The Sense of Adharma [Hardcover]

Addressing one of the most difficult conceptual topics in the study of classical Hinduism, Ariel Glucklich presents a rigorous phenomenology ofdharma, or order. The work moves away from the usual emphasis on symbols and theoretical formulations ofdharmaas a religious and moral norm. Instead, it focuses on images that emerge from the basic experiential interaction of the body in its spatial and temporal contexts, such as the sensation of water on the skin during the morning purification, or the physical manipulation of the bride during the marriage ritual. Images ofdharmaare examined in myths, rituals, art, and even the physical landscape of the Hindu world. The varied and contingent experiences ofdharmainfuse it with a meaning that transcends a false analytical distinction fromadharma,or chaos. Glucklich shows that whendharmais experienced by means of living images, it becomes inescapably temporal, and therefore inseparable fromadharma.

Glucklich's Indological scholarship is thorough and expansive and his detailed accounts of myths and rituals of dharma make this a work of lasting value for researchers. Just as important, his innovative use of Merleau-Ponty's phenomenology should have an immediate theoretical impact on the study of religion. --Dan Gold,Cornell University

Reviving unfashionable theories is a brave endeavor, and Ariel Glucklich'sThe Sense of Adharmais a bold book. Glucklich is excellently prepared to fight his case. --The Journal of Religion