This volume is a systematic and comprehensive introduction to one of the most read texts in South Asia, the Bhagavad-gita. The Bhagavad-gita is at its core a religious text, a philosophical treatise and a literary work, which has occupied an authoritative position within Hinduism for the past millennium. This book brings together themes central to the study of the Gita, as it is popularly known - such as the Bhagavad-gita's structure, the history of its exegesis, its acceptance by different traditions within Hinduism and its national and global relevance. It highlights the richness of the Gita's interpretations, examines its great interpretive flexibility and at the same time offers a conceptual structure based on a traditional commentarial tradition. With contributions from major scholars across the world, this book will be indispensable for scholars and researchers of religious studies, especially Hinduism, Indian philosophy, Asian philosophy, Indian history, literature and South Asian studies.

Paramahansa Yogananda - author of the bestselling classic "Autobiography of a Yogi" - delves into the deeper meaning of the Bhagavad Gita's symbology, and sheds a fascinating light on the true intent of India's beloved scripture. He describes how each of us, through applying the profound wisdom of yoga, can achieve material and spiritual victory on the battlefield of daily life. This concise and inspiring book is a compilation of selections from Yogananda's in-depth, critically acclaimed two-volume translation of and commentary on the Bhagavad Gita ("God Talks with Arjuna").

Hindu nationalism came to world attention in 1998, when the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won national elections in India. Although the BJP was defeated nationally in 2004, it continues to govern large Indian states, and the movement it represents remains a major force in the world's largest democracy. This book presents the thought of the founding fathers and key intellectual leaders of Hindu nationalism from the time of the British Raj, through the independence period, to the present. Spanning more than 130 years of Indian history and including the writings of both famous and unknown ideologues, this reader reveals how the "Hindutuva" movement approaches key issues of Indian politics. Covering such important topics as secularism, religious conversion, relations with Muslims, education, and Hindu identity in the growing diaspora, this reader will be indispensable for anyone wishing to understand contemporary Indian politics, society, culture, or history.

Yogananda, considered by many to be the father of modern yoga, has had an unsurpassed global impact thanks to the durability of his teachings, the institutions he created or inspired, and especially his iconic memoir, Autobiography of a Yogi. Since its publication in 1946, that book has sold millions of copies and changed millions of lives. But it doesn't tell the whole story. Much of Yogananda's seminal text is devoted to tales about other people and it largely overlooks the three vital decades he spent living, working and teaching in America. Huge chunks of his life - challenges, controversies and crises; triumphs, relationships and formative experiences - remain unknown to even his most ardent devotees. In this captivating biography, scholar and teacher Philip Goldberg fills the gaps, charting a journey that spanned six decades, two hemispheres, two world wars and unprecedented social changes. The result is an objective, thoroughly researched account of Yogananda's remarkable life in all its detail, nuance, and complex humanity. 'Yogananda would, I believe, want any book about him to not only inform but transform,' Goldberg writes. 'It is my hope that readers will be enriched, expanded and deepened by this humble offering.'

"The Hare Krishna Movement" is popularly associated with groups of chanting, saffron-robed followers, whose colourful appearance on the streets of western cities became increasingly commonplace after the Movement's emergence in 1965. But there is much more to the Krishna phenomenon than simply its bands of singing and dancing adherents. This groundbreaking book focuses for the first time on what is currently taking place inside the Hare Krishna Movement, and examines the changes and developments that have shaped it over the past forty years. The essays offer an unparalleled overview of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), and explore a wide range of topical issues and themes. These include: the politics and history of the Movement; membership patterns; recruitment strategies; pedagogical and social factors; the importance of dreams and ritual; and ISKCON's articulation of traditional theology in the context of the Movement's evolution. The result is a book that will be essential reading for scholars and students of religion in the modern world, and which explains in full how this fascinating Hindu devotional tradition continues to flourish in the land of its origin - India - as well as in the West.

