When the Goddess was a Woman: Mah?bh?rata Ethnographies - Essays by Alf HiltebeitelExplicitly acknowledging its status as a str - dra-veda (a Veda for women and the downtrodden), the Mah bh rata articulates a promise to bring knowledge of right conduct, fundamental ethical, philosophical, and soteriological teachings, and its own grand narrative to all classes of people and all beings. Hiltebeitel shows how the Mah bh rata has more than lived up to this promise at least on the ground in Indian folk traditions. In this three-part volume, he journeys over the overlapping terrains of the south Indian cults of Draupad (part I) and K tt avar (part II), to explore how the Mah bh rata continues to be such a vital source of meaning, and, in part III, then connects this vital tradition to wider reflections on prehistory, sacrifice, myth, oral epic, and modern theatre. This two volume edition collects nearly three decades of Alf Hiltebeitel s researches into the Indian epic and religious tradition. The two volumes document Hiltebeitel s longstanding fascination with the Sanskrit epics: volume 1 presents a series of appreciative readings of the Mah bh rata (and to a lesser extent, the R m ya a), while volume 2 focuses on what Hiltebeitel has called the underground Mah bh rata, i.e., the Mah bh rata as it is still alive in folk and vernacular traditions. Recently re-edited and with a new set of articles completing a trajectory Hiltebeitel established over 30 years ago, this work constitutes a definitive statement from this major scholar. Comprehensive indices, cross-referencing, and an exhaustive bibliography make it an essential reference work. For more information on the first volume please click here. |
What people are saying - Write a review
We haven't found any reviews in the usual places.
Other editions - View all
Common terms and phrases
Ālhā Alis animal Aravān Arjuna Aśvatthāman auspicious avatāra Ballāl Belā Bhīma Bhūta Biardeau Billava blood boar Brahmā Brahman Brook buffalo sacrifice called caste ceremony chapter Coimbatore connection dance death deity demon Dharma disguise disrobing drama Draupadī cult Draupadī festivals Draupadī’s hair Duhśāsana Durgā Duryodhana Elder Brothers Story eunuch father figure firewalking folklore garments Gingee god’s goddess Hanumān head heroes Hiltebeitel 1976 Hiltebeitel 1988a Hindu Hinduism husband ibid icon impurity kalappali Kālī Kāma Karna Kauravas king Kōti and Cennaya Krsna Ksatriya Kuruksetra Kūttāntavar Kūttāntavar cult Kūttāntavar festivals Kūttāntavar temple Kūvākkam Mahābhārata Māriyamman marriage marry Mohinī myth offered Pāndavas Pommiyamman Potrāj pūcāri pūjā Pūluvars Purāna Rāja rām līlā Rāma Rāmāyana Rāvana regional rites ritual sabhā Samdhyā śamī Sanskrit sarees satī says scene Singanallur Sītā Śiva South Arcot south Indian symbolism tāli Tamil Tamilnadu terukkūttu themes tion traditions twins Uttarā Vanniyars Vedic village Visnu worship Yudhisthira
Bibliographic information
| Title | When the Goddess was a Woman: Mah?bh?rata Ethnographies - Essays by Alf Hiltebeitel Numen Book Series - Studies in the History of Religion - Texts and Sources in the History of Religions Volume 132 of Numen Book Series Volume 132 of Studies in the history of religions : Numen book series Volume 132 of Studies in the history of religions Texts and sources in the history of religion |
| Author | Alf Hiltebeitel |
| Editors | Vishwa Adluri, Joydeep Bagchee |
| Edition | illustrated |
| Publisher | BRILL, 2011 |
| ISBN | 9004193804, 9789004193802 |
| Length | 672 pages |
| Subjects | › › Religion / Hinduism / General |
| Export Citation | BiBTeX EndNote RefMan |