The Buddhist Visnu: Religious Transformation, Politics, and Culture
John Holt's groundbreaking study examines the assimilation, transformation, and subordination of the Hindu deity Visnu within the contexts of Sri Lankan history and Sinhala Buddhist religious culture. Holt argues that political agendas and social forces, as much as doctrinal concerns, have shaped the shifting patterns of the veneration of Visnu in Sri Lanka.\ Holt begins with a comparative look at the assimilation of the Buddha in Hinduism. He then explores the role and rationale of medieval...
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John Holt's groundbreaking study examines the assimilation, transformation, and subordination of the Hindu deity Visnu within the contexts of Sri Lankan history and Sinhala Buddhist religious culture. Holt argues that political agendas and social forces, as much as doctrinal concerns, have shaped the shifting patterns of the veneration of Visnu in Sri Lanka.
Part I : introduction : the historical and theoretical problems3Ch. 1The "Hindu Buddha" and the "Buddhist Visnu"8Ch. 2"Unceasing waves" : brahmanical and Hindu influences on medieval Sinhala Buddhist culture in Sri Lanka32Ch. 3The sandalwood image : Upulvan Deviyo and the origins of the Visnu cult in Sinhala Buddhist Sri Lanka62Ch. 4Transformed deity : the "Buddhist Visnu" in Sinhala literature and liturgy102Part II : introduction : the cult of Visnu in Buddhist Sri Lanka157Ch. 5Seeking protection : cultic life at the Udarata Visnu Devalayas160Ch. 6The Valiyak Mangalya : the curative powers of the Mala Raja225Ch. 7Legacies of the "Buddhist Visnu" : myth and cult at the Alutnuvara Devalaya247Ch. 8Minister of defence? : the politics of deification in contemporary Sri Lanka331Index of texts (translated or cited)423
\ ChoiceThis is a scholarly but eminently readable and accessible study of the multilayered resonance of Sri Lankan culture... Highly Recommended.\ \ \ \ \ \ Journal of the Royal Asiatic SoceityJohn Holt's book is an impressive work of scholarship.\ \ \
