Chaitanya

Description

This is a fresh attempt at historically reconstructing on a popular and accessible level, the life and times of the medieval Hindu -Vaishnava mystic, Chaitanya. In this short work, I consciously keep away from both hagiographic accounts of the saint as also such works that treat him and his religious faith rather superficially. An important part of this work is the study of how Chaitanya came to be understood and internalized in post-Chaitanya Bengal, particularly in the environment of a burgeoning cultural nationalism of late nineteenth century. For this reason, my work focuses on Chaitanya alone and on his intimate companions rather than produce a history of Vaishnavism in Bengal such as has been attempted before. Using a wide range of extant sources both in English and Bengali languages, this work also attempts to raise certain key theoretical questions concerning the relationship between Chaitanya and the movement that followed him, albeit in a manner that is more engaging than pedantic.

About the Author

Amiya P. Sen is an historian by training with a special interest in the intellectual and cultural history of colonial Bengal. He has held Visiting Fellowships/Professorships to the IIAS, Shimla, NMML, New Delhi,St. Antony's College, Oxford, the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies, Oxford, and the University of Heidlberg. To date he has authored and edited 13 books.

Table of contents

Preface
Chapter 1: Introduction
Chapter 2: Sources on the life of Chaitanya
Chapter 3: The Life and Times of Krishna Chaitanya
Chapter 4: Chaitanya: Companions. Associates, Devotees and Followers
Chapter 5: Chaitanya in His times and in Ours
Appendices:
· Appendix A: Chronology of Events
· Appendix B: Printing History of Major Sanskrit and Bengali Hagiographies of Chaitanya (c. 19-20th century). Select Editions
· Appendix C: Major Biographical Works on prominent devotees and followers of Chaitanya in print. (c. 19th-20th century).Select Editions
· Appendix D: List of Prominent temples dedicated to Chaitanya and Nityananda : Bengal c. 19th-20th century
· Appendix E: Major Anthologies of Vaishnava Verse in print: c. 19-20th century
· Appendix F: Bengali Translations of the Bhagavata Purana in print: c. 19th-20th century
Annotated Bibliography