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Comparative Studies in Religion and Society
DEVI: The Goddesses of India
"Demonstrating the range and complexity of feminine imagery in Hindu tradition, Devi offers to scholars and beginners alike a fascinating and useful anthology."-Elaine Pagels, author Gnostic Gospels
"Thought-provoking and new, yet containing a few classics as well, Devi is a most valuable addition to studies of India-society, religion, culture, and art."-Vidya Dehejia, Smithsonian Institution
"A wonderfully informative group of essays about the main goddess figures of India. These sometimes dominate the male and sometimes stand alone, and they range from the fertile river Ganga to the awesome Kali, who is transforming herself in the West."-Ninian Smart, University of California, Santa Barbara
Author Biography: John S. Hawley is Professor of Religion at Barnard College and Director of the the National Resource Center for South Asia at Columbia University. Donna M. Wulff is Professor of Religion at Brown University. Together they edited The Divine Consort: Radha and the Goddesses of India (1986).
END
- GenresIndiaNonfictionReligion
366 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 1996
6 people are currently reading
99 people want to read
About the author
John Stratton Hawley
32 books9 followersJohn Stratton Hawley is Professor of Religion at Barnard College, Columbia University.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
February 2, 2018
Devi is a book for scholars, students of literature, religious studies and Hindu studies. This is not for general readers. It is not a story book but a research on Hindu goddesses of India. It is a valuable edition in terms of knowledge and insight the faith and customs of worshipping the goddesses which are the embodiment of vigor and change. Goddesses give an identity to women who are Saraswati: the goddess of knowledge and Kali: the fearless goddess.
The book was first released in 1997 and released in India by Aleph book Co. recently. The book has everything one needs to know about Hindu religion, goddess worship and many more.
An extraordinary and powerful read for beginners of Hindu and religious studies allowing them to soak in the extensive fieldwork, combining the texts of research of scholars who have been working in the field on the identity, existence, and influence on the minds of their worshipers.
https://thereviewauthor.com/
The book was first released in 1997 and released in India by Aleph book Co. recently. The book has everything one needs to know about Hindu religion, goddess worship and many more.
An extraordinary and powerful read for beginners of Hindu and religious studies allowing them to soak in the extensive fieldwork, combining the texts of research of scholars who have been working in the field on the identity, existence, and influence on the minds of their worshipers.
https://thereviewauthor.com/
October 23, 2020
This is undoubtedly one of the best books that have grown out of western thoughts regarding the Divine Feminine. Followed by a concise and cogent prologue penned by the editor, it contains essays written on the following manifestations of Devi:
Part One: Goddess as Supreme and Goddess as Consort
* Devi~ Thomas B. Coburn (an introduction as well as primer with respect to his superlative works on Devi Mahatya);
* Vindhyavasini~ Cynthia Ann Humes;
* Kali~ David R Kinsley (an introduction as well as primer with respect to his magnificient works on the Divine Feminine);
* Sri~ Vasudha Narayanan
* Radha~ Donna M. Wulff (a classic work, previously published in 'The Divine Consort' anthology).
Part Two: Goddesses Who Mother and Possess
* Ganga~ Diana L. Eck (another classic, which had also been previously published in 'The Divine Consort' anthology);
* Saranyu/Samjna~ Wendy Doniger (this unputdownable as well as thought-provoking essay has been included in her collection 'On Hinduism');
* Seranvali~ Kathleen M. Erndl;
* Bhagavati~ Lindaey Harlan;
* Bharat Mata~ Lise McKean.
Epilogue: The Western Kali~ Rachel Fell McDermott
Unfortunately, the chapters dealing with regional versions of Devi got bogged down by the respective author's concerns regarding patriarchal versions, Vaishnava-Shaiva dichotomy, social thoughts borne out of field studies. But the chapter on Vindhyavasini was special, since it was the only one that at least tangentially touched one aspect that was either unconsciously or deliberately left by all the essayists— Tantra!
Devi is completely linked with Tantric notions, because both have a genetic link with the pre-Vedic Samkhya philosophy. Regrettably, most of the authors were totally abosorbed by the notion of the male triad (Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva) dictating various manifestations of Devi. Thus they left out the atheistic monism of 'Prakriti'. Also, rather strangely, none of the essays covered Durga, probably confusing her with the other lion-riding goddesses! That itself crippled this collection.
