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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 Supreme Refuge: History, Myths, Worship, and Meanings of the Hindu Great Goddess, Durgā

The Supreme Refuge: History, Myths, Worship, and Meanings of the Hindu Great Goddess, Durgā

Rodrigues, Hillary P.

Paperback

Series: Suny Hindu Studies

Metaphysical GeneralAnthropologyHinduism

Currently unavailable to order

ISBN13: 9798855808865
Publisher: State University of New York Press
Pages: 412
Weight: 1.25
Height: 0.86 Width: 6.00 Depth: 9.00
Language: English

Demonstrates the historical and ritual forces that secured Durgā's position as Hinduism's Great Goddess, combining textual, inscriptional, and iconographic evidence with rich, firsthand accounts of contemporary worship.

This is the second installment in a two-volume, comprehensive examination of the Hindu Great Goddess (Mahādevī) Durgā. Whereas the first traced the goddess's emergence as Mahādevī through the sophisticated metaphysics of the Devī Māhātmya, the present work investigates the historical, regional, and ritual processes that further consolidated her supremacy across the Hindu world. Drawing together textual, inscriptional, and iconographic evidence with firsthand ethnographic observation, it first follows Durgā's development in India and Nepal before turning to Southeast Asia--especially Java and Bali--where her persona took on distinctive forms. With Banāras as a focal point, the analysis then examines major ritual institutions, including Durgā Pūjā and the temple networks associated with the Nine Durgā pilgrimage. It also explores both exoteric and esoteric dimensions of devotion, showing how ritual practice intersects with interpretations articulated through yantras, mantras, mythic narratives, and embodied performance. Taken together, these strands reveal how Durgā's appeal expanded beyond sovereign empowerment to encompass her roles as supreme refuge and ultimate reality--an enduring source of protection, grace, and ontological grounding for worshippers across the Hindu world.

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