This book analyses the diverse ways in which women have been represented in the Purāṇic traditions in ancient India – the virtuous wife, mother, daughter, widow, and prostitute – against the socio-religious milieu around CE 300–1000. Purāṇas (lit. ancient narratives) are brahmanical texts that largely fall under the category of socio-religious literature which were more broad-based and inclusive, unlike the Smṛtis, which were accessible mainly to the upper sections of society. In locating, identifying, and commenting on the multiplicity of the images and depictions of women’s roles in Purāṇic traditions, the author highlights their lives and experiences over time, both within and outside the traditional confines of the domestic sphere. With a focus on five Mahāpurāṇas that deal extensively with the social matrix Viṣṇu, Mārkaṇḍeya Matsya, Agni, and Bhāgavata Purāṇas, the book explores the question of gender and agency in early India and shows how such identities were recast, invented, shaped, constructed, replicated, stereotyped, and sometimes reversed through narratives. Further, it traces social consequences and contemporary relevance of such representations in marriage, adultery, ritual, devotion, worship, fasts, and pilgrimage. This volume will be of interest to researchers and scholars in women and gender studies, ancient Indian history, religion, sociology, literature, and South Asian studies, as also the informed general reader.

This book looks at the representation and practice of chastity in selective ancient Indian texts. It studies how and when the concept originated and in what ways it was intertwined with the social, cultural, and economic notions of Indian society. Drawing on seminal Indian texts such as the MahāPurāṇas, Rāmāyaṇa, Mahābhārata, Sattasaī and the Jātakas, the volume delves into the social and reproductive rights of women through an examination of the norms of chastity, virginity, and Pātivratya, which were construed according to a patriarchal hierarchy of the society and implemented as a means of strengthening patriarchal authority. It also examines the interinfluence of various religious traditions that emerged on the very concept of chastity and the ideologies they later gave rise to. A comprehensive study of sexuality and gender in early India, the book will be indispensable to students, teachers, and researchers of gender studies, literature, women’s studies, women’s rights, feminism, South Asian studies, and social history of Ancient India.

The present book throws new light on the gradual development of the concept of Rudra-Siva in his animal, phallic and human forms, since the days of the Harappa Civilization. It examines how Siva, the composite Aryan-non-Aryan Divinity, was not only admitted but was ultimately crowned with an exalted position in the Brahmanical pantheon; how the bull once identified with the deity, was regulated to the position of a vahana; how phallism was related to Saivism and also how Siva, in his different forms, was represented in early Indian Art and the Art of Further India. The wide range and depth of the author's research fills a vital gap in the subject and his treatment of the entire subject is unique. This methodical study on Siva also contains an exhaustive bibliography.

Focusing on the idea of genealogical affiliation (sampradāya), Kiyokazu Okita explores the interactions between the royal power and the priestly authority in eighteenth-century north India. He examines how the religious policies of Jaisingh II (1688-1743) of Jaipur influenced the self-representation of Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇavism, as articulated by Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa (ca. 1700-1793). Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇavism centred around God Kṛṣṇa was inaugurated by Caitanya (1486-1533) and quickly became one of the most influential Hindu devotional movements in early modern South Asia. In the increasingly volatile late Mughal period, Jaisingh II tried to establish the legitimacy of his kingship by resorting to a moral discourse. As part of this discourse, he demanded that religious traditions in his kingdom conform to what he conceived of as Brahmaṇicaly normative. In this context the Gauḍīya school was forced to deal with their lack of clear genealogical affiliation, lack of an independent commentary on the Brahmasūtras, and their worship of Goddess Radha and Kṛṣṇa, who, according to the Gauḍīyas, were not married. Based on a study of Baladeva's Brahmasūtra commentary, Kiyokazu Okita analyses how the Gauḍīyas responded to the king's demand.

The Lord Krsna abandoned his earthly mistresses who then spent their days of separation pining for his return. This powerful theme found expression not only in myth but also in the devotion and poetry of a religious culture that evolved in South India. From the fifth century A.D., the Tamils absorbed many elements from the classical traditions of the North, such as yoga, the temple worship and Krsna myths, and the results were unique blends of the two civilizations. Viraha-bhakti, as the author styles this type of Krsna religion, imbued the theme of separation with erotic and ecstatic features and evolved as one of the highlights of Indian religion and culture. The present work is a detailed study of the multifarious origins of Viraha-bhakti in South India and its developments up to the point at which it entered the pan-Indian scene. The study suggests a revision of the monolithic image of Indian religion implied in much scholarly literature. It differentiates a great variety of interacting traditions and milieux and demonstrates the dynamism of Indian culture. By identifying a specific type of religion and reflecting on its significance, the author attempts, at the same time, to go beyond purely textual and historical considerations. Thus the book will be of interest to any student of Indian religion and culture.