Indian Alchemy

NOTE EDITORE

Drawing on a selection of the most important Sanskrit alchemical works from the ninth to sixteenth centuries, Indian Alchemy: Sources and Contexts provides an introduction to South Asian alchemy, tracing and explaining alchemical thought as it developed on the Indian subcontinent. Carefully edited by Dagmar Wujastyk, the collected essays offer deep insight into the motivations and goals of Indian alchemists and illuminate the theories and methods they developed over time. The collection provides an overview of the genre of Sanskrit alchemical literature, examining how Indian alchemists portrayed and defined their discipline. Translations of excerpts from important Sanskrit alchemical works showcase the most common themes found in the literature--such as the framing of alchemy as a knowledge system originating from &Sacuteiva, a focus on mercury, and technical descriptions of making elixirs--and reveal the characteristic style of each work. Indian Alchemy serves to expand readers' understanding of what it meant to practice alchemy on the Indian subcontinent. With its broad selection of examined themes, this collection offers a detailed and comprehensive investigation of the Indian alchemical idiom and the beliefs and practices of its practitioners.

SOMMARIO

1 - The Culmination of Alchemical Practice: Chapter 19 of the Rasah?dayatantra2 - The Practice of Alchemy and Its Practitioners: Chapters 1 and 2 of the Rasar?ava3 - Nagarjuna Siddha: The Kak?apu?a of the Rasendrama?gala4 - The Alchemical Laboratory: Chapter 3 of Somadeva's Rasendracu?ama?i5 - Alchemical Pilgrimage: Chapter 8 of the Rasaratnakara's Rasayanakha??a6 - Potency, Virility, Sexual Pleasure: Chapters 9 and 10 of the Rasamañjari7 - Medicine and Alchemy: Chapter 19 of the Rasaratnasamuccaya8 - The Eighteen Alchemical Procedures: Chapter 1 of the Rasaprakasasudhakara9 - Alchemical Instruments: Section 1, Chapter 1 of the Rasakamadhenu10 - The Am?tasiddhi: Ha?hayoga's Flash in the Alchemical Pan

AUTORE

Dagmar Wujastyk is Associate Professor of South Asian Studies in the Department of History, Classics, and Religion at the University of Alberta, Canada. Her research focuses on the history and literature of classical Indian medicine (Ayurveda), Indian iatrochemistry and alchemy, and yoga.

ALTRE INFORMAZIONI

• Condizione: Nuovo
• ISBN: 9780197805800
• Collana: South Asia Research
• Dimensioni: 237 x 23.4 x 164 mm Ø 585 gr
• Formato: Copertina rigida
• Illustration Notes: 10 maps, 5 illustrations
• Pagine Arabe: 312