Re: [silk] Books about the Bhakti movement?

[Thaths]

My quest is definitely for a book written in an idiom and language I
understand. I am looking for a book that makes its arguments using
contemporary academic tools. In this idiom, words like 'logic', 'history'
and 'academic's are not slights. Which is why John Stratton Hawley's book
sounded promising.

Since I sent my previous email in this thread, I looked more into Hawley's
book (reading snippets in Google Books) and, while it has an interesting
theory to propose, it doesn't quite address the I question I originally
asked.

A friend of mine who is an Indian historian and an academic has pointed me
at some promising academics. I will update this thread when I read a little
on what they have to say.

Thaths

On Thu, Jun 22, 2017 at 5:58 PM Srini RamaKrishnan  wrote:

> Historians and academicians of religion can occasionally be guilty of
> approaching an intuitive and lived experience largely beyond the grasp of
> the intellect with the cold stare of logic and ambition. They are like a
> computer generated Mondrian, or a film set of Auschwitz, they don't carry
> the life spirit no matter how accurate they get.
>
> This reminds me of a joke, there is an ambitious novice monk somewhere who
> is so fast he finishes an hour's meditation in fifteen minutes.
>
>
> On Jun 22, 2017 10:18 AM, "Sriram Karra"  wrote:
>
> I would love to hear your views on the book once you have read it. I am
> basically alarmed / amused by the blurbs on amazon.com (partly reproduced
> below) which go against everything we as practicing Hindus have learned.
>
> *"Challenging this canonical narrative, John Stratton Hawley clarifies the
> historical and political contingencies that gave birth to the concept of
> the bhakti movement. Starting with the Mughals and their Kachvaha allies,
> North Indian groups looked to the Hindu South as a resource that would give
> religious and linguistic depth to their own collective history. Only in the
> early twentieth century did the idea of a bhakti “movement” crystallize―in
> the intellectual circle surrounding Rabindranath Tagore in Bengal." *
>
> (Emphasis added)
>
> Perhaps the author is defining the "Bhakti Movement" (or at a minimum the
> word "crystallize" in that context) in a very specific way ...
>
> On Wed, Jun 21, 2017 at 12:13 PM, Thaths  wrote:
>
> > This book seems to be the one I am looking for:
> >
> > A Storm of Songs: India and the Idea of the Bhakti Movement
> >  by John Stratton Hawley.
> >
> > Thaths
> >
> > On Wed, May 31, 2017 at 3:52 PM Thaths  wrote:
> >
> > > I am looking for a book that explores the origins of, and gradual
> spread
> > > of the Bhakti movement in India. Not  interested in one specific strand
> > of
> > > Bhakti. More interested in understanding the economic, social and
> > cultural
> > > conditions that led to the rise of these movements across India.
> > >
> > > Have you come across such a book?
> > >
> > >
> > > Thaths
> > >
> > >
> > >
> >
>

Re: [silk] Books about the Bhakti movement?

[Srini RamaKrishnan]

Historians and academicians of religion can occasionally be guilty of
approaching an intuitive and lived experience largely beyond the grasp of
the intellect with the cold stare of logic and ambition. They are like a
computer generated Mondrian, or a film set of Auschwitz, they don't carry
the life spirit no matter how accurate they get.

This reminds me of a joke, there is an ambitious novice monk somewhere who
is so fast he finishes an hour's meditation in fifteen minutes.


On Jun 22, 2017 10:18 AM, "Sriram Karra"  wrote:

I would love to hear your views on the book once you have read it. I am
basically alarmed / amused by the blurbs on amazon.com (partly reproduced
below) which go against everything we as practicing Hindus have learned.

*"Challenging this canonical narrative, John Stratton Hawley clarifies the
historical and political contingencies that gave birth to the concept of
the bhakti movement. Starting with the Mughals and their Kachvaha allies,
North Indian groups looked to the Hindu South as a resource that would give
religious and linguistic depth to their own collective history. Only in the
early twentieth century did the idea of a bhakti “movement” crystallize―in
the intellectual circle surrounding Rabindranath Tagore in Bengal." *

(Emphasis added)

Perhaps the author is defining the "Bhakti Movement" (or at a minimum the
word "crystallize" in that context) in a very specific way ...

On Wed, Jun 21, 2017 at 12:13 PM, Thaths  wrote:

> This book seems to be the one I am looking for:
>
> A Storm of Songs: India and the Idea of the Bhakti Movement
>  by John Stratton Hawley.
>
> Thaths
>
> On Wed, May 31, 2017 at 3:52 PM Thaths  wrote:
>
> > I am looking for a book that explores the origins of, and gradual spread
> > of the Bhakti movement in India. Not  interested in one specific strand
> of
> > Bhakti. More interested in understanding the economic, social and
> cultural
> > conditions that led to the rise of these movements across India.
> >
> > Have you come across such a book?
> >
> >
> > Thaths
> >
> >
> >
>