-
Windows to World Rel...
Windows to World Religions
Selected Proceedings of the Global Congress on the Worlds Religions After September 11 by: Arvind SharmaA selection of papers presented at a global congress on World’s Religions after September 11, stressing the need for various religions to develop a better understanding of each other. The papers deal with Islamic, Christian, Bahai, Sikh, Primal and Hindu religious traditions and beliefs.
₹432.00
ISBN: 9788124604755
Year Of Publication: 2009
Edition: 1st
Pages : vii, 221
Bibliographic Details : Index
Language : English
Binding : Hardcover
Publisher: D.K. Printworld Pvt. Ltd.
Size: 23 cm.
Weight: 500
The volume is concerned with the role of religion in the present day. Presenting proceedings of a global Congress on Worlds Religions after September 11 held in September 2006 at Montreal, Canada, it stresses the need for interfaith friendships to develop understanding between faiths and remove stereotypes that have emerged concerning religious beliefs and their followers. Examining the thoughts of Western theologians and others on the role of religion, it discusses spirituality as being at the root of tolerance. The papers refer to Islamic, Christian Mennonite, Bahzi, Sikh and Hindu religious traditions and beliefs but bear specific reference to the North American Roman Catholic Retreat Centre at Pembroke, Ontario, Canada. They engage in examining specific topics pertaining to the different religious faiths and traditions. They examine the life of Guru Arjan Dev and his message and its significance today, the work of Mira Behn towards conserving the environment of the Himalayas, and the indigenous Australian Christian womens perception. The book provides a glimpse into the life, work and experiences of the spiritual women of Ramanashrama at Tiruvannamalai in Tamil Nadu and Ramanas views on womans right to spirituality, asceticism and salvation. It showcases the contribution of the Inter-religious Council of Central New York towards bringing people of different faiths and cultures into situations of mutual respect and trust. The volume includes the text of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Introduction
— Arvind Sharma
PAPERS
1. Polyphony and the Aesthetics of Interreligious Dialogue
— John N. Sheveland
2. Spirituality as the Root of Tolerance: Religion Practised at the Retreat Centre
— Paul Schwartzentruber
3. Interfaith Friendship: A Bridge to Peace
— Susan Kennel Harrison
4. A BahAi Perspective on Human Rights and the Worlds Religions After September 11
— Brian D. Lepard
5. Christian Missionary Activities in Turkey: Myth or Reality?
— Mustafa Koylu
6. The Life of Guru Arjan Dev and its Present-day Relevance
— P. S. Bhandari
7. Mira Behn: an Environmentalist of the Himalayas
— George James
8. How Australian Indigenous Women Transform Christianity
— Lee Miena Skye
9. Of Terror and Tranquillity: The Ramanashram — A Gendered Perspective
— Vijaya Ramaswamy
PANEL
Journey into Openness
10. Understandings of Interreligious Dialogue
— Mary N. MacDonald
11. Overview of the InterReligious Council of Central New York
— Rabbi Daniel A. Jezer
12. Ecology and Religion
— Rhea Jezer
13. The Work of the Education Committee of the InterReligious Council of Central New York
— Rev. James C. Bresnahan
PANEL
Responsibility Beyond Borders
14. Our Responsibility for Each Other
— Jehan Bagli
15. Our Responsibility for Each Other
— Roshni Kasad
Appendix: Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the Worlds Religions
The Contributors
Index
-
Sale!India and South-East Asia ₹3,240.00
The South-East is a cultural perspective aptly named agneyi the direction of the God Agni. It is reflected even in the Sino-Japanese Mahakarunagarbha mandala of the 8th century where Agni is surrounded by sages: Angiras with his consort Gautami and Atreya with his consort Bhrgvi. In the Pao-hsiang Lou pantheon Agni is surrounded by eight rsi’s Angiras, Vasistha, Garga, Markandeya, Gautama, Kasyapa, Shan-ch’eng-ming-yang and Su-chi-i (the Sanskrit names of the last two have to yet to be found). In Indic terms, the conceptual space of SE Asia endows it with the serenity of the mind, the grandeur of structures, the profundity of expression derived from Sanskrit. The SE is the mind ground of the sages, the rishis, and as such the marvellous manifestation of the Hindu-Buddhist genius. This book chronicles the dynamism, the fire, the Agni of the Agneya (SE) direction across the past that shades into the present with tomorrows inside.
-
Sale!Journey to the Centre of my Being ₹315.00
Jim Wilson is an adventurer: mountaineering; Antarctic exploration; adventure films with Sir Edmund Hillary (on one of which he drove a jet boat up Mother Ganga from ocean to sky); climbing and school building with Sir Edmund in the Everest region of Nepal; and sailing to Pacific islands in a small yacht. These physical adventures provide an exciting backdrop to this book.
