| Date | Time | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Friday, April 14, 2023 | 4:00PM - 6:00PM | Seminar Room 208N, The event will take place in room 208N, Munk School, 1 Devonshire Place. |
India-Canada Association Lecture
The India-Canada Association Lecture
Abstract:
This talk presents ongoing research on the Tantric traditions of Kashmir in the 17th and 18th centuries. It is based on a newly prepared critical edition and translation (with Prof. Ben Williams, Naropa University) of Sanskrit hymns composed by the followers of the prolific and influential Kashmirian author, Sābib Kaula. Many of the hymns are about their guru and their lineage, but others reframe earlier Śaiva and Śākta traditions popular in Kashmir. This talk focuses on three hymns: the Bhairavīśaktistotra (modelled on Abhinavagupta’s Bhairavastotra) and Tripurasundarīstotra of Gaṇeśa Bhaṭṭāraka and the Svacchandamaheśvarāṣṭaka of Govinda Kaula. Based on this analysis, it argues for new perspectives on the history and evolution of religious and literary traditions in Kashmir.
Speaker Bio:
Hamsa Stainton is an Associate Professor in the School of Religious Studies at McGill University. His recent research focuses on a popular genre of Sanskrit devotional poetry in north India, the hymn of praise (stotra). Recent publications include Tantrapuṣpāñjali: Tantric Traditions and Philosophy of Kashmir; Studies in Memory of Pandit H.N. Chakravarty (co-edited with Bettina Bäumer) and Poetry as Prayer in the Sanskrit Hymns of Kashmir (Oxford University Press, 2019).
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