Interpreting Devotion

The Poetry and Legacy of a Female Bhakti Saint of India

By: Karen Pechilis

Write A Review

Hardcover | 20 December 2011 | Edition Number 1

At a Glance

Hardcover
272 Pages

Dimensions(cm)
23.39 x 15.6 x 1.6

Hardcover

RRP $305.00

$215.80

29%OFF

or 4 interest-free payments of $53.95 with

Aims to ship in 7 to 10 business days

Devotion is a category of expression in many of the world's religious traditions. This book looks at issues involved in academically interpreting religious devotion, as well as exploring the interpretations of religious devotion made by a sixth century poet, a twelfth century biographer, and present-day festival publics.

The book focuses on the female poet-saint Kāraikkāl Ammaiyār, whose poetry is devotional in nature. It discusses the biography written on the poet six centuries after her lifetime, and suggests ways of interpreting Kāraikkāl Ammaiyār's poetry without using the categories and events promoted by her biographer, in order to engage her own thoughts as they are communicated through the poetry attributed to her. In the same way that the biographer made the poet 'speak' to his present day, the book looks at how festivals held today make both the poetry and the biography relevant to the present day.

By discussing how poetry, story and festival provide distinctive yet overlapping interpretations of the saint, this book reveals the selections and priorities of interpreters in the making of a living tradition. It is an accessible contribution to students and scholars of religion, Indian history and women's studies.

Industry Reviews

"An excellent piece of scholarship from someone who could well have been a poet." - Bharati Jagannathan, University of Delhi; Himal Southasian, July 2012.

"Karen Pechilis' delightful book on Karaikkal Ammaiyar offers a multifaceted approach to this pioneering South Indian female devotee of Civa... Pechilis' book offers an excellent theoretical framework for bhakti that adds to other work already published on Karaikkal Ammaiyar." - Loriliai Biernacki, University of Colorado; International Journal of Hindu Studies 17, 1 (2013)

"Given its theoretical investment and topical location, this book will appeal to scholars of bhakti traditions, Indian religions, and comparative studies of devotion across religious traditions." - Varuni Bhatia, University of Michigan, Religious Studies Review 2013

Shipping

	Standard Shipping	Express Shipping
Metro postcodes:	$9.99	$14.95
Regional postcodes:	$9.99	$14.95
Rural postcodes:	$9.99	$14.95

How to return your order

At Booktopia, we offer hassle-free returns in accordance with our returns policy. If you wish to return an item, please get in touch with Booktopia Customer Care.

Additional postage charges may be applicable.

Defective items

If there is a problem with any of the items received for your order then the Booktopia Customer Care team is ready to assist you.

For more info please visit our Help Centre.

List of figures	p. ix
Preface and acknowledgments	p. xi
A note on transliteration	p. xiv
Gestures of interpretation	p. 1
The poet's voice	p. 23
The poet's vision	p. 39
The biographer's view	p. 82
A public's vantage	p. 106
Concluding thoughts	p. 138
The poems of Karaikkal Ammaiyar in translation	p. 145
Cekkilar's biography of Karaikkal Ammaiyar in translation	p. 199
Notes	p. 206
Bibliography	p. 234
Index	p. 245
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.

Interpreting Devotion

The Poetry and Legacy of a Female Bhakti Saint of India

At a Glance

Hardcover

Industry Reviews

Shipping

How to return your order

Defective items

You Can Find This Book In

More in Regional Studies

Orientalism

Western Conceptions of the Orient

Islamic Finance, Governance and Regulation

Global Perspectives

The EU's External Governance of Agriculture and Rural Development

Shaping Rural Spaces

Bibliotheca Sinica Christiana

Annotated Catalog of Divine Word Missionaries' (S.V.D.) Publications in Shandong (1882-1950)

Curriculum Innovation in East Asian Schools

Contexts, Innovations and Impacts

The Land of Hope and Fear

Israel's battle for its inner soul

In Sierra Leone

Blooming in the Ruins How Mexican Philosophy Can Guide Us toward the Good Life

How Mexican Philosophy Can Guide Us toward the Good Life

African Feminist Praxis

Cartographies of Liberatory Worldmaking

African Feminist Praxis

Cartographies of Liberatory Worldmaking

Galapagos

An Encyclopedia of Geography, History, and Culture

London

Geography, History, and Culture

Musicking TikTok

A Musical Ethnography from a Glocal Austrian Context

Modernizing Localities in Poland

A Never-ending Transformation

The Middle East and North Africa

A Contemporary Geography

The Middle East and North Africa

A Contemporary Geography

Black Queer Studies

A Critical Anthology

The Archive and the Repertoire

Performing Cultural Memory in the Americas

The Australian Political System in Action

2nd Edition

Return

Nationalizing Transnational Mobility in Asia

Professing Selves

Transsexuality and Same-Sex Desire in Contemporary Iran

No Concessions

The Life of Yap Thiam Hien, Indonesian Human Rights Lawyer

Stories Old and New

A Ming Dynasty Collection

The Russia Reader

History, Culture, Politics

This product is categorised by