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The Hindu Temple : deification of eroticism

Author

Daniélou, Alain.

Preferred Title

Temple hindou, centre magique du monde. English

Title

The Hindu Temple : deification of eroticism / Alain Daniélou ; translation by Ken Hurry.

Format

Book

Edition

First U.S. edition.

Published

Rochester, Vt. : Inner Traditions, 2001.

Description

130 pages : illustrations (some color) ; 25 cm

URL

<Table of contents> http://catdir.loc.gov/catdir/enhancements/fy0644/00047275-t.html <Contributor biographical information> http://catdir.loc.gov/catdir/enhancements/fy0644/00047275-b.html <Publisher description> http://catdir.loc.gov/catdir/enhancements/fy0644/00047275-d.html

Notes

Includes bibliographical references (pages 123-125) and index.

Contents

• Introduction
• Part One
• Divine Eroticism : The Nature of the World
• The Cults of the Phallus and of the Mother
• The Divine Image
• Part Two
• Temples: Dwellings of the Gods : Sacred Places
• Temple Position and Orientation in the City
• The Temple Ground and Preliminary Rites
• The Architect
• The Germ of the Temple
• The Plan of the Temple
• Yantras
• The Plan-Person (Vastu-Purusha)
• Erotic Representations
• The Building of the Temple
• The Sanctuary (Garbha Griha)
• The Mountain and the Cavern (Shikhara and Garbha Griha)
• The Fruit or Celestial Crown (Amalaka)
• The Door of the Sanctuary
• The Vestibule (Mandapa)
• The Face of the Renowned, Kirtimukha
• The Incarnate Word, Virala
• The Sacred Swan or Goose, Hamsa
• A World Apart
• The Origin of Temple Forms
• Architectural Treatises
• Part Three
• Revealing the Divine Mind : The Images of the Gods
• Iconographic Canons
• Clothing
• The Ritual of Caressing (Nyasa)
• The Three Gods
• Coupling (Mithuna)
• Representations of Shiva
• The Linga, Shiva's Phallic Emblem
• The Power of Nature, Shardula
• Apsaras and Gandharvas
• The Four Meanings of Life
• Ethics and Sexuality
• The Ties of Nature and Liberation
• Sexual and Erotic Education
• Note on the Text and Illustrations
• Bibliography
• Biographical Notes
• Index.

Summary

Ancient Indian architectural treatises state that a temple lacking erotic imagery would be ineffective and maleficent. The erotic statues and representations that cover the outer and inner walls of the Hindu temple serve both a magical and an instructional purpose. Through the power of the yantras--the magical diagrams created by the placement of the erotic imagery--the architect made the temple a faithful reflection of the divine. At the same time this imagery educated the faithful about the fundamental aspects of the Hindu religion, wherein the union of opposites in the sexual act is the perfect image of the creative principle, and erotic enjoyment is a reflection of divine bliss. Alain Danielou's masterpiece on the Hindu temple, now translated for the first time into English, provides a stunningly illustrated tour of the major temple complexes of India. The erotic sculptures that cover the walls of these temples are not merely symbolic portrayals of voluptuous acts but serve as profound reminders that man is closest to the divine during the instant of sexual transcendence. Alain Danielou spent twenty years in India studying music and philosophy with eminent scholars of the Hindu tradition. He is the author of more than thirty books on the religion, history, and arts of India and the Mediterranean, including While the Gods Play, The Myths and Gods of India, Yoga: Mastering the Secrets of Matter and the Universe, and The Complete Kama Sutra.

Subject headings

Hindu temples. Erotica--Religious aspects--Hinduism.

Genre heading

Nonfiction.

ISBN

0892818549 (alk. paper) 9780892818549 (alk. paper)