Between Jerusalem and Benares: Comparative Studies in Judaism and Hinduism

By Hhananya Goodman

Book Overview

This book stands at the crossroads between Jerusalem and Benares and opens a long awaited conversation between two ancient religious traditions. It represents the first serious attempt by a group of eminent scholars of Judaic and Indian studies to take seriously the cross-cultural resonances among the Judaic and Hindu traditions.

The essays in the first part of the volume explore the historical connections and influences between the two traditions, including evidence of borrowed elements and the adaptation of Jewish Indian communities to Hindu culture. The essays in the second part focus primarily on resonances between particular conceptual complexes and practices in the two traditions, including comparative analyses of representations of Veda and Torah, legal formulations of dharma and halakhah, and conceptions of union with the Divine in Hindu Tantra and Kabbalah.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0791417166
• ISBN13: 9780791417164
• Release Date: October 1994
• Publisher: State University of New York Press
• Length: 344 Pages
• Weight: 1.05 lbs.
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

An excellent comparative study

Comparative studies of religion can yield invaluable, unexpected insights not always discernible in studies that focus on a single religion. Anyone who doubts the value of the comparative approach should consult this excellent book. For those interested in Judaism, I especially recommend Barbara Holdrege's chapter "Veda and Torah", which is a fine distillation of contents from her book of the same name.