Eastern Thought and the Gita consists of five parts. Part One is the same as Part One in The Original Gita, discussing Eastern thought in concise form. In Part Two, the 209 stanzas of the Original Gita are the same as in The Original Gita, but in the Introduction to Part Two, the date and the origin are compared with the content and the date of the Bhagavad Gita. In Part Three, comments on the 209 stanzas of the Original Gita are given with a new translation of the core 319 verses of the 700 verses of the Bhagavad Gita that correspond to these 209 verses. In Part Four, the core 319 Sanskrit verses are given in transliterated form with a word-for-word translation. The new English translation of each Sanskrit verse has been guided by the stanza in the Original Gita. Each chapter starts with a comparison of the content of the whole chapter in the Bhagavad Gita with the content of the corresponding chapter in the Original Gita. In this comparison and in comparing each corresponding verse(s) in the Bhagavad Gita with the stanza in the Original Gita, it is found that the differences are minor, mostly found in changing abstract forms, such as THAT into Me, Krishna, and by adding devotion to Krishna. This study shows that the connection to the Original Gita can still be found, to a very high degree, in the 319 verses of the Bhagavad Gita. Part Five is an extensive Sanskrit-English dictionary containing all the Sanskrit words found in the 319 core verses in English alphabetical order. The multiple meanings of the Sanskrit words are given, and also their roots and parts of compounded words. Every reader, without knowledge of the Sanskrit language, can check every choice of any translator of the 319 core verses of the Bhagavad Gita by using this 240-page dictionary, constructed by consulting the various dictionaries of Sanskrit in English, German and French. The book ends with a bibliography and an index.

Epics of ancient India rank with the timeless myths of classical Greece and Rome in the power of their language and the underlying moral lessons. The "Ramayana" and "Mahabharata, " both written in Sanskrit, contain vibrant stories of kings and princes, sages and tricksters, demons and gods, damsels in distress and mighty heroes. "Ganesha Goes to Lunch" collects some of the most vivid stories from these and other early Indian folklore and spiritual texts including the Vedas and the Puranas. These stories feature the gods of India in their celestial and earthly abodes, hapless humans struggling with life's many problems, and gods and humans interacting. Assembled by Kamla Kapur, these stories illustrate the great spiritual and practical themes of the human condition. Kamla Kapur brings her poet's eye and ear to the retelling of these stories, recreating and dramatizing them to illuminate their relevance to modern times.

In the context of Dutch colonialism, world war, the incorporation of Bali into the Indonesian state and the tourist boom, this book examines the complex relationships between the changing nature and continuing relevance of Balinese hierarchy, the neo-Hindu reforms of Balinese religion, and the impact these have had on new forms of identity. Since at least the 1920s commoners and other intellectuals and reformers have sought ways to challenge Balinese caste hierarchy, both through egalitarian re-interpretations of Balinese institutions and through changing religious ideas and practices. State initiatives to transform 'traditional' Balinese religion into monotheistic and more 'authentic' form of Hinduism have precipitated the appearance of many indigenous new religious movements and the importation from India of devotional forms of Hinduism (Sai Baba and Hare Krishna), which has created a vastly more intricate religious landscape. These various forms of Hinduism, and the conflict and competition between, both undermine and sustain relations of hierarchy. Through historically informed, ethnographic analyses of status competition, caste conflict, ritual inflation, religious innovation, and the cultural politics of identity this book, written in an accessible style, makes a major contribution to our understanding of modern Balinese society and its future development.BR> Series editors: Wendy James & N.J. Allen

The "Samaveda" contains the earliest tradition of music from India. It presents largely Rigvedic textual material in a form arranged for singing in the solemn Srauta ritual. Since the first editions by Theodor Benfey (1848) and Satyavrata Samasrami (1874-1899), there has been no complete, accented edition that also included all its important commentaries. The present edition is based on manuscripts collected from all over India and Europe. B. R. Sharma, Dean of Samaveda Studies, presents the accented text, its Padapatha, and the commentaries of Madhava, Bharata-Svamin, and Sayana in three volumes totaling 2,500 pages. These contain the Purvarcika and Uttaracika portions of the text, and a third volume the indexes and a detailed introduction to the whole work. Vols. 2 and 3 to appear soon.