Tradition, Veda and Law

Federico Squarcini

Description

The essays in this volume include both general considerations and detailed investigations of South Asian cultural productions, and are arranged to fit specific South Asian materials into larger analytical frameworks.

The essays presented in this volume constitute a progression from general considerations related to the ‘etic’ (in the geertzian sense of the word) approach to South Asian cultural productions, to peculiar and detailed investigations of them. Such a sequence is meant to develop a renovated and systemic approach, through which these specific cultural materials should be interpreted: materials not to be read in isolation, nor with an overemphasised concern for cultural relativity. Rather, they should be viewed as meaningful examples of sophisticated intellectual and cultural procedures to be included into a broader comparative discussion, also in order to increase the quality and the depth of such debate. The studies gathered in this volume are therefore arranged to fit specific South Asian materials into larger analytical frameworks.

I. Understanding South Asian Cultural Production. In Search for a New Historical and Hermeneutic Awareness; II . ‘Pasadin’, ‘vaitandika’, ‘vaitaṇḍika’ and ‘nastika’. On Criticism, Dissenters and Polemics and the South Asian Struggle for the Semiotic Primacy of Veridiction; II. Being Good is Being ‘vaidika’. On the Genesis of a Normative Criterion in the ‘Manavadharmasastra’; IV. ‘na mlecchabhasam sikseta’. On the Authority of Speech and the Modes of Social Distinction through the Medium of Language; V. Punishing in Public. Imposing Moral Self-Dominance in Juridical Sanskrit Sources

Sujets

• Hinduism

Informations

• Publié par: Anthem Press
• Date de parution: 15 décembre 2011
• Nombre de lectures: 2
• EAN13: 9780857289810
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

TRADITION, VEDA AND LAW

Cultural, Historical and Textual Studies of Religions

The volumes featured in the AnthemCultural, Historical and Textual Studies of Religionsseries are the expression of an international community of scholars committed to the reshaping of the field of textual and historical studies of religions. Titles in this series examine practice, ritual, and other textual religious products, crossing different area studies and time frames. Featuring a vast range of interpretive perspectives, this innovative series aims to enhance the way we look at religious traditions.

Series Editor

Federico Squarcini, University of Firenze, Italy

Editorial Board

Piero Capelli, University of Venezia, Italy Vincent Eltschinger, ICIHA, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Austria Christoph Emmrich, University of Toronto, Canada James Fitzgerald, Brown University, USA Jonardon Ganeri, University of Sussex, UK Barbara A. Holdrege, University of California, Santa Barbara, USA Sheldon Pollock, Columbia University, USA Karin Preisendanz, University of Vienna, Austria Alessandro Saggioro, Sapienza University of Rome, Italy Cristina ScherrerSchaub, University of Lausanne and EPHE, France Romila Thapar, Jawaharlal Nehru University, India Ananya Vajpeyi, University of Massachusetts Boston, USA Marco Ventura, University of Siena, Italy Vincenzo Vergiani, University of Cambridge, UK

TRADITION, VEDA AND LAW

STUDIES ON SOUTH ASIAN CLASSICAL INTELLECTUAL TRADITIONS

Federico Squarcini

Anthem Press An imprint of Wimbledon Publishing Company www.anthempress.com

This edition first published in UK and USA 2011 by ANTHEM PRESS 7576 Blackfriars Road, London SE1 8HA, UK or PO Box 9779, London SW19 7ZG, UK and 244 Madison Ave. #116, New York, NY 10016, USA

Copyright © Federico Squarcini 2011

The author asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.

Graphics and layout © Marianna Ferrara

Cover photography © Federico Squarcini

All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.

British Library CataloguinginPublication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

Library of Congress CataloginginPublication Data A catalog record for this book has been requested.

ISBN13: 978 0 85728 436 5 (Hbk) ISBN10: 0 85728 436 3 (Hbk)

This title is also available as an eBook.

