to social transformation in the changing U.S. context. Written in an accessible and engaged way, this powerful and informative text will inspire beginners and scholars alike. I highly recommend it."—Kwok Pui-lan, author of Postcolonial Imagination and Feminist Theology “A delight to read . . . [and] an exemplary account of the genre of liberation theologies." ―Religious Studies Review
