ISBN10: 019508327X, ISBN13: 9780195083279, [publisher: Oxford University Press Inc, New York] Hardcover Hardcover. The lesser known and explored of the two pillars of Hinduism--=a'srama and var.na--=a'srama is the name given to a system of four distinct and legitimate ways of leading a religious life: as a celibate student, a married householder, a forest hermit, and a world renouncer. In this, the first full-length study of the =a'srama system, Olivelle uncovers its origin and traces its subsequent history. He examines in depth itsrelationship to other institutional and doctrinal aspects of the Brahmanical world and its position within Brahmanical theology, and assesses its significance within the history of Indian religion. Throughout, he argues that the =a'srama system isprimarily a theological construct and that the system and its history should be carefully distinguished from the socio-religious institutions comprehended by the system and from their respective histories. A study of the asrama system, a Hindu construct consisting of four legitimate ways of leading a religious life. Olivelle traces its early history and how it gradually established connections with other Hindu religious institutions to emerge as one of the two central dimensions of the Hindu dharma. Shipping may be from our Sydney, NSW warehouse or from our UK or US warehouse, depending on stock availability.
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Oxford University Press OUP 1993 HARDBACK New P 292.