Vaisnava Concepts of God

This book explores a number of concepts of God in Vaisnavism, which is commonly referred to as one of the great Hindu monotheistic traditions. By addressing the question of what attributes God possesses according to particular Vaisnava textual sources and traditions, the book locates these concepts within a global philosophical framework.The book is divided into two parts. The first part, God in Vaisnava Texts, deals with concepts of God found in some of the more prominent canonical Vaisnava texts: the Bhagavad-Gita, the Bhagavata-Purana, the Jayakhya-Samhita as representative of the Pancaratras, and the Mahabharata. The second part, God in Vaisnava Traditions, addresses concepts of God found in several Vaisnava traditions and their respective key theologians. In addition to the Alvars, the five traditional Vaisnava schools-the Sri Vaisnava tradition, the Madhva tradition, the Nimbarka tradition, the Pustimarga tradition, and the Caitanya Vaisnava tradition-and two contemporary ones-those of Ramakrishna (who has Vaisnava leanings) and Swami Bhaktivedanta-are considered.The book combines normative, critical, and descriptive elements. Some chapters are philosophical in nature, and others are more descriptive. Each unpacks a specific Vaisnava concept of God for future philosophical analysis and critique. Written by experts who break new ground in this presentation and representation of the diversity of Vaisnava texts and traditions, the book provides approaches that reflect the amount of philosophical and historical deliberation on the specific issues and divine attributes so far considered in the field of Hindu Studies. This book will be of interest to researchers in disciplines including philosophy of religion and Indian philosophy, cross-cultural and comparative philosophy, analytic philosophy of religion, Hindu Studies, theology, and religious studies.