But Jim is also a religious adventurer. He relates in depth, with clarity and humour, his long journey in search of a satisfying way of understanding and experiencing the true nature of his self, and of his place in this mysterious universe. Studying Western philosophy and theology moved him away from intense involvement in the liberal Christianity of his parents. So he looked to India, inexhaustible source of inspiration. For two years he studied Indian philosophy and religion at Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi. Then he taught for 23 years in the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies at the University of Canterbury, New Zealand, returning many times to India and Nepal.
Though profoundly moved by the religions he studied and taught about, he was unable to accept the metaphysical beliefs underpinning them. Increasingly, though, he became fascinated by modern scientific discoveries about the universe, and about our planet and the evolution of life on it. So he wove together elements from religious and scientific traditions. In particular, he took Adi Shankara’s Advaita, also known as spiritual monism, and applied it to the physical universe, adding in also feelings and attitudes from New Zealand’s indigenous Maori religion. He now believes that the centre of his being is the physical energy of the universe, with which, therefore, he is at one. He finds this deeply satisfying in understanding, and emotionally and morally experiencing, his place on this planet and in the universe. Because it owes so much to spiritual monism he calls it physical monism, or physical Advaita. -
Sale!MAHAMUDRA AND ATIYOGA ₹585.00
Mahāmudrā and Atiyoga are particular forms of Buddhist spirituality: Mahāmudrā, the ‘Great Seal’, is considered by Tibetan teachers to be the essence of both the short path and the final instructions that conclude the gradual common and esoteric paths of Buddhist doctrines; Atiyoga or ‘Extreme Union’ represents the Buddhist Dzogchen or ‘Great Completeness’ doctrine.
This volume comprises commentaries on and the transliteration of some ancient Tibetan texts, authored by Buddhist mystics and Tāntric teachers of Mahāmudrā and Atiyoga.
Translated from the Italian, the book is based on oral instructions received by the author from Tibetan teachers. It discusses the insights of the sacred texts and the commentaries on them with respect to the nature of consciousness and phenomenal existence, meditation on guru and deity, Tāntric sexuality, and the introduction to and realization of non-dual awareness.
Simple to understand, the commentaries explain the many meanings of the texts and the symbols and images used. They motivate readers to observe for themselves and personally experience the significance of the traditions and the application of their methods of practice.
The volume will be useful to all students and scholars of Buddhist studies, particularly of the Buddhist Tàntric tradition, and of Tibetan religion and culture. -
Sale!Ramayana Culture ₹720.00
These essays, originally presented at an international conference, are in the forefront of the modern response to an ancient work that has gained a new critical and social relevance in contemporary scholarship. Approaching the Ramayana from several angles in an attempt to understand its aesthetic and ideological meaning, they examine the epic through the perspectives of textual criticism, art, architecture and film. Thereby they address critical issues such as the seminal status of Valmiki, the underlying problem of canonicity itself, the importance of other — so-called derivative — Ramayanas, the implications of gender representation, and the cultural manipulation of social ideals relating to the position of women and the idealisation of love that achieves its highest value in marriage. Using the methods of rigorous textual and historical investigation, each essay seeks not only to uncover the layers of meaning in the complex structure of the epic in its varied forms but also to situate it critically in the cultures of South and Southeast Asia.
-
Sale!Akbar, The Aesthete ₹4,320.00
Mughal miniatures are a vivid account of the cultural, sociopolitical scenario of the Mughal era. Jalal-ud-Din Muhammad Akbar, the most powerful Mughal emperor, was a great aesthete and promoter of arts. Eminent Persian and Indian artists thronged his Royal Studio and were encouraged to paint numerous emotive miniatures of style and substance, communicating highly complex narratives. These miniatures are a beautiful manifestation of human expressions, vividly encapsulating moments of history for posterity.
This book combines the sources and methodology of history and art history of the Mughal era, and is an analysis of a select group of paintings of Akbar’s reign. The miniature paintings incorporate a wide variety of rich, vibrant and varied themes, ranging from durbar scenes, depicting Akbar in different moods and forms, the princes and nobles in their finery, hunting and battle scenes, elaborate scenes of royal births, construction scenes, ascetics, common man, and countryside scenes, to the flora and fauna. Individual analyses of these miniatures, shows the manner of their composition and the inherent value of their sociocultural content in a lively manner. These paintings became a passion and a diversion for Akbar, who had an innate aesthetic sense.
However, there are hardly any true-to-life paintings of women of the royal seraglio. This book thus attempts to cover some images of femininity, whether it is of Queen Alanquwa, Akbar’s mother, or of Madonna as sacred mothers, and women, per se, in different roles. These miniatures make one wonder how much these women contributed to the life of Mughal India.
This unique volume, having given transliteration and translation of the original Persian text of the miniatures, provides an insight into Akbar as an aesthete, and will help academics and laymen alike in appreciating the beauty and history of Akbar’s period.
