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Light Through an Eastern Window
Introduction
Max Müller, in his book, What Can India Teach Us, expresses this thought:
. . . and in that study of the history of the human mind, in that study of ourselves, of our true selves, India occupies a place second to no other country. Whatever sphere of the human mind you may select for your special study, whether it be language, or religion, or mythology, or philosophy, whether it be laws or customs, primitive art or primitive science, everywhere, you have to go to India, whether you like it or not because some of the most valuable and most instructive materials in the history of man are treasured up in India, and in India only.”
Sir Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, President of India, writes in his Eastern Religions and Western Thought:
“Any interpretation of the Jewish religion which ignores the total environment in which it grew up would be dangerously narrow. Two centuries before the Christian era Buddhism closed in on Palestine. The Essenes, the Mandeans, and the Nazarene sects are filled with its spirit.”
As a native of India, born into a Hindu home, I was reared and educated in the rich Eastern tradition to which Max Muller makes reference. Therefore, the Indian Orthodox Church assigned me to the ministry of teaching these Orientalisms throughout the Western world. As far as I know, I am the only Hindu convert to Christianity who is engaged in this kind of teaching.
For the past twenty-five years, I have carried out this work under the title, “Light Through an Eastern Window”; it has taken me on the continent of Europe, in the British Isles, and currently in the United States and Canada. It has taken me into churches of nearly every major and minor denomination, as well as numerous colleges and seminaries, interpreting parts of the Bible in the light of Eastern thought and ways of life; clarifying difficult scriptural passages and pointing up their spiritual applications.
Many of my listeners have urged me to write these teachings into a book so that more Christians may be encouraged to trust in the Word of God, and believe more deeply through understanding. However, I cannot put all of these teachings into one book. We would have to start at the first verse of the first Chapter of Genesis and go through every book of the Bible until we reached the last verse of Revelation, to give the subject the consideration it deserves. Unfortunately, time does not permit the undertaking of that sort of project at this time.
In the present volume, therefore, I will touch upon some of the portions of the Bible which my listeners tell me have been the most interesting and inspiring, and, if God wills, other books will follow at a later date.
May God’s blessing be upon the reader who comes to this book seeking to know and understand the Word of God; may he be enlightened and abundantly blessed.
Bishop K. C. Pillai, D.D.
This work contains the following chapters—
1. Marriage Customs
2. The Covenant of Salt
3. Childbirth
4. Rearing of Children
5. Death and Burials
6. Laws and Justice
7. The Woman at The Well
8. Plants and Trees
9. Agriculture and Herding
10. Some Popular Idioms
11. Sacrifices
12. The Canopy
Max Müller, in his book, What Can India Teach Us, expresses this thought:
. . . and in that study of the history of the human mind, in that study of ourselves, of our true selves, India occupies a place second to no other country. Whatever sphere of the human mind you may select for your special study, whether it be language, or religion, or mythology, or philosophy, whether it be laws or customs, primitive art or primitive science, everywhere, you have to go to India, whether you like it or not because some of the most valuable and most instructive materials in the history of man are treasured up in India, and in India only.”
Sir Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, President of India, writes in his Eastern Religions and Western Thought:
“Any interpretation of the Jewish religion which ignores the total environment in which it grew up would be dangerously narrow. Two centuries before the Christian era Buddhism closed in on Palestine. The Essenes, the Mandeans, and the Nazarene sects are filled with its spirit.”
As a native of India, born into a Hindu home, I was reared and educated in the rich Eastern tradition to which Max Muller makes reference. Therefore, the Indian Orthodox Church assigned me to the ministry of teaching these Orientalisms throughout the Western world. As far as I know, I am the only Hindu convert to Christianity who is engaged in this kind of teaching.
For the past twenty-five years, I have carried out this work under the title, “Light Through an Eastern Window”; it has taken me on the continent of Europe, in the British Isles, and currently in the United States and Canada. It has taken me into churches of nearly every major and minor denomination, as well as numerous colleges and seminaries, interpreting parts of the Bible in the light of Eastern thought and ways of life; clarifying difficult scriptural passages and pointing up their spiritual applications.
Many of my listeners have urged me to write these teachings into a book so that more Christians may be encouraged to trust in the Word of God, and believe more deeply through understanding. However, I cannot put all of these teachings into one book. We would have to start at the first verse of the first Chapter of Genesis and go through every book of the Bible until we reached the last verse of Revelation, to give the subject the consideration it deserves. Unfortunately, time does not permit the undertaking of that sort of project at this time.
In the present volume, therefore, I will touch upon some of the portions of the Bible which my listeners tell me have been the most interesting and inspiring, and, if God wills, other books will follow at a later date.
May God’s blessing be upon the reader who comes to this book seeking to know and understand the Word of God; may he be enlightened and abundantly blessed.
Bishop K. C. Pillai, D.D.
This work contains the following chapters—
1. Marriage Customs
2. The Covenant of Salt
3. Childbirth
4. Rearing of Children
5. Death and Burials
6. Laws and Justice
7. The Woman at The Well
8. Plants and Trees
9. Agriculture and Herding
10. Some Popular Idioms
11. Sacrifices
12. The Canopy
68 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1963
4 people are currently reading
124 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
August 19, 2019
I am going to keep this one near my scriptures so that I can reference it again when I am reading and studying. I appreciated his insights and understandings of a culture that is so different than anything I am familiar with. There is no way for me to record all of the quotes I highlighted but I will offer up two that really resonated with me.
