UNDERSTANDING HINDU TANTRA
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03 Aug
12 Aug
2021
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Yoga and Tantra
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Gavin Flood
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Image: A tantric form of the Hindu Goddess Kali. Folio from a book of Iconography, Nepal, 17th century.
This course presents an overview of the history, beliefs and practices of the tantric traditions that developed from the early medieval period. We will examine the heyday of Tantrism from around the 8th to 13th centuries and raise critical questions about how best to understand these complex forms of belief and practice and whether they have anything to say to us today. We will begin with the historical context within which the tantric traditions arose and with a clarification of terminology. The word ‘tantra’ is, of course, a Sanskrit term referring to texts regarded as a revelation from God (Śiva at first) that arose in the early medieval period, initially within Hinduism and later in Buddhism and Jainism. This new religion developed quite quickly and attracted the patronage of kings, spreading to South-East Asia and even into China and Japan. Tantric traditions are to this day important and thriving in India and Nepal and the course will trace their development.
Day 1: Tantra in Historical Context
Day 2: The Core Traditions of Śiva
Day 3: The Netra-tantra
Day 4: Other tantric traditions
Duration -
August 3, 5, 10, 12, 2021
Timing: 6:15 - 8:30 PM
Fees
Rs. 4,000 (For student discounts & international registrations kindly email info@jp-india.org)
Registrations Closed
Gavin Flood
Professor Gavin Flood FBA is Professor of Hindu Studies and Comparative Religion at Oxford University, Senior Research Fellow at Campion Hall, and Academic Director of the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies. His research is in the fields of Śaiva tantric traditions and comparative religion. Among his publications are Hindu Monotheism (Cambridge University Press, 2021), Religion and the Philosophy of Life (Oxford University Press, 2019) and The Truth Within: A History of Inwardness in Christianity, Buddhism, and Hinduism (Oxford University Press, 2014).