BHAKTI DATABASE
Bhakti Bibliography
SOURCE: http://sites.fas.harvard.edu/~fc12/Bibliography/09_Bhakti_Bibliography.html
Prentiss, Karen Pechilis. The Embodiment of Bhakti. New York: Oxford University Press, 1999.
–Though this work is primarily an in-depth study of a regional tradition of Tamil Shiva-bhakti (i.e, the nayanmars, cf. Poems to Shiva), it is valuable for its up-to-date and succinct summary of the history of the scholarly interpretation of ‘bhakti’as a category. As such, it is replete with references to ‘orientalists’ and the many scholars that have worked in this field, but through all the detail a broad sense of the ‘hot spots’ of the history and present state of bhakti studies can be gained. See especially Part I, pp. 13-41.
Edited Volumes
Eck, Diana and Francoise Mallison. Devotion Divine: Bhakti Traditions from the Regions of India. Paris: Ecole Francaise D’Extreme-Orient, 1991.
–A collection of essays in tribute to the work of french scholar Charlotte Vaudeville. In keeping with this purpose, the essays approach Hinduism and bhakti mainly (though not exclusively) through their ‘folk’ origins. Essays on manifestations of bhakti such as the significance of the worship of footprints (Bakker, pp. 19-37) and on the dog as a symbol of bhakti itself (Tulpule, pp. 273-285).
Lele, Jayant, ed. Tradition and Modernity in Bhakti Movements. Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1981.
–Though a bit dated, this is the only collection of essays (that I have found) organized around the question of bhakti and modernization. Particular attention is paid to the Warkari (Maharastra) bhakti movement. Also contains an essay by Hawley on Sur Das’ poetry.
Schomer, Karine and W. H. McLeod, eds. The Sants: Studies in a Devotional Tradition of India. Berkeley: Berkeley Religious Studies Series, 1987.
–By gathering a set of essays on the Sant tradition of bhakti in North India, this volume highlights the ways in which bhakti itself stretches the limits of religious traditions, informing Hindu, Sikh and Islamic belief and practice. Essays on several of the poets examined in Songs of the Saints of India, especially Kabir. Also, because of its topic, this volume has several essays dealing with the ‘nirguna/saguna’ distinction.
Primary Sources
Dimock, Edward C. and Denise Levertov, eds. In Praise of Krishna: Songs from the Bengali.Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1981.
–A veritable dip in the ocean of madhurya-bhava (the erotic devotional mood) . Dimock and Levertov have arranged these Bengali Vaishnava devotional songs (kirtan) (mostly in the voice of Radha) according to traditional categories of the stages of a human love affair. Good for getting a ‘feel’ for the mutations of viraha (longing in separation).
Ramanujan, A. K. Hymns for the Drowning: Poems for Vishnu by Nammalvar. New York: Penguin Books India, 1993.
–Beautiful and at times provocative selected translations from one of South India’s most beloved bhakti poets and poems—Nammalvar’s Tiruvaymoli. Also contain’s A.K. Ramanujan’s extremely helpful “Afterword” on early Tamil bhakti. Ramanujan’s considerable sensitivity to poetic language informs all his work.
————–. Speaking of Siva. New York: Penguin Books, 1973
–The necessary sectarian complement to Hymns for the Drowning. Unlike that work, however, these translations span a broad range of the South Indian Shaivate Nayanmar tradition, from Basavanna to the well-known female Virashaiva, Mahadeviyakka.
Schelling, Andrew. For the Love of the Dark One: Songs of Mirabai. Prescott, Arizona: Hohms
Press, 1998.
–Recent translations of about 80 of Mira’s poems. In his selection process, Schelling has paid attention to a wide range of themes in the poems, particularly that of Mir as yogini, but as he reminds us in his “Introduction”—”Even her asceticism rings with eroticism” and such is nowhere lacking in this volume. This provides a helpful supplement to the more common image of Mirabai as Krishna’s consort.
Vivekananda. Bhakti-Yoga. Calcutta: Sri Gouranga Press, 1922.
–Modern thoughts on the three principle margas (paths) from the man who become the icon of “Hinduism” in the West in the early 20th century. Like all of Vivekananda’s “writings” this book is a re-formulation of parts of several lectures and address, often delivered ex tempore. Particularly interesting are his comments on the relationship of Vedanta to bhakti-yoga.
Women and Bhakti
Harlan, Lindsey. “Abandoning Shame: Mira and the Margins of Marriage.” In From the Margins of Hindu Marriage: Essays on Gender, Religion, and Culture. eds., Lindsey Harlan and Paul Courtwright. New York: Oxford University Press, 1995.
–Focuses on a regional version of the Mira story as told among Rajasthani Rajput women. Highlights the ambivalence felt towards Mira as someone to be admired and yet not imitated.
