India - a Sacred Geography

Eck, Diana L.:
India : a Sacred Geography / by Diana L. Eck. - New York : Harmony Books, 2012. - x, 559 S. : Ill., Kt.
ISBN 978-0-385-53190-0
US$ 27,00 (Hardcover)
ISBN 978-0-385-53191-7
US$ 13,99 (eBook)
DDC: 294.50954

Beschreibung
No matter where one goes in India, one will find a landscape in which mountains, rivers, forests, and villages are elaborately linked to the stories of the gods and heroes of Indian culture. Every place in this vast landscape has its story, and conversely, every story of Hindu myth and legend has its place. Likewise, these places are inextricably tied to one another—not simply in the past, but in the present—through the local, regional, and transregional practices of pilgrimage.
   India: A Sacred Geography tells the story of the pilgrim’s India. In these pages, Diana Eck takes the reader on an extraordinary spiritual journey through the living landscape of this fascinating country –its mountains, rivers, and seacoasts, its ancient and powerful temples and shrines. Seeking to fully understand the sacred places of pilgrimage from the ground up, with their stories, connections and layers of meaning, she acutely examines Hindu religious ideas and narratives and shows how they have been deeply inscribed in the land itself. Ultimately, Eck shows us that from these networks of pilgrimage places, India’s very sense of region and nation has emerged. This is the astonishing and fascinating picture of a land linked for centuries not by the power of kings and governments, but by the footsteps of pilgrims.
   India: A Sacred Geography offers a unique perspective on India, both as a complex religious culture and as a nation. Based on her extensive knowledge and her many decades of wide-ranging travel and research, Eck's piercing insights and a sweeping grasp of history ensure that this work will be in demand for many years to come. [Random House]

Inhalt
Note on Transliteration and Pronunciation. ix
1. A Sacred Geography, and Imagined Landscape. 1
2. "What is India?" 43
3. Rose Apple Island: India in the Lotus of the World. 107
4. The Gangā and the Rivers of India. 131
5. Shiva's Light in the Land of India. 189
6. Shakti, the Distribution of the Body of the Goddess. 257
7. Vishnu, Endless and Descending. 301
8. The Land and Story of Krishna. 347
9. Following Rāma: The Rāmāyana on the Landscape of India. 399
10. A Pilgrim's India Today. 441
Acknowledgments. 457
Glossary. 461
Bibliography. 475
Notes. 493
Index. 541

Autorin
DIANA L. ECK is professor of comparative religion and Indian studies at Harvard University and is Master of Lowell House and Director of the Pluralism Project. Her book Banaras, City of Light, remains a classic in the field, and Encountering God: A Spiritual Journey from Bozeman to Banaras won the prestigious Grawemeyer Book Award. In 1998, President Clinton awarded her the National Humanities Medal for the work of the Pluralism Project in the investigation of America's changing religious landscape. Profile page. Homepage.

Quellen: Random House; WorldCat; Amazon; Library of Congress