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  • Open Daily: 10am - 10pm
    Alley-side Pickup: 10am - 7pm

    3038 Hennepin Ave Minneapolis, MN
    612-822-4611

Open Daily: 10am - 10pm | Alley-side Pickup: 10am - 7pm
3038 Hennepin Ave Minneapolis, MN
612-822-4611
The Literary Life of Yājñavalkya

The Literary Life of Yājñavalkya

Lindquist, Steven E.

Hardcover

Series: Suny Hindu Studies

Literary CriticismHinduismIndian & South Asian History

ISBN10: 1438495625
ISBN13: 9781438495620
Publisher: St Univ Of New York Pr
Published: Dec 1 2023
Pages: 348
Weight: 1.50
Height: 0.94 Width: 6.00 Depth: 9.00
Language: English

A literary and historical investigation into an ancient Indian religious thinker, tracing his rise in importance in the Hindu tradition.

In this fascinating study, Steven E. Lindquist investigates the intersections between historical context and literary production in the life of Yājñavalkya, the most important ancient Indian literary figure prior to the Buddha. Known for his sharp tongue and deep thought, Yājñavalkya is associated with a number of firsts in Indian religious literary history: the first person to discuss brahman and ātman thoroughly; the first to put forth a theory of karma and reincarnation; the first to renounce his household life; and the first to dispute with women in religious debate. Throughout early Indian history, he was seen as a priestly bearer of ritual authority, a sage of mystical knowledge, and an innovative propagator of philosophical ideas and religious law. Drawing on history, literary studies, ritual studies, Sanskrit philology, narrative studies, and philosophy, Lindquist traces Yājñavalkya's literary life-from his earliest mentions in ritual texts, through his developing biography in the Upaniṣads, and finally to his role as a hoary sage in narrative literature-offering the first detailed monograph on this central figure in early Indian religious and literary history.

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