Hawley, John Stratton. “Mirabai as Wife and Yogi.” In Asceticism, ed. Victor Wimbush. New York: Oxford University Press, 1995.
–The divide between the householder (in this case pativrata) and the ascetic has often been painted as so wide as to be unbridgeable. By paying close attention to an often overlooked aspect of Mira’s poems (her ascetic/yogic imagery), Hawley’s work suggests that bhakti complexifies this dichotomy. Hawley also pays close attention to the way the tradition(s) and even popular culture have interpreted Mira in relation to the ideals of the pativrata.
Kinsley, David. “Devotion as an Alternative to Marriage in the Lives of Some Hindu Women Devotees.” In Tradition and Modernity in Bhakti Movements. ed. Jayant Lele. Leiden: E.J.Brill, 1981.
–Examines the ‘tension between bhakti and dharma’ (with emphasis on the ‘tension’) as manifested in the lives of several female bhakti saints. Brief and to the point.
Rukmani, T. S. “Bhakti, the Bhagavata Purana and the Empowerment of Women,” Journal for the Study of Religion. 8, 1 (March 1995: 55-70).
–Good for an introduction to the range of literature and female figures that figure in the discussion of ‘bhakti’ and women. Attention is focused mostly on southern regions, though Mirabai and Lal Ded (Kashmir) are mentioned. The thesis is that bhakti has, if in a limited way, “paved the path for equality amongst the sexes.”
Gupta, Sanjukta. “Women in the Shaiva/Shakta Ethos. In Roles and Rituals for Hindu Women.” ed. Julia Leslie. London: Pinter Publishers, 1991.
–A comparison of three Virashaiva and three Vaishnava women saints, arguing that the Shaivite traditions, through its emphasis on shakti, provided a more female ‘friendly’ environment. A bit tendentious in places.
Bhakti as Social and Political Phenomenon
Lorenzen, David N. “Introduction: The Historical Vicissitudes of Bhakti Religion.” In Bhakti Religion in North India: Community Identity and Political Action. ed. David N. Lorenzen. Albany: State University of New York Press, 1995.
–Lorenzon posits bhakti as an underlying religious structure that informs both Sikh and Hindu traditions in North India, and examines the relationship of bhakti to the current debate over ‘communalism.’ Pays particular attention to the ideological implications and uses of nirguni and saguni bhakti. Ends with a helpful evaluation and expansion of Max Weber’s examination of class and religious affiliation.
Schaller, Joseph. “Sanskritization, Caste Uplift and Social Dissidence in the Sant Ravidas Panth.” In Bhakti Religion in North India: Community Identity and Political Action. ed. David N. Lorenzen. Albany: State University of New York Press, 1995.
–An examination of contemporary followers of Ravidas, arguing that devotion to this “untouchable” (chamar) saint is intimately intertwined with political and economic factors of the situation of the devotees. Bhakti as a “dissident socioreligious ideology.” Interesting comparisons to Ambedkar’s neo-Buddhism and the chamars of Agra.
Shobha, Savitri Chandra. Medieval India and Hindi Bhakti Poetry: A Social-Cultural Study. New Delhi: Har Anand Publications, 1996.
–Collection of essays by Shobha dealing with Kabir, Sur Das, and Tulsi, asking questions about bhakti’s relationship to dissent, protest and social philosophy in general. Chapter 5 deals with the ‘position of women’ in medieval bhakti poetry.
God, the Self and the self in Bhakti
Carman, John B. “Conceiving Hindu ‘Bhakti’ as Theistic Mysticism.” In Mysticism and Religious Traditions, ed. Steven T. Katz. New York: Oxford University Press, 1983.
–Though for some ‘theistic mysticism’ may seem a contradiction in terms, Carman argues that the bhakti traditions, such as that expressed in the theology of Ramanuja or in the character of Prahlada in the Vishnu Purana, provoke a radical re-thinking of what ‘mysticism’ itself may mean.
Nelson, Lance E. “Bhakti-Rasa for the Advaitin Renunciate: Madhusudana Sarasvati’s Theory of Devotional Sentiment,” Religious Traditions: A Journal in the Study of Religion. 12, 9 (1988:1-16).
–The strengths of this short article are many. In the life and thought of this important medieval monk and intellectual, Nelson finds an apparent anomaly: a Krishna-devotee who is also a strict advaitin (non-dualist) philosopher. Though advaita certainly wins the day here, Nelson has pointed out that ‘on-the-ground’ neat categories never quite hold up.In addition, Nelson gives some brief and helpful discussions of important bhakti concepts such as rasa and the various bhavas in terms of aesthetic theory and Vaishnava theology.