"From the age of twelve, then, Hindu children continue with this renewing of the mind throughout their adult lives. I know that Christians could benefit from these teachings; in fact there are several verses in Paul's letters which instruct Christians to gain control of their minds; but these are largely overlooked by the Western world, I believe, because they are not understood. The Hindus believe, and Scripture agrees that the things of the flesh are contrary to things of the Spirit. The mind, and all the rest of the senses, are of the flesh. The mind is likely to be full of dread and fear; the spirit is full of love, peace, joy, long-suffering, and so forth. Therefore Yoga practice trains the mind to be in union with the Spirit; and brings it in subjugation to the Spirit. The mind tells you 'it can't be done'; the Spirit says that with God all things are possible. The mind says you surely won't get what you need; the Spirit says your Father knoweth what things you have need of, and they will be supplied out of HIs riches in glory."
"It is true that there have been a number of errors in translation, but you can be sure that the original Word, as received by 'holy men of old (who) spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost' (II Peter 1:21) was perfect, even as He who gave it is perfect!"
"From the age of twelve, then, Hindu children continue with this renewing of the mind throughout their adult lives. I know that Christians could benefit from these teachings; in fact there are several verses in Paul's letters which instruct Christians to gain control of their minds; but these are largely overlooked by the Western world, I believe, because they are not understood. The Hindus believe, and Scripture agrees that the things of the flesh are contrary to things of the Spirit. The mind, and all the rest of the senses, are of the flesh. The mind is likely to be full of dread and fear; the spirit is full of love, peace, joy, long-suffering, and so forth. Therefore Yoga practice trains the mind to be in union with the Spirit; and brings it in subjugation to the Spirit. The mind tells you 'it can't be done'; the Spirit says that with God all things are possible. The mind says you surely won't get what you need; the Spirit says your Father knoweth what things you have need of, and they will be supplied out of HIs riches in glory."
"It is true that there have been a number of errors in translation, but you can be sure that the original Word, as received by 'holy men of old (who) spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost' (II Peter 1:21) was perfect, even as He who gave it is perfect!"
December 31, 2022
I think I just found one of my top 5 favorite books. This is a remarkable look at marriage customs, birth, even agriculture aspects of the Bible through the lens of middle eastern culture. I was astonished and moved greatly at insights I had never perceived when reading some stories of the Bible and they way in which they relate to eastern culture vs western culture. It’s so rich. This book is valuable in my opinion and one that deserves another read through.
August 24, 2012
This tiny hardcover was recommended to me by John Loren Sandford for the way it opens up Hebrew thinking and the customs of Biblical times. KC Pillai was a Hindu convert living in a time when such customs were still current in India: about half a century ago.
It's a short and excellent introduction which makes clear many inexplicable incidents in the Bible: why, for instance, Jael was praised for killing Sisera (he broke a fourfold covenant which included a covenant of salt). It raises questions about the traditional interpretation of some verses and passages, including the woman at the well in Samaria.
I particularly liked the last section(which seemed almost like an afterthought) on the notion of "Canopies".
It's a short and excellent introduction which makes clear many inexplicable incidents in the Bible: why, for instance, Jael was praised for killing Sisera (he broke a fourfold covenant which included a covenant of salt). It raises questions about the traditional interpretation of some verses and passages, including the woman at the well in Samaria.
I particularly liked the last section(which seemed almost like an afterthought) on the notion of "Canopies".
February 25, 2010
This is a very informative book. For those of you who like to thoroughly study the bible and its contents, this is a book that you would enjoy.
May 8, 2023
A wonderful and fascinating read. Pillai describes dozens of parables and idioms that may be strange or unfamiliar to a western reader but are full of incredible depth to an eastern one. The Bible was written by people far more closely related culturally to the recent east than to the modern west. I was often surprised by how we have made assumptions about the text without considering more carefully what it would mean to the audience for which it was written. I will read this again and strongly recommend it to any serious student of scripture.
September 30, 2025
The Bible as read from a Western perspective can be filled with confusing references, seemingly nonsensical statements, and syntax rife with errors. This book is a brief survey of the most glaring misunderstandings found by Western reviewers of scripture, along with added context.
I wish this was a little more academic or well-referenced, but it is nonetheless an interesting view on how biblical idioms/parables/etc. are meant to be understood and how they interact with Eastern custom.
I wish this was a little more academic or well-referenced, but it is nonetheless an interesting view on how biblical idioms/parables/etc. are meant to be understood and how they interact with Eastern custom.
December 4, 2021
A fascinating look at the Woman at the Well from a non-western perspective. I need to read this one again to grasp a bit more of this nuanced viewpoint.
April 11, 2022
Great book for anyone wanting to understand more about Eastern culture and how it relates to the Bible
February 1, 2015
The author is a Christian that converted from Hinduism. I really enjoyed reading his eastern perspective on chosen biblical topics.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews