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Classical Hindu Thought: An Introduction. By ARVIND SHARMA. New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 2000. xxv, 221 pp. $35.00 (cloth); $16.95 (paper).
In this book, Arvind Sharma introduces the fundamentals of Hinduism through a detailed, often repetitive, discussion of key concepts in the tradition. The treatment of Hinduism by the author is "classical" in three ways. First, the focus is Hinduism in its classical form, as contained in the smrti texts-especially Purana, dharma, and dar;ana literature-organized around concepts like brahman, karma, karma-yoga, bhakti, etc. Second, it is "classical" in the sense that the perspective on Hinduism is textual, relying on the Sanskritic textual tradition. Third, this presentation can be termed "classical" because its author relies quite heavily on several classic studies on Hinduism to present this introduction to Hindu thought.
The book is organized into a series of encyclopedia-type chapters, each of which elucidates the scope of the Hindu tradition under the heading of selected key concepts: brahman (nirguna and saguna), Isvara, Devi, the Hindu Trinity, Brahma, Visnu, Siva, jiva, samsara, karma, dharma, maya, moksa, jna-yoga, bhakti-yoga, karma-yoga, varna, asrama, purusartha-s, and Veda. These topic-chapters are preceded...