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The Self Possessed: Deity and Spirit Possession in South Asian Literature and Civilization
Frederick Smith
€ 114.36
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Description for The Self Possessed: Deity and Spirit Possession in South Asian Literature and Civilization
Hardback. Proposes that positive oracular or ecstatic possession is the most common form of spiritual expression in India, and that it has been linguistically distinguished from negative, disease-producing possession for thousands of years. Num Pages: 736 pages, 13 illus. BIC Classification: HR. Category: (P) Professional & Vocational. Dimension: 239 x 161 x 46. Weight in Grams: 1116.
The Self Possessed is a multifaceted, diachronic study reconsidering the very nature of religion in South Asia, the culmination of years of intensive research. Frederick M. Smith proposes that positive oracular or ecstatic possession is the most common form of spiritual expression in India, and that it has been linguistically distinguished from negative, disease-producing possession for thousands of years. In South Asia possession has always been broader and more diverse than in the West, where it has been almost entirely characterized as "demonic." At best, spirit possession has been regarded as a medically treatable psychological ailment and at worst, ... Read more
The Self Possessed is a multifaceted, diachronic study reconsidering the very nature of religion in South Asia, the culmination of years of intensive research. Frederick M. Smith proposes that positive oracular or ecstatic possession is the most common form of spiritual expression in India, and that it has been linguistically distinguished from negative, disease-producing possession for thousands of years. In South Asia possession has always been broader and more diverse than in the West, where it has been almost entirely characterized as "demonic." At best, spirit possession has been regarded as a medically treatable psychological ailment and at worst, ... Read more
Product Details
Format
Hardback
Publication date
2007
Publisher
Columbia University Press United States
Number of pages
736
Condition
New
Number of Pages
736
Place of Publication
New York, United States
ISBN
9780231137485
SKU
V9780231137485
Shipping Time
Usually ships in 15 to 20 working days
Ref
99-15
About Frederick Smith
Frederick M. Smith studied Sanskrit for more than a decade in Pune, Madras, and elsewhere in India, and earned his Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania. He is known for his work on Vedic ritual and the early sixteenth-century philosopher Vallabhacarya, whose work he has been translating. With his work on deity and spirit possession, his interest in Indian religious ... Read more
Reviews for The Self Possessed: Deity and Spirit Possession in South Asian Literature and Civilization
This comprehensive work should appear on the shelf of every serious scholar of South Asian religion... Essential. CHOICE An important and path-breaking book.
Alf Hiltebeitel Journal of the American Oriental Society An amazing and essential study for anybody working on deity and spirit possession in South Asia.
Beatrix Hauser Social Anthropology
Alf Hiltebeitel Journal of the American Oriental Society An amazing and essential study for anybody working on deity and spirit possession in South Asia.
Beatrix Hauser Social Anthropology