Jainism

Temple, Jain Temple, Ranakpur, Rajasthan, India Photographic Print
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Absent Lord: Ascetics and Kings in a Jain Ritual Culture (Comparative Studies in Religion and Society) By Lawrence A. Babb University of California Press Paperback (256 pages) List Price: $26.95* Lowest New Price: $20.35* Lowest Used Price: $2.97* Usually ships in 24 hours* *(As of 15:05 Pacific 10 Mar 2010 More Info) Click Here Product Description: What does it mean to worship beings that one believes are completely indifferent to, and entirely beyond the reach of, any form of worship whatsoever? How would such a relationship with sacred beings affect the religious life of a community? Using these questions as his point of departure, Lawrence A. Babb explores the ritual culture of image-worshipping Svetambar Jains of the western Indian states of Gujarat and Rajasthan. Jainism traces its lineages back to the ninth century B.C.E. and is, along with Buddhism, the only surviving example of India's ancient non-Vedic religious traditions. It is known and celebrated for its systematic practice of non-violence and for the intense rigor of the asceticism it promotes. A unique aspect of Babb's study is his linking of the Jain tradition to the social identity of existing Jain communities. Babb concludes by showing that Jain ritual culture can be seen as a variation on pan-Indian ritual patterns. In illuminating this little-known religious tradition, he demonstrates that divine "absence" can be as rich as divine "presence" in its possibilities for informing a religious response to the cosmos.

The Kalpa Sutra, and Nava Tatva: Two Works Illustrative of the Jain Religion and Philosophy By John Stevenson BiblioLife Paperback (176 pages) List Price: $21.75* Lowest New Price: $13.52* Lowest Used Price: $35.04* Usually ships in 24 hours* *(As of 15:05 Pacific 10 Mar 2010 More Info) Click Here

Theories of the Gift in South Asia: Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain Reflections on Dana (Religion in History, Society and Culture) By Maria Heim Routledge Hardcover (216 pages) List Price: $103.00* Lowest New Price: $84.85* Lowest Used Price: $80.75* Usually ships in 24 hours* *(As of 15:05 Pacific 10 Mar 2010 More Info) Click Here Product Description: This book explores the ethical and social implications of unilateral gifts of esteem, offering a perceptive guide to the uniquely South Asian contributors to theoretical work on the gift.