Female Ascetics in Hinduism

By Lynn Teskey Denton

Provides both a first-hand look at and an insightful analysis of a little-known world--that of female ascetics in India.

Female Ascetics in Hinduism provides a vivid account of the lives of women renouncers-women who renounce the world to live ascetic spiritual lives-in India. The author approaches the study of female asceticism by focusing on features of two dharmas, two religiously defined ways of life: that of woman-as-householder and that of the ascetic, who, for various reasons, falls outside the realm of householdership. The result of fieldwork conducted in Varanasi (Benares), the book explores renouncers' social and personal backgrounds, their institutions, and their ways of life. Offering a first-hand look at and an insightful analysis of this little-known world, this highly readable book will be indispensable to those interested in female asceticism in the Hindu tradition and women's spiritual lives around the world.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0791461793
• ISBN13: 9780791461792
• Release Date: August 2004
• Publisher: State University of New York Press
• Length: 228 Pages
• Weight: 0.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 6.0" x 9.3"
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher