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Gods, Guardians, and Lovers

Author : Vishakha N. Desai

Publisher : University of Washington Press

Page : 296 pages

File Size : 35,35 MB

Release : 1993

Category : Art

ISBN :

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Book Description

Celestial lovers, guardian deities, gods, goddesses, semidivine and human forms bedeck the magnificient, elaborately sculpted medieval temples of northern India. This handsome catalog of an exhibition at the Asia Society in New York City explains that each temple, rich in symbolism and sacred geometry, was viewed as a microcosmic model of cosmic creation and order. Led by Desai, director of the Asia Society Galleries, and Mason of Boston's Museum of Fine Arts, six scholars discuss the historical background, patterns of royal patronage, architectural placement of images and Hindu stories and hymns as keys to the cult of temple images and to the medieval worship service, "an elaborate multisensory experience." Nearly 200 color and black-and-white plates document a major architectural and sculptural legacy.



Valen: An Enemies-to-Lovers Greek Gods Paranormal Romance

Author : Felicity Heaton

Publisher : Felicity Heaton Paranormal Romances

Page : 462 pages

File Size : 17,53 MB

Release : 2017-02-25

Category : Fiction

ISBN : 1911485113

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Book Description

Prince of the Underworld and Lord of Lightning, Valen was banished from his home by his father, Hades, two centuries ago and given a new duty and purpose—to keep our world and his from colliding in a calamity foreseen by the Moirai. Together with his six brothers, he fights to defend the gates to the Underworld from daemons bent on breaching them and gaining entrance to that forbidden land, striving to protect his home from their dark influence. Cursed by Zeus to never know love again, Valen has brought up barriers around his heart to protect it, but with each new barrier he creates, the dark hold his power has over him grows, becoming all he needs. Until the night he finally crosses paths with the assassin who has been watching him from the shadows, a bewitching mortal possessing the name of an angel and the skills of a devil—a woman who awakens his passionate heart and stirs dangerous desires. Eva has built a fearsome reputation for herself in Italy’s underworld, but her latest job in her beloved city of Rome has left her feeling that she has stepped into a dangerous world and this mission might end in her death—either at the hands of her mysteriously seductive client or by the blade of the wickedly alluring warrior who is her target. As the threat from the daemons escalates and more than just the Rome gate becomes their target, will Valen be strong enough to face the fears in his heart and the ghosts of his past to claim everything he desires or will they lure him deeper under their spell and into the darkness? Valen is the second novel in the Guardians of Hades Romance series. This paranormal romance features a Greek god of lightning with a bad attitude, an Italian assassin sent to kill him, and a cast of sizzling Greek god brothers determined to protect the Underworld and their father Hades, plus lots of action and adventure--and steamy scenes! All Guardians of Hades books have no cliffhangers, a guaranteed happily ever after, and some strong language. Enjoy! Grab your copy today and step into an action-packed paranormal romance world filled with mythology and mystery from New York Times and USA Today best-selling paranormal romance author Felicity Heaton. Be swept up in the story and characters as the princes of the Underworld fight to protect their world and ours, and the women who claim their hearts, from an enemy bent on destroying everything in the Guardians of Hades romance series: Book 1: Ares Book 2: Valen Book 3: Esher Book 4: Marek Book 5: Calistos Book 6: Daimon Book 7: Keras Book 8: Thanatos Book 9: Hades - Coming Soon! Keywords: paranormal, paranormal romance, paranormal romance books for adults, Greek gods, greek gods romance, gods romance, immortals, immortal romance, Greek mythology, Greek myths, fantasy romance, alpha hero, strong heroine, action, long series, adventure, no cliffhangers, guaranteed HEA, happily ever after



Rites of the God-King

Author : Marko Geslani

Publisher : Oxford University Press

Page : 337 pages

File Size : 24,56 MB

Release : 2018-06-08

Category : Religion

ISBN : 0190862890

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Book Description

Scholars of Vedic religion have long recognized the centrality of ritual categories to Indian thought. There have been few successful attempts, however, to bring the same systematic rigor of Vedic Scholarship to bear on later "Hindu" ritual. Excavating the deep history of a prominent ritual category in "classical" Hindu texts, Geslani traces the emergence of a class of rituals known as santi, or appeasement. This ritual, intended to counteract ominous omens, developed from the intersection of the fourth Veda - the oft-neglected Atharvaveda - and the emergent tradition of astral science (Jyotisastra) sometime in the early first millennium, CE. Its development would come to have far-reaching consequences on the ideal ritual life of the king in early-medieval Brahmanical society. The mantric transformations involved in the history of santi led to the emergence of a politicized ritual culture that could encompass both traditional Vedic and newer Hindu performers and practices. From astrological appeasement to gift-giving, coronation, and image worship, Rites of the God-King chronicles the multiple lives and afterlives of a single ritual mode, unveiling the always-inventive work of the priesthood to imagine and enrich royal power. Along the way, Geslani reveals the surprising role of astrologers in Hindu history, elaborates conceptions of sin and misfortune, and forges new connections between medieval texts and modern practices. In a work that details ritual forms that were dispersed widely across Asia, he concludes with a reflection on the nature of orthopraxy, ritual change, and the problem of presence in the Hindu tradition.



Temple to Love

Author : Pika Ghosh

Publisher : Indiana University Press

Page : 286 pages

File Size : 12,25 MB

Release : 2005

Category : Architecture

ISBN : 9780253344878

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Book Description

Includes 82 stunning black-and-white images of rarely photographed structures.Published in association with the American Institute of Indian Studies



Hanuman's Tale

Author : Philip Lutgendorf

Publisher : Oxford University Press

Page : 449 pages

File Size : 14,25 MB

Release : 2007-01-11

Category : Religion

ISBN : 0199885826

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Book Description

Hanuman, the devoted monkey helper of Rama and Sita, has long been recognized as a popular character in India's ancient Ramayana epic. But more recently he has also become one of the most beloved and worshiped gods in the Hindu pantheon - enshrined in majestic new temples, but equally present in poster art, advertising, and mass media. Drawing on Sanskrit and vernacular texts, classical iconography and modern TV serials, and extensive fieldwork and interviews, Philip Lutgendorf challenges the academic cliché of Hanuman as a "minor" or "folk" deity by exploring his complex and growing role in South Asian religion and culture. This wide-ranging study examines the historical evolution of Hanuman's worship, his close association with Shiva and goddesses, his invocation in tantric ritual, his physical immortality and enduring presence in sacred sites, and his appeal to devotees who include scholars, wrestlers, healers, politicians, and middle-class urbanites. Lutgendorf also offers a rich array of entertaining stories not previously available in English: an expanding epic cycle that he christens the "Hanumayana." Arguing that Hanuman's role as cosmic "middle man" is intimately linked to his embodiment in a charming and provocative simian form, Lutgendorf moves beyond the Indian subcontinent to interrogate the wider human fascination with anthropoid primates as boundary beings and as potent signifiers of both Self and Other.



The Body Adorned

Author : Vidya Dehejia

Publisher : Columbia University Press

Page : 262 pages

File Size : 15,63 MB

Release : 2009-02-26

Category : History

ISBN : 9780231512664

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Book Description

The sensuous human form-elegant and eye-catching-is the dominant feature of premodern Indian art. From the powerful god Shiva, greatest of all yogis and most beautiful of all beings, to stone dancers twisting along temple walls, the body in Indian art is always richly adorned. Alankara (ornament) protects the body and makes it complete and attractive; to be unornamented is to invite misfortune. In The Body Adorned, Vidya Dehejia, who has dedicated her career to the study of Indian art, draws on the literature of court poets, the hymns of saints and acharyas, and verses from inscriptions to illuminate premodern India's unique treatment of the sculpted and painted form. She focuses on the coexistence of sacred and sensuous images within the common boundaries of Buddhist, Jain, and Hindu "sacred spaces," redefining terms like "sacred" and "secular" in relation to Indian architecture. She also considers the paradox of passionate poetry, in which saints praised the sheer bodily beauty of the divine form, and nonsacred Rajput painted manuscripts, which freely inserted gods into the earthly realm of the courts. By juxtaposing visual and literary sources, Dehejia demonstrates the harmony between the sacred and the profane in classical Indian culture. Her synthesis of art, literature, and cultural materials not only generates an all-inclusive picture of the period but also revolutionizes our understanding of the cultural ethos of premodern India.



Al-Hind: The Slavic Kings and the Islamic conquest, 11th-13th centuries

Author : André Wink

Publisher : BRILL

Page : 444 pages

File Size : 42,70 MB

Release : 2002

Category : History

ISBN : 9780391041745

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Book Description

During the eleventh to thirteenth centuries, Islamic conquest and trade laid the foundation for a new type of Indo-Islamic society in which the organizational forms of the frontier and of sedentary agriculture merged in a way that was uniquely successful in the late medieval world at large, setting the Indo-Islamic world apart from the Middle East and China in the same centuries.



Awakened

Author : C.J. Anderson

Publisher : C.J. Anderson

Page : 346 pages

File Size : 14,27 MB

Release :

Category : Young Adult Fiction

ISBN :

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Book Description

Seventeen-year-old Dru Sanjay's family is part of an organization with operatives secretly placed around the globe to protect the planet from extraterrestrials. Moving is just part of the job. But this time it's different. To help Dru get control of his ability to shift, they have ended up in the middle of nowhere, U.S.A. and Dru hates it there with a passion! Until he sees her. He takes one look at her and feels a jolt of recognition. He can't explain it, but he feels like she has always been and will always be his. The attraction is instant and primal. But getting close to her could put her in danger. Is he willing to take that chance? Nothing extraordinary ever happens in Alayna West's sucky, predictable life. So, when she heads out to the first day of her senior year, she hardly expects to be approached by the hottest guy she's ever seen, much less feel drawn to him, like an imaginary cord is pulling them together. Meeting Dru has already turned her boring life upside-down, but when they are attacked by a mythical creature in the woods, Alayna learns that reality is truly stranger than fiction. Dru uses superpowers to fight the creature and things get even crazier when Alayna saves Dru's life with awakening powers of her own. Suddenly, the world around her makes no sense. Torn between her predictable life and the strange new possibilities, Alayna realizes that she must discover the truth about herself before she is ready to follow her heart. Just when Alayna thinks she's finally making sense out of the world, a dead body shows up and the police connect it back to Dru. Alayna finds herself questioning everything she has ever believed in again. But, to save herself and those she cares about, she must find the courage to do something that she would never have expected herself capable of doing. In the end, will the invisible thread that binds Dru and Alayna tear them apart - or will it become their salvation? HIGHLY RECOMMENDED FOR LOVERS OF SCI-FI, FANTASY, PARANORMAL, AND ROMANCE. THIS ONE IS SURE TO LEAVE YOU WANTING MORE.



Dakṣiṇa Kosala

Author : Natasja Bosma

Publisher :

Page : 338 pages

File Size : 40,39 MB

Release : 2018-06-01

Category : Religion

ISBN : 9492444682

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Book Description

This book deals with the early development of Śaivism in ancient Dakṣiṇa Kosala, the region that roughly corresponds to the modern state of Chhattisgarh, plus the districts of Sambalpur, Balangir and Kalahandi of Odhisha (formerly Orissa). At the end of the sixth and the beginning of the seventh century, this region was under the control of the Pāṇḍava king Śivagupta alias ‘Bālārjuna’ hailing from Śrīpura (the modern village of Sirpur), who was a great patron of religion. Epigraphical evidence, supported by archaeological remains, has shown that by the time of Śivagupta’s reign, which lasted for at least fifty-seven years, Dakṣiṇa Kosala was already a rich center of early Śaivism. In the context of this setting the following research questions were formulated: what circumstances fostered the rise and development of Śaivism in this area, and did the Skandapurāṇa, an important and contemporaneous religious scripture, play any role in that development? An answer to these questions would not only shed light on the religious processes at work in Dakṣiṇa Kosala, but would also touch upon the interplay of political, social, economic and geographical factors.



The Hegemony of Heritage

Author : Deborah L. Stein

Publisher : Univ of California Press

Page : 338 pages

File Size : 20,6 MB

Release : 2018-05-11

Category : History

ISBN : 0520968883

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Book Description

A free ebook version of this title is available through Luminos, University of California Press’s Open Access publishing program. Visit www.luminosoa.org to learn more. The Hegemony of Heritage makes an original and significant contribution to our understanding of how the relationship of architectural objects and societies to the built environment changes over time. Studying two surviving medieval monuments in southern Rajasthan—the Ambika Temple in Jagat and the Ékalingji Temple Complex in Kailaspuri—the author looks beyond their divergent sectarian affiliations and patronage structures to underscore many aspects of common practice. This book offers new and extremely valuable insights into these important monuments, illuminating the entangled politics of antiquity and revealing whether a monument’s ritual record is affirmed as continuous and hence hoary or dismissed as discontinuous or reinvented through various strategies. The Hegemony of Heritage enriches theoretical constructs with ethnographic description and asks us to reexamine notions such as archive and text through the filter of sculpture and mantra.