Being Selections From The Writings Of Tayumana Swamy, Translated Into English With Introduction And Notes.

The study of modern Indian responses to the challenge of pluralism reveals the outcome of 2500 years of experience in this "living laboratory" of religious encounter, and offers wisdom to the modern West in its relatively recent encounter with this challenge. A remarkable team of scholars joins forces in this book to examine how religious pluralism actually functions in India. It focuses on both the responses from within Hinduism and of other religions in India, with chapters on Parsis, Indian Islam, Indian Christianity, Sikhism, and Tibetan Buddhism.

Has appendices.

It is often said that the real confrontation between Christianity and the great religions of the world is only just beginning. Bishop Kulandran's book on the pivotal religious doctrine of Grace marks the first stage in the new encounter between Christianity and Hinduism. The result of considerable research and theological reflection, Bishop Kulandran's book is an objective and scholarly appraisal of Christianity and Hinduism, their similarities and differences, and of the two different worlds in which they move. Hinduism's uncertainty about the character of God and Christianity's dogmatic certainty are examined in detail. The sense of man's need of God's grace in Christianity, and Hinduism's rejection of any act of reconciliation are seen by Bishop Kulandran as central to the dialogue between the two religions. As Dr. Hendrik Kraemer says in the foreword, Bishop Kulandran's book is animated by the desire for fair presentation and understanding and is a new and important contribution to the subject and not merely a repetition of what has often been said before. The author belonged by birth and experience to the Indian world and as a Bishop of the Church of South India knew the power as well as the limitations of the Christian mission in the world of Hinduism. This scholarly work is a valuable contribution to comparative religion and is an illuminating exploration of two of the world's most important religions.

Utpaladeva was considered a siddha, a "perfected being," one of the masters of the tantric tradition in Kashmir, and he is best known for his philosophical treatises. The Shivastotravali reflects Utpaladeva's philosophy, known as the Pratyabhijna school. And yet it is unique among the author's works in its not being a straightforward philosophical treatise but instead, as Dr. Bailly points out in her introduction, more of a spiritual diary of one who is actually treading the path of Shiva. The path that Utpaladeva has chosen does not require leaving one's home and heading for a mountain cave; instead it calls for changing one's view of the world, for leading a life of divine recognition while carrying on with ordinary life. In clearly written, lucid prose Dr. Bailly illuminates the many facets of Utpaladeva's quest. At the core of his spiritual journey is the enigmatic relationship between devotion and grace: how much does spiritual attainment depend upon the individual's efforts, and how much is a divine gift? And how are these to be realized while living in the midst of society, maintaining worldly obligations and lifestyle? For over a thousand years the Shaiva community of Kashmir has used in its worship the hymns of Utpaladeva's Shivastotravali. Here for the first time these hymns are presented in translation as English verse along with the Sanskrit, a clear and lively introduction, two appendices on special aspects of Kashmir Shaivism, and additional notes.