Religion and the Body

Thisbookaimstohighlightthedistinctiveandunfamiliarwaysinwhichdiversereligioustraditionsunderstandthe'body',andalso,indoingthis,toraisetogreaterconsciousnesssomeoftheassumptionsandproblemsofcontemporaryattitudestoit.Itbringstogetheressaysbyestablishedexpertsinthehistoryofreligion,thesocialsciences,andphilosophy.PartIisdevotedtoananalysisofcurrentsecularizeddiscoursesonthe'body',andtoexposingboththeiranti-religiousandtheircovertlyreligiouscontent.PartsIIandIIIprovideessaysontraditional'Western'and'Eastern'religiousattitudestothe'body'.Eachcontributorfocusesonsome(especiallycharacteristic)devotionalpracticesorrelevanttexts;eachcarefullyoutlinesthetotalcontextinwhichadistinctivereligiousattitudeto'bodiliness'occurs.Theresultisarichsourceforcomparativestudiesofthe'body',andofitsrelationtosocietyandtothedivine.