ABOUT THE BOOK:The Kumarasambhava of Kalidasa is a tour-de-force of literary effort of a very high order, and is in fact the oriflamme of Indian Poetic genius. It is a gem among Kalidasa's poetic works. It Sings of divine love and of the strife betwee

Hindu gods serve mankind with compassion and devotion, breathing wisdom into every aspect of life. This exquisitely illustrated book presents profiles of 30 deitiesfrom the powerful triad of Brahma the creator, Vishnu the preserver, and Shiva the destroyer, to the colorful supporting cast of gods such as Ganesha and Saraswati. Author Priya Hemenway tells the stories of how these gods came to be, how theyre worshipped, and how they remain forever alive in the hearts of those who seek to know themselves.

In a world where magic is believed to no longer exist, Leah secretly wishes she was different, that she was someone other than the king's daughter. Her wish is unexpectedly granted when the Demon Lord gifts her with magic to be his instrument of revenge against his half-mortal son. With the lives of her beloved family under threat, Leah has no choice but to do the demon's bidding. Aware of his dark taint on her, aware of the fear of her people, Leah fights to remain true to herself.

According to Hindu mythology, Brahma has a lifespan of 100 years. That may appear way short for a god of Brahma’s standing . (He is the creator of our solar system.) But Brahma and Hindu gods do not follow our traditional 24-hour clock. They represent time in cosmic units of yugas and kalpas. If you don’t understand any of these terms, that’s ok. A kalpa, for instance, is defined as a day of Brahma and translates to 4.32 billion human years. In fact Brahma has a lifespan of 311 trillion years! We explain these colossal timescales, as we introduce Brahma in this book. You will learn that Brahma initially was the supreme deity of Hinduism, but he could not hang on to his position for long. A judgmental lapse is said to have caused his downfall. With Brahma’s descent, Vishnu rose to power. Today, in the Hindu pantheon, Vishnu is a prominent god, and has a following of more than 700 million devotees, who are occasionally identified by the U-shared marks on their foreheads. With a focus on Vishnu and Brahma, we continue our journey beyond the Vedic era. We begin by examining a popular creation myth in which Brahma emerges from the navel of a sleeping Vishnu and starts crafting the world. Further on, we explore the churning of the milky ocean, a crucial event in Hindu mythology and one of the rare occasions when gods and demons collaborated (instead of fighting) to search for the nectar of immortality. Many precious things—and surprises—came out this quest, including Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth and consort of Vishnu. We also get to know a critical insight into our ancestry. According to Hinduism, we are all related and descendants of Manu, the father of human race. While this book focuses on Brahma and Vishnu, there will be occasional detours when we pause to look at art and architecture. In particular, we’ll look at Angkor Wat, the largest Hindu temple in the world. Guess what? The fact that Angkor Wat is located outside India has dented Hindu pride from time immemorial. We’ll also peek at ancient paintings from a mythological perspective, especially the unique genre of miniature paintings called ragamala that combines art, music, and poetry. A remarkable shift in worship took place during this period. Bhakti became a major form of worship and pervaded Hindu society forever. If you are unfamiliar with bhakti, then nothing exemplifies bhakti (devotion) more than the dancing-and-chanting Hare Krishnas.

Your hands-on guide to one of the world's major religions The dominant religion of India, "Hinduism" refers to a wide variety of religious traditions and philosophies that have developed over thousands of years. Today, the United States is home to approximately one million Hindus. If you've heard of this ancient religion and are looking for a reference that explains the intricacies of the customs, practices, and teachings of this ancient spiritual system, Hinduism For Dummies is for you! Provides a thorough introduction to this earliest and popular world belief system Information on the rites, rituals, deities, and teachings associated with the practice of Hinduism Explores the history and teachings of the Vedas, Brahmans, and Upanishads Offers insight into the modern daily practice of Hinduism around the world Continuing the Dummies tradition of making the world's religions engaging and accessible to everyone, Hinduism For Dummies is your hands-on, friendly guide to this fascinating religion.

This luxury book serves as an excellent introduction to Hindu myths

A selection of Gandhiji s articles drawn mainly from his contributions to young india, the Harijan and the Navjivan on Hinduism. Written on different occassions, these articles present a picture of hindu dharma I all its richness, comprehensiveness and sensitivity to the existential delimmas of human existence.