Nevertheless, this is a solid book. But I would personally recommend the works of Coburn, Kinsley and Doniger to be pursued separately. Their works have a comprehensive outlook that doesn't concern itself with the number of women interviewed etc.
Part One: Goddess as Supreme and Goddess as Consort
* Devi~ Thomas B. Coburn (an introduction as well as primer with respect to his superlative works on Devi Mahatya);
* Vindhyavasini~ Cynthia Ann Humes;
* Kali~ David R Kinsley (an introduction as well as primer with respect to his magnificient works on the Divine Feminine);
* Sri~ Vasudha Narayanan
* Radha~ Donna M. Wulff (a classic work, previously published in 'The Divine Consort' anthology).
Part Two: Goddesses Who Mother and Possess
* Ganga~ Diana L. Eck (another classic, which had also been previously published in 'The Divine Consort' anthology);
* Saranyu/Samjna~ Wendy Doniger (this unputdownable as well as thought-provoking essay has been included in her collection 'On Hinduism');
* Seranvali~ Kathleen M. Erndl;
* Bhagavati~ Lindaey Harlan;
* Bharat Mata~ Lise McKean.
Epilogue: The Western Kali~ Rachel Fell McDermott
Unfortunately, the chapters dealing with regional versions of Devi got bogged down by the respective author's concerns regarding patriarchal versions, Vaishnava-Shaiva dichotomy, social thoughts borne out of field studies. But the chapter on Vindhyavasini was special, since it was the only one that at least tangentially touched one aspect that was either unconsciously or deliberately left by all the essayists— Tantra!
Devi is completely linked with Tantric notions, because both have a genetic link with the pre-Vedic Samkhya philosophy. Regrettably, most of the authors were totally abosorbed by the notion of the male triad (Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva) dictating various manifestations of Devi. Thus they left out the atheistic monism of 'Prakriti'. Also, rather strangely, none of the essays covered Durga, probably confusing her with the other lion-riding goddesses! That itself crippled this collection.
Nevertheless, this is a solid book. But I would personally recommend the works of Coburn, Kinsley and Doniger to be pursued separately. Their works have a comprehensive outlook that doesn't concern itself with the number of women interviewed etc.
July 7, 2024
Detailed Review here https://www.anuradhagoyal.com/devi-go...
March 18, 2025
I'm glad I read this book.
As a western reader, I admire what one reviewer here called the "extensive fieldwork" of Devī's western scholars, who by necessity approach the topic of Hindu goddesses from that western viewpoint. Equally, I'm glad to read the perspective of some of the reviewers here, several who seem to come from a south Asian perspective, and who generally have positive views on the book.
It took awhile to finish this, as it's a heavily scholarly book, rich with references and notes, each essay coming from writers who largely specialize in the goddess about whom they're writing. There's a fair bit of uniting a goddess' story with today's world, but never so much that the connections draw focus away from the history of the goddesses themselves.
I found the epilogue essay, "The Western Kālī," by Rachel Fell McDermott, to be the most well-written for a lay reader, hers is a smooth academic style, and her topic in many ways unites the other essays, so many (if not all) of which come from western writers *for* western writers.
Again, I'm glad to have read this book, it introduced me to a wide array of Hindu goddesses, and shared deep research that goes far toward hinting at the much deeper stories of each goddess, all of whom come from a religion more than four millennia old.
As a western reader, I admire what one reviewer here called the "extensive fieldwork" of Devī's western scholars, who by necessity approach the topic of Hindu goddesses from that western viewpoint. Equally, I'm glad to read the perspective of some of the reviewers here, several who seem to come from a south Asian perspective, and who generally have positive views on the book.
It took awhile to finish this, as it's a heavily scholarly book, rich with references and notes, each essay coming from writers who largely specialize in the goddess about whom they're writing. There's a fair bit of uniting a goddess' story with today's world, but never so much that the connections draw focus away from the history of the goddesses themselves.
I found the epilogue essay, "The Western Kālī," by Rachel Fell McDermott, to be the most well-written for a lay reader, hers is a smooth academic style, and her topic in many ways unites the other essays, so many (if not all) of which come from western writers *for* western writers.
Again, I'm glad to have read this book, it introduced me to a wide array of Hindu goddesses, and shared deep research that goes far toward hinting at the much deeper stories of each goddess, all of whom come from a religion more than four millennia old.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews