The Upanishads (SBE Vol. 1): Vedic-Brahmanic System

The devi-mahatmya is we-known to both devotees and schoars of the indian great goddess it is the first comprehensive account of the goddess in sanskrit, and it has maintained its centraity in the goddess (sakta) tradition to the present day ike so much in that tradition, however, the text has unti now resisted carefu study from an historica perspective it is this study that the present voume accompishes the centra task here is to expore how an anonymous sanskrit text articuates a view of utimate reaity as feminine when there is virtuay no precedent in the sanskrit tradition for such a view to accompish this task, an appropriate method of scriptura anaysis is deveoped this invoves an examination of hindu understanding of the puranas in genera, and of the devi-mahatmya in particuar, aong with consideration of severa recent schoary discussions, in india and esewhere subsequenty, a comprehensive inquiry into the goddesss epithets in this text is undertaken, foowed by examination of the earier history of the myths that the devi-mahatmya associates with her the study cuminates in transations of the texts hymns, which are annotated so as to indicate the synthesis that is here being accompished the resuting iumination of sanskritized form of goddess worship is what danie hh ingas cas in his foreword a notabe schoary achievement