Religions of the East

Description

Under the rubric of 'Religions of the East', which includes Buddhism, Hinduism, Sikhism, Janiism and a myriad of Chinese religio-philosophies, are a vast range of views concerning human sexuality. These contrasting attitudes are mapped through this volume on Religions of the East in The Library of Essays on Sexuality and Religion series. Part 1 presents previously-published articles that explore several Eastern Religions in the way they construct sexuality through expressions of their pertinent holy writings and belief systems, as applied in differing historical and cultural contexts. Part 2 takes sexual renunciation and asceticism as its focus through the traditions of Hinduism, Jainism and the Chinese religious systems. Part 3 explores the connection between sexuality, gender and sexuality in Hindu and Buddhist customs in varied social settings. The final part of the volume includes articles examining Eastern religions in their attitudes towards sexual 'variants' including bi-sexuality, trans-sexuality and contested sexual categories. Cover......Page 1 Half Title......Page 2 Title Page......Page 4 Copyright Page......Page 5 Contents......Page 6 Acknowledgements......Page 8 Series Preface......Page 10 Introduction......Page 12 PART I: SEXUALITY AND CULTURAL EXPRESSION......Page 30 1 Concerning Kamasutras: Challenging Narratives of History and Sexuality......Page 32 2 The Cult of the Earth Goddess among the Magar of Nepal......Page 70 3 Women in Honglou meng: Prescriptions of Purity in the Femininity of Qing Dynasty China......Page 88 4 Contemporary Theravada and Zen Buddhist Attitudes to Human Sexuality: An Exercise in Comparative Ethics......Page 112 5 Sexuality: the Chinese and the Judeo-Christian Traditions in Hong Kong......Page 134 PART II: RENUNCIATION AND ASCETICISM......Page 144 6 Singing the Glory of Asceticism: Devotion of Asceticism in Jainism......Page 146 7 Asceticism and Sexuality in the Mythology of Siva. Part II......Page 170 8 Temple Girls of Medieval Karnataka......Page 212 9 Kumari or "Virgin" Worship in Kathmandu Valley......Page 242 10 Social Consequences of Marrying Visnu Narayana: Primary Marriage among the Newars of Kathmandu Valley......Page 268 PART III: EASTERN RELIGION: SEXUALITY, GENDER AND PATRIARCHY......Page 286 11 'Abductions' and the Constellation of a Hindu Communal Bloc in Bengal of the 1920s'......Page 288 12 Women, Sexuality and Enlightenment: 'Kankyo no Tomo......Page 340 13 Re-Imagining the Divine in Sikhism......Page 372 14 The Power to Pollute and the Power to Preserve: Perceptions of Female Power in a Hindu Village......Page 390 15 Lustful Women, Elusive Lovers: Identifying Males as Objects of Female Desire......Page 402 PART IV: EASTERN RELIGION: SEXUAL VARIANTS......Page 430 16 Not This, Not That: The Hijras of India and the Cultural Politics of Sexuality......Page 432 17 "Like a City Ablaze": The Third Sex and the Creation of Sexuality in Jain Religious Literature......Page 454 18 A Comparative Analysis of Hijras and Drag Queens: The Subversive Possibilities and Limits of Parading Effeminacy and Negotiating Masculinity......Page 480 19 Transsexualism, Gender, and Anxiety in Traditional India......Page 494 20 Ambiguous Sexuality: Imagery and Interpretation in Tantric Buddhism......Page 522 Name Index......Page 538