Dear Colleagues: You may be interested in listening to John's recent New Books Network interview on B*rahmins and Kings: Royal Counsel in the Sanskrit Narrative Literatures.*
https://newbooksnetwork.com/brahmins-and-kings Feel free to get in touch if you'd like something covered on the podcast. Raj -- Regards, Raj Balkaran, Ph.D. Tutor, Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies Chaplain, McMaster University https://rajbalkaran.com On Wed, Apr 2, 2025 at 10:43 AM Nemec, John William (jwn3y) via INDOLOGY < [email protected]> wrote: > Dear Colleagues (with apologies for cross-posting and self-promotion), > > I write to share the happy news of the release of my new book on March > 28th: > > *Brahmins and Kings: Royal Counsel in the Sanskrit Narrative Literatures.* > > Here is a link to the publisher's website: > https://global.oup.com/academic/product/brahmins-and-kings-9780197791998?cc=us&lang=en&; > > > What follows is the description of the book from the Press: > > *"Brahmins and Kings* examines some of the most well-known and widely > circulated narratives in the history of Sanskrit literature, including the > *Mahābhārata*, the *Rāmāyaṇa*, Viṣṇuśarman's famed animal stories (the * > Pañcatantra*), Somadeva's labyrinthine Ocean of Rivers of Stories (the > *Kathāsaritsāgara*), Kalhaṇa's *Chronicle of the Kings of Kashmir* (the > *Rājataraṅgiṇī*), and two of the most famous plays in the history of > Sanskrit literature, Kālidāsa's *Abhijñānaśākuntala* and Harṣa's > *Ratnāvalī*. Offering a sustained, close, intertextual reading of these > works, John Nemec argues that these texts all share a common frame: they > feature stories of the mutual relations of *kṣatriya* kings with > Brahmins, and they depict Brahmins advising political figures. More than > this, they not only narrate instances of royal counsel but also are > composed in a manner that renders the stories themselves as instances of > counsel. > > Based in the technical literatures on Hindu Law and on statecraft—the > *Dharmaśāstra*s and the *Arthaśāstra* and related works—the counsel in > question elaborates a model of action that synthesizes views found in both, > recommending a kind of virtue ethic that suggests one may do well in the > world by being good. Doing well involves succeeding in both worldly and > otherworldly affairs; being good involves following Brahminical teachings > and upholding the dharmic norms they regularly articulate in text. This > ethic encompasses all human action and practice, defines the counsel > offered by these texts, and seeks with it to engage the king, his princes, > and queens across the spectrum of their subjective experience: > intellectually, emotionally, humorously. > > Ultimately, this book argues that, just as the rulers in these narratives > receive moral instruction, their audiences do, as well. By putting > metaphorical flesh on the proverbial bare bones of doctrinal ideals and > ideas, these texts seek to shape not just readers' thoughts but also their > emotions and cultivated instincts, intending to transform their very way of > engaging the world by immersing them in the dreamworld of stories." > > > Thank you and with best wishes, > John > > > > ___________________________________________ > John Nemec, Ph.D. > Professor of Indian Religions and South Asian Studies > Department of Religious Studies > 323 Gibson Hall, 1540 Jefferson Park Avenue > University of Virginia > Charlottesville, VA 22904 > +1 (434) 924-6716 > [email protected] > https://virginia.academia.edu/JNemec > > Take a look at my new book: > > https://global.oup.com/academic/product/brahmins-and-kings-9780197791998?cc=us&lang=en&; > > _______________________________________________ > INDOLOGY mailing list > [email protected] > https://list.indology.info/mailman/listinfo/indology >
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