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While the Gods Play

While the Gods Play

Paperback

$30.99 USD
$30.99 USD
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📦 Product Details

  • Author: Alain Daniélou
  • Publisher: Simon & Schuster
  • Publication Date: August 1, 1987
  • Language: English
  • Print Length: 304 pages
  • ISBN-10: 0892811153 
  • ISBN-13: 978-0892811151
  • Item Weight: 350 g

📖 About the Book

While the Gods Play is a study of the spiritual, philosophical, and cultural traditions of India, with particular attention to Hindu cosmology, mythology, and the concept of divine play (Lila).

Alain Daniélou explores the symbolic world of Indian traditions and examines how concepts of creation, destruction, time, consciousness, and the divine are understood through Hindu philosophy and mythology. The book offers readers an in-depth perspective on the relationship between mythology, spirituality, and the broader Indian worldview.

It is a valuable read for those interested in Indian philosophy, Hinduism, mythology, spirituality, and comparative religious studies.

According to the early writings of the Shaiva tradition--still alive in India and dating back at least 6,000 years--the arbitrary ideologies and moralistic religions of modern society signal the last days of humanity heading toward destruction. This prediction is only a fragment of the vast knowledge of Shaiva wisdom, author Alain Danielou as assimilated and reviewed essential concepts of the Shaiva philosophy and its predictions. Clearly expressed in the ancient teachings, these concepts are in accord with, yet surpass, the boldest scientific speculations about consciousness, time, the nature of life and matter, and the history and destiny of the human race. Inherent in this body of knowledge is an understanding of the cycles of creation and destruction which, in conjunction with astronomical phases, determine the life span of the species. Since 1939, humankind has been in the twilight of the Kali Yuga age, or at the end of a cycle. The impending cataclysm, Danielou explains, is brought on by our own errors, and its date will be determined by our present and future actions. While the Gods Play examines how the visionaries of ancient times defined our rose in creation. It explains why and how we have abandoned this role, and reflects on what action can be taken to consciously and creatively influence our own destiny. Included are chapters on The Religion of Nature and The Religion of the City, The Transmigrant Body, Sexual Rites, the Castes, Sacrifice, Magical Powers, Monastic Orders, and Forestalling the Final Day.

👤 About the Author

Alain Daniélou was a French musicologist, Indologist, and scholar of Indian culture and religion. He spent many years studying Indian philosophy, Sanskrit, music, and religious traditions, and wrote extensively on Hinduism and the cultural traditions of India.

One of the most distinguished living orientalists and a friend of Stravinsky, Jean Cocteau, and Nabokov, Daniélou spent more than 20 years in India studying music and philosophy. He wrote the acclaimed Gods of India and Shiva and Dionysus and produced a series of ethnic music recordings for UNESCO. Formerly director of the International Institute for Comparative Music Studies in Berlin and Venice, he is a Chevalier de la Légion d'Honneur, Chevalier des Arts et des lettres, and Officier du Mérite National.

From the Back Cover

According to the early writings of the Shaiva tradition--still alive in India and dating back at least 6,000 years--the arbitrary ideologies and moralistic religions of modern society signal the last days of humanity heading toward destruction. This prediction is only a fragment of the vast knowledge of Shaiva wisdom, author Alain Danielou as assimilated and reviewed essential concepts of the Shaiva philosophy and its predictions. Clearly expressed in the ancient teachings, these concepts are in accord with, yet surpass, the boldest scientific speculations about consciousness, time, the nature of life and matter, and the history and destiny of the human race. Inherent in this body of knowledge is an understanding of the cycles of creation and destruction which, in conjunction with astronomical phases, determine the life span of the species. Since 1939, humankind has been in the twilight of the Kali Yuga age, or at the end of a cycle. The impending cataclysm, Danielou explains, is brought on by our own errors, and its date will be determined by our present and future actions. While the Gods Play examines how the visionaries of ancient times defined our rose in creation. It explains why and how we have abandoned this role, and reflects on what action can be taken to consciously and creatively influence our own destiny. Included are chapters on The Religion of Nature and The Religion of the City, The Transmigrant Body, Sexual Rites, the Castes, Sacrifice, Magical Powers, Monastic Orders, and Forestalling the Final Day. One of the most distinguished living orientalists and a friend of Stravinsky, Jean Cocteau, and Nabokov, Danielou spent more than 20 years in India studying music and philosophy. He wrote the acclaimed Gods of India and Shiva and Dionysus and produced a series of ethnic music recordings for UNESCO. Formerly director of the International Institute for Comparative Music Studies in Berlin and Venice, he is a Chevalier de la Legion d'Honneur, Chevalier des Arts et des lettres, and Officier du Merite National.
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