A saint, a reformer, an avatar of Lord Krishna—Chaitanya Mahaprabhu (1486–1533) is perceived as all these and many others. In this book on Chaitanya, Amiya P. Sen focuses on the discourses surrounding the mystic’s life, which ended rather mysteriously at the age of 48. Written in a lucid manner and for a wider audience, this book is a fresh attempt to historically reconstruct Chaitanya’s life and times in Bengal and Odisha, as well as Vrindavan, the key centre of medieval Vaishnavism in north India. This work critically evaluates how Chaitanya has been understood contemporaneously and posthumously, particularly as an icon in colonial Bengal. Addressing an important gap in scholarship, which hitherto concentrated on religious and philosophical discourses, Sen offers a full-length biographical account of Nimai or Gaur by drawing on a wide range of sources in English and Bengali. He also argues against the belief that Chaitanya is the sole proponent of Vaishnava bhakti in Bengal, choosing to situate him in the wider devotional cultures of the region.

This Volume Has Two Parts, Surveys Of All The Languages And Selections From Three Languages Assamese, Bengali And Dogri.

A Summary Study of Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita Taking the role of His own devotee, Lord Sri Krishna appeared as Sri Krishna Chaitanya about five centuries ago in Bengal, India, and began a great social and spiritual revolution that has profoundly affected the lives of millions worldwide. His conversations with the great scholars, kings, and mystics of the day form the basis of Teachings of Lord Chaitanya.

In the nineteenth century, Bengal witnessed an extraordinary intellectual flowering. Bengali prose emerged, and with it the novel and modern blank verse; old arguments about religion, society, and the lives of women were overturned; great schools and colleges were created; new ideas surfaced in science. And all these changes were led by a handful of remarkable men and women. For the first time comes a gripping narrative about the Bengal Renaissance recounted through the lives of all its players from Rammohun Roy to Rabindranath Tagore. Immaculately researched, told with colour, drama, and passion, Awakening is a stunning achievement.

This book examines the rise of two contrasting variants of Hindu nationalism—the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) divisive cultural nationalism and the softer, less threatening variant of Hindutva espoused by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Trinamool Congress (TMC). Historically, the overlaps between Hinduism and Islam bolstered the narrative that the Muslims were culturally inferior to the Hindus and that Hinduism was India’s unifying tradition. As a result, for many Hindus, emphasizing the distinctiveness of a minority group, especially the Muslims, represents a threat to Hindu superiority and India’s cultural integrity. With the rise of the BJP, AAP, and TMC, we witness a tussle between two strains of Hindu nativism. The BJP attempts to attract the Hindu vote by heightening the differences between Hindus and Muslims and portraying itself as the restorer of national integrity. The AAP and TMC revive a much older form of cultural nativism by downplaying the separateness of the Muslims, indicating that India is already a Hindu nation and that there is no need to persecute religious minorities. Comparing the two variants of cultural nationalism provides valuable insights into how culture matters in Indian politics.