Myth, cult and symbols in Śākta Hinduism: A study of the Indian mother goddess

By using a triangulation of methods (historical, phenomenological, and structural), this book shows what it is to live in a universe of meaning centered by the idea that the Ultimate Reality is grounded in a Female Principle. It provides a framework for uniting Hindu goddess-worship in all its sacred manifestation. It links together tribal, popular and Tantric traditions. The author's approach also allows for the integration of the physical, mental, and spiritual aspects of human life into a whole. Though many subsequent, highly-specialized studies have enlarged upon aspects of its basic theme, this is the work that launched a host of recent studies in the West aimed at helping those outside the world of Sakta Hinduism to appreciate the wonder of its mythic cosmologies, cultic practices, and symbolic expressions.