PL

The Temple Road Towards a Great India

Birla Mandirs as a Strategy for Reconstructing Nation and Tradition

Series: The Vastness of Culture

Pages: 580 Book format: 15x23 cm Publication date: 2019 E-book publication date: 31.05.2021

Book description

This book presents an analysis of the foundations organised by the Birla family in India. Several generations were involved in the renovation and establishment of sanctuaries, temples and other sacral buildings. As a result, between 1933 and 1998, nineteen Birla Mandirs were established, mainly in northern and central India. All the temples have the capacity to surprise with their various decorative motifs, not seen in other places, which – apart from their aesthetic function – above all bear important symbolic content.   Therefore, is it possible to treat the Birla Mandirs as a specific medium – the carrier of a particular message that is not only religious, but with a significance that permeates other layers of social and political discourse. This message, as the authors of the book claim,  have a bearing on the socio-political thought of India – supported by the creation and propagation of ideas related to identity and a national art. It also conveys the idea of hierarchical Hindu inclusivism which, although considering all religions as equal, treats Hinduism in a unique way – seeing within it the most perfect form of religion, giving man the opportunity to learn the highest truth. The book also examines whether the temples founded by the Birla family and the religious activities undertaken therein apply the concept of “inventing” tradition, and whether traditions created (or “modernised”) in contemporary times are a way of enhancing the appeal of the message conveyed from temple to society.

The Vastness of Culture” is a series of publications presenting cultural studies and emphasizing the role of comparative research and analyses that reveal similarities, differences and intercultural influences. In our publications, cultures and civilizations are in a state of constant flux, engaging in dialogue, creating new understandings, competing for meaning under the influence of global content,  without any clear boundaries, but with a vastness that forces questions to be raised.

Prof. Marta Kudelska is the Chair of the Centre for Comparative Studies of Civilisations, Jagiellonian University in Krakow. Her research interests include Indian philosophy and Sanskrit literature.

Prof. Dorota Kamińska-Jones is a lecturer in the Faculty of Fine Arts at the Nicolaus Copernicus University in Torun. She is also lecturer of Indology at the University of Warsaw. Her research interests include the art and culture of India and Great Britain, above all from  the period of the Empire, feminism, colonialism and intercultural relations; she is particularly concerned with issues related to womanhood.

Dr Agnieszka Staszczyk is an assistant professor in the Centre for Comparative Studies of Civilisations at the Jagiellonian University in Krakow. Her research concerns the art of the Indian subcontinent—especially early iconography, the origin and cultural function of religious representations, and the architecture of modern temples.

Dr Agata Świerzowska is an assistant professor in the Centre for Comparative Studies of Civilisations at the Jagiellonian University in Krakow. Her field of interest covers the theory of religion and contemporary changes in religion and spirituality seen from an inter-cultural perspective.
ISBN: 978-83-233-4646-3
e-ISBN (pdf): 978-83-233-9986-5
Country of producer: Poland

RECOMMENDED BOOKS

Victoria M. Boone

Wychowując dziecko z autyzmem

(Paperback with flaps)

37.00 zł
29.60 zł
Book cover Terapia rodzin oparta na mentalizacji
Eia Asen, Peter Fonagy

Terapia rodzin oparta na mentalizacji

(Paperback with flaps)

62.00 zł
49.60 zł
ed. John R. Weisz, Alan Kazdin

Metody w psychoterapii dzieci i młodzieży oparte na dowodach

(Paperback with flaps)

105.00 zł
84.00 zł
Barry Hatton

Lizbona

(Paperback with flaps)

49.99 zł
39.99 zł

NEW BOOKS

Book cover Potęga języka
Viorica Marian

Potęga języka

( Paperback with flaps )

74.00 zł
59.20 zł
Book cover Bohemiada konstytucyjna
Marek Bankowicz

Bohemiada konstytucyjna

( Hardcover )

51.45 zł
41.16 zł
Book cover Droga herbaty
Aaron Fisher

Droga herbaty

( Paperback with flaps )

62.00 zł
49.60 zł
Book cover W poszukiwaniu doskonałości dydaktycznej
ed. Iwona Maciejowska , Anna Sajdak-Burska

W poszukiwaniu doskonałości dydaktycznej

( Paperback )

48.30 zł
38.64 zł
Book cover ASEAN
Jan Wiktor Tkaczyński

ASEAN

( Hardcover )

51.45 zł
41.16 zł
Book cover Zaburzenia obsesyjno-kompulsyjne. Wydanie drugie
Jon Hershfield , Tom Corboy

Zaburzenia obsesyjno-kompulsyjne. Wydanie drugie

( Paperback with flaps )

55.99 zł
44.79 zł
Book cover Człowiek, samorząd i państwo wobec zagrożeń zabytków w trakcie pokoju i w czasie wojny
ed. Piotr Dobosz , Adam Kozień , Joanna Kotulska , Aleksander Pyrzyk , Tomasz Waltoś

Człowiek, samorząd i państwo wobec zagrożeń zabytków w trakcie pokoju i w czasie wojny

( Paperback )

47.25 zł
37.80 zł
Book cover 25 milionów iskier
Andrew Leon Hanna

25 milionów iskier

( Paperback with flaps )

45.00 zł
36.00 zł
Book cover W sieci mediów społecznościowych
Aleksandra Powierska

W sieci mediów społecznościowych

( Paperback )

51.45 zł
41.16 zł
Book cover Źródła i sensy
ed. Justyna Kiliańczyk-Zięba , Magdalena Komorowska

Źródła i sensy

( Hardcover )

61.95 zł
49.56 zł
Book cover Lęk u dzieci. Wydanie II
Ronald Rapee , Ann Wignall , Susan Spence , Vanessa Cobham , Heidi Lyneham

Lęk u dzieci. Wydanie II

( Paperback with flaps )

58.99 zł
47.19 zł
Book cover Rachunkowość zarządcza i rachunek kosztów w teorii i studiach przypadków
51.45 zł
41.16 zł
Book cover Z wrażliwości serca…
Janina Kostkiewicz

Z wrażliwości serca…

( Paperback with flaps )

49.35 zł
39.48 zł
Book cover Dramaturgia fragmentu
Włodzimierz Szturc

Dramaturgia fragmentu

( Paperback with flaps )

49.35 zł
39.48 zł
Book cover Separacje
ed. Bogusława Piasecka , Katarzyna Morajda

Separacje

( Paperback with flaps )

48.90 zł
39.12 zł
Book cover Cyfrowa socjologia jakościowa
Grzegorz Bryda

Cyfrowa socjologia jakościowa

( Paperback )

54.60 zł
43.68 zł
Book cover Azjatycka Wielka Gra
Piotr Kłodkowski

Azjatycka Wielka Gra

( Paperback with flaps )

93.45 zł
74.76 zł
Book cover Przenikania
ed. Anna Walczuk , Józef Kuffel

Przenikania

( Paperback )

48.30 zł
38.64 zł
Book cover Uzależnienia i emocje
Rebecca E. Williams , Julie S. Kraft

Uzależnienia i emocje

( Paperback with flaps )

46.00 zł
36.80 zł
Book cover Normatywne aspekty terapii zaawansowanych
Włodzimierz Galewicz , Wojciech Ciszewski , Olga Dryla , Piotr Grzegorz Nowak

Normatywne aspekty terapii zaawansowanych

( Paperback )

51.45 zł
41.16 zł

Our website uses the cookies.

Read more...