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This volume is a systematic and comprehensive introduction to one of the most read texts in South Asia, the Bhagavad-gita. It brings together themes such as the Gita's structure, the history of its exegesis, its acceptance by different traditions within Hinduism, and its global relevance.
List of contents
1. The Bhagavad-gītā and its contents 2. The structure of the Bhagavad-gītā 3. Bhagavad-gītā: its philosophy and interpretation 4. Śaṅkara’s deconstruction of the Bhagavad-gītā grounded in his preunderstanding 5. The soteriology of devotion, divine grace, and teaching: Bhagavad-gītā and the Śrīvaiṣṇavas 6. Karma in the Bhagavad-gītā: Caitanya Vaiṣṇava views 7. The greatness of the Gītā, as icon and mantra 8. The Bhagavad-gītā and Indian nationalist movement: Tilak, Gandhi, and Aurobindo 9. The Gītā of the gurus: the Bhagavad-gītā since Indian independence 10. Arjuna and Acyuta: the import of epithets in the Bhagavad-gītā
About the author
Ithamar Theodor is an associate professor of Hindu studies at Zefat Academic College, Safed, Israel, and the director of the Hindu-Jewish studies programme at Bar-Ilan University, Israel. His publications include Exploring the Bhagavadgītā: Philosophy, Structure and Meaning (2010), The Fifth Veda in Hinduism: Philosophy, Poetry and Devotion in the Bhāgavata Purāṇa (2016) and Dharma and Halacha: Comparative Studies in Hindu-Jewish Philosophy and Religion (2018).
Summary
This volume is a systematic and comprehensive introduction to one of the most read texts in South Asia, the Bhagavad-gita. It brings together themes such as the Gita’s structure, the history of its exegesis, its acceptance by different traditions within Hinduism, and its global relevance.
