Discusses the classical Hindu texts like Bhagavad G?t?, Vedas, Pur?]nas, and Br?hma]nas, etc., from classical to modern age, from the perspective of comparative studies.
The book touches upon certain tools and approaches, which are an essential part of the curriculum taught in the religious studies classes, such as etymological understanding of certain Sanskrit terms used in Hindu sacred texts, problem of inconsistencies and contradictions in reading the Hindu religious texts, approach to the Upani]sads from the medieval and modern commentaries given by the contemporary scholars, understanding of religious texts in the light of modern-day period, and comparative studies of Hindu texts with the Semitic religions' sacred texts.
The author sheds a new light in the field of comparative studies in Hinduism. This book is beneficial for those who are interested in the history of Hinduism, Hindu hermeneutics, Hindu philosophy and scholars of Sanskrit literature and language. Since comparative religions and theological studies is one of the most popular discipline in the western universities, this book is also important for those students, professors and scholars, who are interested in Hindu studies, inter-faith understanding and dialogues and also to the scholars in codicology and palaeography.
Foreword by Kalus K. Klostermaier
A Historical Explanation of the Etymology of the Word Asvattha 1
An Analysis of Three Epithets Applied to the Sudras in Aitareya Brahmana 7
A Comparison of Medieval and Modern Hindu Interpretations of Chandogya Upanisad 39
The Eternality of the Vedas and the Quran: A Comparative Study 47
The Bhagavad Gita: A Study in Contradiction 69
A Content on Sankara's Commentary on Bhagavad Gita XVIII 1 103
The Gandhian Hermeneutical Approach to the Gita 121
A Note on H. H. Wilson's Interpretation of the Role of Rajas in Cosmic Creation in the Visnu Purana 135
The Notion of Cyclical Time in Hinduism 143
Indices
Arabic 165
Sanskrit 166
Author 171
Subject 174
Arvind Sharma is the Birks Professor of Comparative Religion, at McGill University, Canada. He completed his masters in Theological Studies (1974), and obtained his Ph.D. (1978) from the Department of Sanskrit and Indian Studies, at Harvard University. He published several books, including Gandhi: A Spiritual Biography; Hinduism and its Sense of History; Religious Studies; Comparative Methodology: The Case for Reciprocal Illumination and One Religion, too Many, etc.
