Coleridge And Hinduism

"For the first time, a monographic study of Coleridge's work extensively uncovers the connections of his poetry with the Hindu view of life. This study investigates Coleridge's philosophical and spiritual itinerary; it originally contributes in showing the strong impact the first translations of some texts of Hinduism had on the author's psyche, philosophical approach and poetical inspiration. In addition, Coleridge's unpublished manuscript notes found in one of the Abb J. A. Dubois' seminal studies of India are here presented as proof of the poet's long standing interest in and frequentation of Hinduism. Inclined to investigate the complexities of the human condition, both poetically and philosophically, Coleridge has tried to resolve the extremes of human existence through a synthesis of both Western and Oriental visions through which the universe ultimately emerges as an organic cosmos rhythmically unfolding through an intricate web of influxes, echoes and correspondences. Antonella Riem Natale's scholarly work invites readers to participate in the open-ended adventure of Coleridge's quest toward the Divine One and its multi-faceted layers of existence by originally combining textual analysis with all recent literary criticism and inter-disciplinary investigations, encompassing mythological, anthropological, philosophical, scientific and historical fields of study. Weaving personal facets of Coleridge's artistic sensibility with the Hindu world-view, the underlying metaphysical concerns that were integral to his vision of art and existence are thus unravelled in a coherent and poignant reinterpretation of an extraordinary poet and his times."

This book extensively investigates Samuel Taylor Coleridge's profound ties with the Oriental Tales he read throughout his life, from a philosophical, poetical and metaphysical point of view. It is the only comprehensive and dedicated study on how Hindu works, in particular Charles Wilkins's first translation of the Bhagavadgītā into English (1785), influenced Coleridge's poetic imagination, affecting all his writings, his poetry above all. In analysing Coleridge's quest for what he calls the "One life", the author's wish is that readers may find some "joyance" in reading this book, and feel inspired to go deeper into the anāhata nāda, the unstruck sound of the heart, fully enjoying the subtle inner resonances of Coleridge's poetic word.

This book extensively investigates Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s profound ties with the Oriental Tales he read throughout his life, from a philosophical, poetical and metaphysical point of view. It is the only comprehensive and dedicated study on how Hindu works, in particular Charles Wilkins’s first translation of the Bhagavadgītā into English (1785), influenced Coleridge’s poetic imagination, affecting all his writings, his poetry above all. In analysing Coleridge’s quest for what he calls the “One life”, the author’s wish is that readers may find some “joyance” in reading this book, and feel inspired to go deeper into the anāhata nāda, the unstruck sound of the heart, fully enjoying the subtle inner resonances of Coleridge’s poetic word.

While postcolonial studies of Romantic-period literature have flourished in recent years, scholars have long neglected the extent of Samuel Taylor Coleridge's engagement with the Orient in both his literary and philsophical writings. Bringing together leading international writers, Coleridge, Romanticism and the Orient is the first substantial exploration of Coleridge's literary and scholarly representations of the east and the ways in which these were influenced by and went on to influence his own work and the orientalism of the Romanticists more broadly. Bringing together postcolonial, philsophical, historicist and literary-critical perspectives, this groundbreaking book develops a new understanding of 'Orientalism' that recognises the importance of colonial ideologies in Romantic representations of the East as well as appreciating the unique forms of meaning and value which authors such as Coleridge asscoiated with the Orient.

The first survey of the connections between literature, religion, and intellectual life in the British Romantic period.

The Encyclopedia of Hinduism contains over 900 entries reflecting recent advances in scholarship which have raised new theoretical and methodological issues as well as identifying new areas of study which have not been addressed previously. The debate over the term 'Hinduism' in the light of post-Orientalist critiques is just one example of how once standard academic frameworks have been called into question. Entries range from 150-word definitions of terms and concepts to 5,000-word in-depth investigations of major topics. The Encyclopedia covers all aspects of Hinduism but departs from other works in including more ethnographic and contemporary material in contrast to an exclusively textual and historical approach. It includes a broad range of subject matter such as: historical developments (among them nineteenth and twentieth century reform and revival); geographical distribution (especially the diaspora); major and minor movements; philosophies and theologies; scriptures; deities; temples and sacred sites; pilgrimages; festivals; rites of passage; worship; religious arts (sculpture, architecture, music, dance, etc.); religious sciences (e.g. astrology); biographies of leading figures; local and regional traditions; caste and untouchability; feminism and women's religion; nationalism and the Hindu radical right; and new religious movements. The history of study and the role of important scholars past and present are also discussed. Accessibility to all levels of reader has been a priority and no previous knowledge is assumed. However, the in-depth larger entries and the design of the work in line with the latest scholarly advances means that the volume will be of considerable interest to specialists. The whole is cross-referenced and bibliographies attach to the larger entries. There is a full index.

This new collection enables students and general readers to appreciate Coleridge's renewed relevance 250 years after his birth. An indispensable guide to his writing for twenty-first-century readers, it contains new perspectives that reframe his work in relation to slavery, race, war, post-traumatic stress disorder and ecological crisis. Through detailed engagement with Coleridge's pioneering poetry, the reader is invited to explore fundamental questions on themes ranging from nature and trauma to gender and sexuality. Essays by leading Coleridge scholars analyse and render accessible his extraordinarily innovative thinking about dreams, psychoanalysis, genius and symbolism. Coleridge is often a direct and gripping writer, yet he is also elusive and diverse. This Companion's great achievement is to offer a one-volume entry point into his incomparably rich and varied world.

Oriental Wells explores the manifold ways in which the East was a major source of inspiration for the British Romantic poets, who generously borrowed from the Eastern sources in their effort to reinvent the British poetic tradition. It examines the “orientalization” of Romantic poetry, using works of William Blake, William Wordsworth, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Robert Southey, and Walter Savage Landor. Analyzing the Romantic poets' multifaceted engagement with the East, the book raises the questions: · What led Blake to formulate his thesis that “All Religions Are One”? · Why do Coleridge's poetry and the play Osorio echo some of the passages from Wilkins' translation of The Bhagvat-Geeta as well as other prominent Eastern religious texts? · What made Southey write his “Hindu epic” The Curse of Kehama and his “Islamic” tale Thalaba, the Destroyer? · What was the exact nature of the negotiations between William Jones' Orientalism and Wordsworth's poetics as formulated in the Preface to Lyrical Ballads, The Prelude, and other poems? The book convincingly argues that the introduction of “cultural goods” from the East played a crucial role in shaping the form and substance of British Romanticism, while acknowledging that the Romantics' reception of the East was tempered by their ideological concerns and religious background.