Ahimsa in the Indic Traditions - (Explorations in Indic Traditions: Theological, Ethical, and) by Jeffery D Long & Steven J Rosen (Hardcover)

About the Book

Book Synopsis

Ahiṃsā in the Indic Traditions: Explorations and Reflections, edited by Jeffery D. Long and Steven J. Rosen, examines the diversity of nonviolent (ahimsa-oriented) doctrines originating in the Indic world, both in terms of interpersonal relationships and how they apply to the rest of creation, including animals.

Review Quotes

Food, war, colonialism, racism, climate crisis: how might the philosophy and practice of nonviolence help understand and unravel these pressing problems? This collection of remarkable essays approaches ahiṃsā from literary and philosophical perspectives, drawing from the Mahābhārata, Bhagavad Gīta, Yoga Sūtra, and Jain resources. In addition to profiling historic texts, this important volume engages the thought of modern figures such as Gandhi and A.C. Bhaktivedanta, pioneers in bringing transformative Indic thought systems to the world stage.

This approachable collection includes several nuanced analyses of nonviolence in the perplexing battlefield of the Gītā and also explicates the varieties of ahiṃsā in the subcontinent. Nonviolence is a tenacious through-line within yoga, food ethics, war, the external/internal aspects of actions, and the universal entanglements binding Self with other beings. Not only can readers reexamine the historical complexities of ahiṃsā as a South Asian philosophical option, but they will find enduring practices relevant to human-animal ethics, religious pluralism, political equity, ecological justice, and other forms of structural violence that hinder planetary thriving.

Through exploring ancient texts, traditions, practices, and modern interpretations, this multi-dimensional volume on ahiṃsā advances critical and constructive analyses that hold the promise to elevate our awareness of pervasive violence and the necessary paths to confront it. Uniquely drawing from philosophical insights from a variety of sources to address contemporary challenges, including war, ecological injury, mutual distrust, and xenophobia, contributors from the Indic traditions demonstrate the value of ahiṃsā not simply as a religious discipline or personal ethic, but a necessary way forward for our existential survival.

About the Author

Jeffery D. Long is the Carl W. Zeigler Professor of religion, philosophy, and Asian studies at Elizabethtown College.
Steven J. Rosen is founding editor of the Journal of Vaishnava Studies and associate editor of Back to Godhead magazine.