In Praise of the Goddess: The Devimahatmya and Its Meaning - Softcover

Softcover

ISBN 10: 089254080X ISBN 13: 9780892540808

Publisher: Nicolas-Hays, 2003

Synopsis

The spiritual classic, the Devimahatmya, is a central text for worshippers of the Hindu Goddess Devi. Written about 16 centuries ago, it addresses the perennial questions of the nature of the universe, humankind, and divinity. This is the first translation of the Devimahatmya to combine sound scholarship, the language skills of a native English speaker, and an insider's perspective based on 35 years of spiritual practice within the Hindu tradition.

About this title

From the Publisher:

"A brilliant, heartfelt translation that has retained with great sensitivity the poignancy of the original. A must for all who love the Goddess."—Priya Mookerjee, Artist and author of Pathway Ikons, the Wayside Art of India "Devadatta Kali’s translation of the Devimahatmya is a welcome text for Westerners doing lectio in wisdom birthed in the Hindu tradition. Our yearning heart is ever-inclined to name the felt desire that is ever-nourished, never satiated. His work is just in time for this lifetime!" —Mary Margaret Funk, Executive Director of Monastic Interreligious Dialogue "Few aspects of India's timeless spiritual tradition have been as misunderstood in the West as the worship of the Divine Mother. David Nelson's splendid edition of the Devimahatmya, In Praise of the Goddess, will go a long, long way toward setting things straight. It is a wonderful thing when the warmth of a real devotee fuels the passion for accuracy and the sheer lucidity that characterize the best sort of scholarly work, and this is exactly what the author has given us."—Carol Lee Flinders, author of Rebalancing the World and Enduring Grace. "Devimahatmya is the fundamental text of the Shakta Tantric tradition manifest in its most vibrant form. Devadatta Kali's effort to bring an authentic translation fulfills the needs of an increasing number of devotees of the Mother for an accurate manual for practice. His presentation of one of the most ancient cultures of the goddess worship illuminates an essential primary source for the growing scholarship on Tantric studies and provides a lucid analysis that ably meets scholarly purposes. With reliable translation, English transliteration, and the original Sanskrit text in the beautiful Devanagari font on one hand, and with his commentary full of insight and rigorous scholarship directed towards specific textual issues on the other, Devadatta Kali's In Praise of the Goddess bridges practice and scholarship in unassailable form."—Sthaneshwar Timalsina, Lecturer, Dept. of Asian & Near-Eastern Languages & Literature, Washington Univerity St. Louis

About the Author:

DEVADATTA KALI is a spiritual initiate of Swami Prabhavananda, who was also the spiritual guru of Christopher Isherwood and Aldous Huxley. He has been a resident at the Vedanta Society of Southern California and has worked for the Society’s publishing house, Vedanta Press. He currently serves on a panel of editors for Vedanta Press in connection with a forthcoming edition of the Prabhavananda-Isherwood translation of the Bhagavadgita. He belongs to several human rights organizations and is committed to social service as a volunteer helping the homeless and people with HIV/AIDS.

About this edition

• Publisher: Nicolas-Hays
• Publication date: 2003
• ISBN 10: 089254080X
• ISBN 13: 9780892540808
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 416