SOURCE: http://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/view/document/obo-9780195399318/obo-9780195399318-0011.xml
Introduction
The Sanskrit term “bhakti” is generally translated as “devotion” and refers to a variety of Hindu traditions in which devotees experience a direct relationship with the divine. Such divinity may be conceptualized as an incarnate personal deity or as the formless metaphysical essence of the cosmos, and modes or moods of devotion thus vary accordingly, ranging from contemplative forms of yoga to outbursts of passionate love. Expressed as loyalty to God incarnate in human form, bhakti in the Sanskrit epics is typically consistent with the demands of Brahmanical dharma, but devotion that defies social and religious norms is widely celebrated in later texts and traditions, with women and low-caste men among the most famous devotees, their poetic verse an enduring inspiration to others seeking salvation without the benefit of orthodox privileges and rituals. Flourishing in diverse linguistic and regional expressions, bhakti traditions reflect a wide variety of religious movements, some conceiving bhakti as intensely personal devotion, others finding in bhakti the power of social and political reform.
General Overviews
Overviews of bhakti generally privilege certain texts, regions, or traditions, but all are useful in offering a unique perspective on the broad topic. Lorenzen 2004 covers the foundations of bhakti in Sanskrit texts and various figures in later South and North Indian movements but is less helpful on Shaktism and Shaivism, while Geaves 2008 includes discussion of Shaivas, Shaktas, and Sufis but little on textual foundations. In an introductory textbook on Hinduism, Flood 1996 includes four chapters on bhakti that together address Vaishnavism, Shaivism, and Shaktism, with attention to tantric practices. Fuller 1992 likewise includes two chapters on bhakti traditions in an introductory text specifically focused on popular Hinduism within an anthropological framework. Lutgendorf 2003 provides a detailed and very useful bibliographic essay on bhakti literature (including both translations and scholarly studies), indexed according to regions and figures. Carman 2005 offers a brief encyclopedia article with a theological viewpoint.
- Carman, John B. “Bhakti.” InEncyclopedia of Religion 2. 2d ed. Edited by Lindsay Jones, 856–860. Detroit, MI: Macmillan Reference, 2005.
A brief but useful overview that defines bhakti as love and intimate participation between humans and the divine in a range of sometimes intense emotions. Compares and contrasts bhakti and yoga and discusses various figures and movements.
- Flood, Gavin.An Introduction to Hinduism. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1996.
Two chapters on Vaishnavism with detailed discussion of its narrative foundations as well as later vernacular traditions and sectarian developments. One chapter on Shaivism that addresses several schools and related tantric traditions. One chapter on Shaktism with some attention to sacrifice, tantric practice, and village goddesses.
- Fuller, C. J.The Camphor Flame: Popular Hinduism and Society in India. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1992.
Includes two chapters on bhakti viewed from a popular and anthropological perspective, with attention to Rādhā and bhajanas (devotional singing), the Rāmānandī and the Swāmīnārāyan orders, gurus, and goddesses and women with a focus on South India, the goddess Mīṉākṣī, and related traditions.
- Geaves, Ron. “Bhakti Movement.” InEncyclopedia of Hinduism. Edited by Denise Cush, Catherine Robinson, and Michael York, 89–97. London and New York: Routledge, 2008.
Covers Rāmānuja and Śrī Vaishnavism, Vallabha and the Puṣṭi Mārga, Caitanya and Gauḍīya Vaishnavism, Shaivism and Shaktism, nirguṇa (aniconic) bhakti, Sants, Sikhs, and Sufis.
- Lorenzen, David N. “Bhakti.” InThe Hindu World. Edited by Sushil Mittal and Gene Thursby, 185–209. New York: Routledge, 2004.
Covers the textual foundations of Hindu bhakti (the Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad, the Bhagavad Gita, the Devī Māhātmya, and the Bhāgavata Purāṇa); the Alvars and Vīraśaivas; the Vārkarīs; North Indian varṇadharmī bhakti (of bhaktas such as Tulsīdās and Sūrdās who accept Brahmanical dharma, including caste); and North Indian avarṇadharmī bhakti (of bhaktas such as Kabīr, Raidās, and Mīrābāī, who at least in part reject Brahmanical standards of dharma related to caste and gender).
- Lutgendorf, Philip. “Medieval Devotional Traditions: An Annotated Survey of Recent Scholarship.” InThe Study of Hinduism. Edited by Arvind Sharma, 200–260. Columbia, SC: University of South Carolina Press, 2003.
An excellent bibliographic essay, including sections on Vaishnavism and Shaivism in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka; Telugu and Maharashtrian traditions; tantra, yoga, and Shaivism in Kashmir; various Krishna and Rama traditions in northern India; Sikhs; goddess traditions; and a section on anthologies.
BHAKTI DATABASE 