In the letter to the Hebrews, we read 'At various times in the past and in various different ways, God spoke to our ancestors...' (Hebrews 1.1). 'At various times and in various ways', that is what this book is all about. Just how did God 'speak' to our ancestors? How did God make an abiding presence know in creation? It is an attempt to penetrate the varied manifestations of this Presence in the world and the religious sensitivities of humanity that help make us aware of this presence. This study revolves around the origins and ideas of the world's major living religions of the eastern half of the world. The different ways that eastern religions perceive the reality of the 'world of the sacred' is our focus.
Traditionally, research on the history of Asian religions has been marked by a bias for literary evidence, privileging canonical texts penned in ‘classical’ languages. Not only has a focus on literary evidence shaped the dominant narratives about the religious histories of Asia, in both scholarship and popular culture, but it has contributed to the tendency to study different religious traditions in relative isolation from one another. Today, moreover, historical work is often based on modern textual editions and, increasingly, on electronic databases. What may be lost, in the process, is the visceral sense of the text as artifact – as a material object that formed part of a broader material culture, in which the boundaries between religious traditions were sometimes more fluid than canonical literature might suggest. This volume brings together specialists in a variety of Asian cultures to discuss the methodological challenges involved in integrating material evidence for the reconstruction of the religious histories of South, Southeast, Central, and East Asia. By means of specific ‘test cases,’ the volume explores the importance of considering material and literary evidence in concert. What untold stories do these sources help us to recover? How might they push us to reevaluate historical narratives traditionally told from literary sources? By addressing these questions from the perspectives of different subfields and religious traditions, contributors map out the challenges involved in interpreting different types of data, assessing the problems of interpretation distinct to specific types of material evidence (e.g., coins, temple art, manuscripts, donative inscriptions) and considering the issues raised by the different patterns in the preservation of such evidence in different locales. Special attention is paid to newly-discovered and neglected sources; to our evidence for trade, migration, and inter-regional cultural exchange; and to geographical locales that served as "contact zones" connecting cultures. In addition, the chapters in this volume represent the rich range of religious traditions across Asia – including Hinduism, Buddhism, Taoism, Shinto, and Chinese religions, as well as Islam and eastern Christianities.
Publisher: Peter Lang Gmbh, Internationaler Verlag Der Wissenschaften
ISBN: 326103355X
Category: Asien
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For public consumption Gerhart Hauptmann was Germany's greatest naturalist writer. Another, private existence is however revealed in and by the religious studies he undertook from ca. 1885 to 1945. His quest for that which underlies man's diverse perspectives of the supernatural and binds them into a whole leads him to study Christianity, eastern religions, the writings of Jacob Boehme, etc. Material from Hauptmann's notebooks, diaries, marginalia from his personal library, and a careful examination of the texts he actually read, show the effects of this preoccupation on his thinking and works, as well as explains his intense interest in German mysticism and the philosophies of the East.
An introduction to the religious traditions of China, Korea, and Japan, covering the History, Beliefs, Structure, and Practices of Ancient Chinese Religion, Confucianism, Daoism, and Shinto. Richly illustrated with colourful photos, illustrations, maps and charts, as well as audio files and a selection of relevant ancient texts. This eBOOK provides a solid jargon-free introduction to the religions of Eastern Asia for college-level classes or for any reader seeking a neutral presentation of these traditions by an author who has taught extensively in the field for over three decades.
Mysticism and Eastern Religions, the fourth volume in the Collected Works and the third on Nightingale’s religion, begins with the publication for the first time of Florence Nightingale’s Notes on Devotional Authors of the Middle Ages, translations from and comments on the medieval (and some later) mystics who nourished her own life of faith. Next come her annotations of and comments on the Imitation of Christ, a book to which she turned in times of distress. The largest part of the volume consists of her Letters from Egypt, written 1849-50, a significant period in her own intellectual and spiritual development. Here we provide (for the first time) complete publication and include (also for the first time) material preparatory for the trip and reflections on it over the later years. The last section reports Nightingale’s correspondence and journal notes on Eastern religions, mainly Hinduism. Currently, Volumes 1 to 11 are available in e-book version by subscription or from university and college libraries through the following vendors: Canadian Electronic Library, Ebrary, MyiLibrary, and Netlibrary.
Excerpt from The Early Spread of Religious Ideas: Especially in the Far East The contents of this little book were delivered as lectures at the Indian Institute, Oxford 1; at New College, Hampstead at Cheshunt College; and in the Memorial Hall, Farringdon Street, at a meeting of the London Congregational Union. The lectures have now been changed into chapters, and various additions and corrections have been made. The main idea through all has been to sketch briefly the chief points in primaeval religious teaching. Having lived among the adherents of Eastern religions for forty five years, I have become strongly convinced that what good teaching their books contain is derived from early revelation. If research be carefully conducted, it will be possible to recover the primaeval history of mankind in religion, as in other branches of human progress. The result will be, as our aim ought to be, To vindicate Eternal Providence And justify the ways of God to man. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.
This masterful survey of world religions presents a clear and concise portrait of the history, beliefs, and practices of Eastern and Western religions. The authors, both respected scholars of world religions, have over 50 years of combined teaching experience. Their book is accessibly written for introductory classes, can be easily adapted for one- or two-semester courses, and employs a neutral approach for broad classroom use. The third edition has been revised throughout, with updated material on the history and contemporary configurations of each tradition and new sections addressing gender, sexuality, and the environment. It also includes effective sidebars, photographs, timelines, charts, calendars, glossaries, and a spelling guide. Online resources through Baker Academic's Textbook eSources include Powerpoint/Keynote slides, new maps and videos, and a large question bank of multiple-choice test questions (available to professors upon request).
An introduction to Eastern Religions (Hinduism, Buddhism, and East Asian Religions (Ancient Chinese, Confucian, Daoist, and Shinto), with Quick Facts pages for Jainism and Sikhism. Each chapter covers History, Beliefs, Structure, and Practices. Richly illustrated with colourful photos, illustrations, maps and charts, as well as audio files and a selection of relevant ancient texts. This eBOOK provides a solid, jargon-free introduction to eastern religious traditions for college-level classes or for any reader seeking a neutral presentation of these religions by an author who has taught extensively in the field of religion for over three decades.
