India, once a major civilizational and economic power that suffered centuries of decline, is now newly resurgent in business, geopolitics and culture. However, a powerful counterforce within the American academy is systematically undermining core icons and ideals of Indic culture and thought. For instance, scholars of this counterforce have disparaged the Bhagavad Gita as a dishonest book ; declared Ganesha s trunk a limpphallus ; classified Devi as the mother with apenis and Shiva as a notorious womanizer who incites violence in India.
Living Mantra is an anthropology of mantra-experience among Hindu-tantric practitioners. In ancient Indian doctrine and legends, mantras perceived by rishis (seers) invoke deities and have transformative powers. Adopting a methodology that combines scholarship and practice, Mani Rao discovers a continuing tradition of visionaries (rishis/seers) and revelations in south India’s Andhra-Telangana. Both deeply researched and replete with fascinating narratives, the book reformulates the poetics of mantra-practice as it probes practical questions. Can one know if a vision is real or imagined? Is vision visual? Are deity-visions mediated by culture? If mantras are effective, what is the role of devotion? Are mantras language? Living Mantra interrogates not only theoretical questions, but also those a practitioner would ask: how does one choose a deity, for example, or what might bind one to a guru? Rao breaks fresh ground in redirecting attention to the moments that precede systematization and canon-formation, showing how authoritative sources are formed.
By studying the application of fascial anatomy to yoga the yoga teacher will be able to expand each individual yoga student's optimum adaptability and mobility. This new contextual presentation of applied anatomy will provide the teacher with the tools to promote freedom and confidence in every student of yoga. By using insights from scientific research presented through case studies, the tendency to overwork the tissue and decrease vulnerability to soft tissue injury in the long-term, can be lowered. The visual design and presentation through metaphor embody the difference between sitting statically at a desk reading about movements and parts - and moving through the environment being animated, in action. Between these two experiences is a divide that this book seeks to cross.
A leading astronomer proves that India had a thriving civilization capable of sophisticated astronomy long before Greece, Egypt, or any other world culture. • Provides conclusive evidence that the Rig Veda is 12,000 years old. • Establishes actual dates and places for many of the events in the Hindu epics. For more than a century scholars have debated the antiquity of the Vedas and their related literature, the Brahmanas and Puranas. Relying upon a host of assumptions from linguistic theory, anthropology, and archaeology, they have agreed upon 1500 b.c. as the earliest possible date for the Rig Veda, itself the oldest extant example of Indo-European literature. But in this groundbreaking book, astronomer B. G. Sidharth proves conclusively that the earliest portions of the Rig Veda can be dated as far back as 10,000 b.c. By deciphering the astronomical events and alignments contained in mythical and symbolic form in these ancient texts, Sidharth calls into question many if not all of the assumptions governing Indo-European prehistory. He explores such subjects as the astronomical significance of many Hindu deities and myths, the system of lunar asterisms used to mark time, the identity of the Asvins, and the sophisticated calendar of the ancients that harmonized solar and lunar cycles. Sidharth provides incontrovertible evidence that such "advanced" astronomical concepts as precession, heliocentrism, and the eclipse cycle are encoded in these ancient texts, passages of which make perfect sense only if these astronomical keys are known. Based on internal evidence in the Mahabharata and Ramayana, he also becomes the first to establish likely dates--and even places--for the events described in these famous epics. The Celestial Key to the Vedas is sure to astonish anyone concerned with astronomy, India, or the roots of civilization.
A guide to harnessing the ancient power of hieroglyphs • Reveals hieroglyphs as magical tools for manifesting ideas in the material world • Offers in-depth interpretations of 60 hieroglyphs and guidelines for understanding them as words of power, oracles, and dream symbols • Explains how to create your own hieroglyph cards and amulets and use them for divination, meditation, and manifestation work Words are magic. They operate on many levels through both sound and symbol. Egyptian priests understood that language and thought could create realities if the exact words are uttered at the right time, properly intoned, and filled with intention. They called their magical language of hieroglyphic symbols medju neter, meaning “the Word of God.” These symbols were said to have been created by Isis and Thoth and were presided over by the goddess Seshet, keeper of the Akashic records. Through their chant lines and repetitions, sound vibrations, and hypnotically recurring images, hieroglyphs, such as those found inside the pyramids, were intended to activate a trancelike state that allowed the individual to ascend into the heavens and thus, riding on this incantatory language, converse with the ancestors and the Creator. In this detailed guide, author Normandi Ellis explores how to use hieroglyphs as words of power for manifesting ideas into the material world as well as how to utilize them in magic, meditation, divination, and dreamwork. She offers a deep look at the many layers of meaning contained within 60 important hieroglyphs, breaking down the elements within each symbol and explaining the myths behind them, the gods and goddesses they are connected to, their initiatory significance, and their oracular and dream meanings. She also shares guidelines for interpreting hieroglyphs so readers will be able to come to their own understandings about the secrets they hold. Providing instructions for creating your own hieroglyph cards, amulets, and other magically empowered objects, Ellis offers practices and strategies to use them, with detailed explanations for the historical, magical, practical, and symbolic reasons why each method is effective. She offers several layouts and card spreads for divination readings based on Egyptian myth, numerology, and astrology. Revealing the depth of meaning behind each of these powerful ancient symbols, Normandi Ellis shows that we can still harness their millennia-old magic today.
The captivating documentary “Vrindaban Days” transports viewers to the holy Indian village of Vrindavan, known as the mysterious playground of Lord Krishna. This beautiful book provides readers with an up-close and personal glimpse into the spirituality, lively culture, and timelessness of Vrindavan, where the divine and the mundane coexist in perfect harmony.
The Encyclopedia of Hinduism contains over 900 entries reflecting recent advances in scholarship which have raised new theoretical and methodological issues as well as identifying new areas of study which have not been addressed previously. The debate over the term 'Hinduism' in the light of post-Orientalist critiques is just one example of how once standard academic frameworks have been called into question. Entries range from 150-word definitions of terms and concepts to 5,000-word in-depth investigations of major topics. The Encyclopedia covers all aspects of Hinduism but departs from other works in including more ethnographic and contemporary material in contrast to an exclusively textual and historical approach. It includes a broad range of subject matter such as: historical developments (among them nineteenth and twentieth century reform and revival); geographical distribution (especially the diaspora); major and minor movements; philosophies and theologies; scriptures; deities; temples and sacred sites; pilgrimages; festivals; rites of passage; worship; religious arts (sculpture, architecture, music, dance, etc.); religious sciences (e.g. astrology); biographies of leading figures; local and regional traditions; caste and untouchability; feminism and women's religion; nationalism and the Hindu radical right; and new religious movements. The history of study and the role of important scholars past and present are also discussed. Accessibility to all levels of reader has been a priority and no previous knowledge is assumed. However, the in-depth larger entries and the design of the work in line with the latest scholarly advances means that the volume will be of considerable interest to specialists. The whole is cross-referenced and bibliographies attach to the larger entries. There is a full index.
Young Ramchand rushes through the dusty streets of Amritsar, once again late for work. Chastised by his boss, he takes his place among the cottons and silks of the sari shop, selling yards of cloth to the wealthy and fashionable women of the town. Offered a glimpse of a more opulent world, Ramchand is seduced by the idea that he might somehow better himself. But making dreams real will come at a price that a poor shop assistant might not be able to pay ... Funny, compelling and unflinchingly honest, The Sari Shop is a heartbreaking story of a young man's struggle to be someone else and a brilliantly clear-sighted debut.
