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In Praise of Tara: Songs to the Saviouress
Amongst all Buddhist deities, the most dearly loved is the blissful, beautiful, and often mischievous goddess Tara. A bodhisattva, she defied tradition when she attained omniscience in female form. As mother goddess, she embodies the feminine archetype in us all and shares a close kinship with Demeter, Inanna, and the Virgin Mary. And as deity of tantric Buddhism, she acts with lightning speed to aid those in distress and fulfill her supplicants' wishes. For centuries, Tara has inspired some of the most marvelous Buddhist literature ever written. This collection includes a history of the origin of the Tara Tantra, canonical and practice texts, and lyrical praises.
496 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1986
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December 15, 2019
This is #4 of 6 books I chose from the library, to acquaint myself with my neighbors, that I found especially helpful.
((I was provided with access to a library as part of spending this winter in close proximity to a cultural center. I have been involved in some way with Buddhism for my entire adult life, but this tradition is the least familiar to me, and for good reason. Imagine that once upon a time there were seven great libraries, and all but one of them was burned down. So this tradition also protects the thoughts and scholarship of entire cultures, many vanished, while at the same time provides a long continuous record of striving to move into the future by acquiring knowledge and living a principled life. The result of this reading list has been to discover uncanny similarities in such colorful difference, which has brought me closer to the philosophy of non-duality that has meant so much to my education. I am sharing a list that I can recommend, this does not make an expert in the slightest, but I can promise these are rich and better distillations than many I have scanned.))
It is only recently being understood that at nearly the same moment in history, and as a direct result of the development of intercultural studies in the ancient world, the concept of a supreme female deity of wisdom appeared in a broad variety of cultures. In some, an existing goddess is elevated to this lofty status, in others, the appearance is more inventive and without precedent. A fascinating cultural explosion tied to literacy, that completely dissolves old-fashioned notions of an east-west divide, when viewed together. Tara is one key to this phenomena, and in one form has uncanny similarities to other 'green' figures in connected cultures, connected to magic, poetry, and the regenerative powers of life. Her symbol is the blue lotus. This book focuses on her appearance, the popularity of the musical chants that made her an enduring favorite, and includes translations of key songs and poetry. Of the many artistic creations developed along the ancient trade routes and intended for ritual, magic and veneration, Tara (whose name is simply "Star") is of special importance to anyone researching the cultural exchanges that took place for centuries, starting (or at least, illustrated) shortly after the dawn of literacy.
((I was provided with access to a library as part of spending this winter in close proximity to a cultural center. I have been involved in some way with Buddhism for my entire adult life, but this tradition is the least familiar to me, and for good reason. Imagine that once upon a time there were seven great libraries, and all but one of them was burned down. So this tradition also protects the thoughts and scholarship of entire cultures, many vanished, while at the same time provides a long continuous record of striving to move into the future by acquiring knowledge and living a principled life. The result of this reading list has been to discover uncanny similarities in such colorful difference, which has brought me closer to the philosophy of non-duality that has meant so much to my education. I am sharing a list that I can recommend, this does not make an expert in the slightest, but I can promise these are rich and better distillations than many I have scanned.))
It is only recently being understood that at nearly the same moment in history, and as a direct result of the development of intercultural studies in the ancient world, the concept of a supreme female deity of wisdom appeared in a broad variety of cultures. In some, an existing goddess is elevated to this lofty status, in others, the appearance is more inventive and without precedent. A fascinating cultural explosion tied to literacy, that completely dissolves old-fashioned notions of an east-west divide, when viewed together. Tara is one key to this phenomena, and in one form has uncanny similarities to other 'green' figures in connected cultures, connected to magic, poetry, and the regenerative powers of life. Her symbol is the blue lotus. This book focuses on her appearance, the popularity of the musical chants that made her an enduring favorite, and includes translations of key songs and poetry. Of the many artistic creations developed along the ancient trade routes and intended for ritual, magic and veneration, Tara (whose name is simply "Star") is of special importance to anyone researching the cultural exchanges that took place for centuries, starting (or at least, illustrated) shortly after the dawn of literacy.
Displaying 1 of 1 review