Introduction

Contents

 7

i.Understanding South Asian Cultural Production: In Search of a New Historical and Hermeneutic Awareness 11

ii. pāṣàṇḍIN, vàItàṇḍIkà, vEDàNINDàkàandNāstIkà: On Criticism, Dissenters and Polemics and the South Asian Struggle for the Semiotic Primacy of Veridiction 43

iii.Being Good is BeingvàIDIkà : On the Genesis of a Normative Criterion in theMāNàvàDHàRmàśāstRà 113

iV. Nà mlECCHàbHāṣāṃ śIkṣEtà : On the Authority of Speech and the Modes of Social Distinction through the Medium of Language 133

V.Punishing in Public: Imposing Moral Self-Dominance in Normative Sanskrit Sources 153

Introduction

THE Essàys pREsENtED IN tHIs vOlUmE CONstItUtE à pROgREssION fROm gENERàl CONsIDERàtIONs RElàtED tO tHE ‘EtIC’ (IN tHE GEERtzIàN sENsE Of tHE WORD) àppROàCH tO SOUtH asIàN CUltURàl pRODUCtIONs, tO pECUlIàR àND DE- tàIlED INvEstIgàtIONs Of tHEm. SUCH à sEqUENCE Is mEàNt tO DEvElOp à RENOvàtED àND systEmIC àppROàCH, tHROUgH WHICH tHEsE spECIfIC CUltURàl màtERIàls sHOUlD bE INtER- pREtED: màtERIàls NOt tO bE REàD IN IsOlàtION, NOR WItH àN OvEREmpHàsIsED CONCERN fOR CUltURàl RElàtIvIty. ràtHER, tHEy sHOUlD bE vIEWED às mEàNINgfUl ExàmplEs Of sOpHIs- tICàtED INtEllECtUàl àND CUltURàl pROCEDUREs tO bE INClUD- ED INtO à bROàDER COmpàRàtIvE DIsCUssION, àlsO IN ORDER tO INCREàsE tHE qUàlIty àND tHE DEptH Of sUCH DEbàtE. THE fOllOWINg stUDIEs àRE tHEREfORE àRRàNgED às àbOvE, fIttINg spECIfIC màtERIàls INtO làRgER àNàlytICàl fRàmEWORks. LEt mE NOW mENtION sOmE Of tHE tECHNICàlItIEs CON- CERNINg tHE Essàys: sINCE tHE màtERIàls HERE COllECtED àRE tHE pRODUCts Of à lONg tERm REsEàRCH pERIOD, tHERE àRE sOmE DIvERgENCEs RElàtED tO EDItORIàl CRItERIà. i àpOlOgIzE fOR àNy INCONvENIENCEs tHIs mày CàUsE tO tHE REàDERs. alsO, i HàvE tO stàtE tHàt pREvIOUs vERsIONs Of tHE CHàptERs Of tHIs vOlUmE CàmE OUt IN pRINt: cHàptER 1 INItIàlly àppEàRED às F. SqUàRCINI, iNDIà àND eUROpE: At the Dawn of a New Hermeneutic Era, IN K. PREIsENDàNz (ED.),Expanding and Merging Horizons. Contributions to South Asian and Cross-Cultural Studies in Commemoration

8

FEDER ICO SQUA RCINI

of Wilhelm Halbfass, ÖstERREICHIsCHE akàDEmIE dER wIs- sENsCHàftEN, wIEN 2007, pp. 3-21; cHàptER 2 às F. SqUàR- CINI,Traditions against Tradition. Criticism, Dissent and the Struggle for the Semiotic Primacy of Veridiction, IN F. SqUàR- CINI (ED.),Boundaries, Dynamics and Construction of Tradi- tions in South Asia, FIRENzE uNIvERsIty PREss - MUNsHIRàm MàNOHàRlàl, FIRENzE - dElHI 2005, pp. 437-484; cHàptER 4 às F. SqUàRCINI, Nà mlECCHàbHāṣāṃ śIkṣEtà.On the au- thority of speech and the modes of social distinction through themEDIUmof language in classical India, IN c. GàlEWICz (ED.),Texts of power, the power of the text. Readings in textual authority across history and cultures, wyDàWNICtWO hOmINI, KRàkOW 2006, pp. 165-179. i WOUlD àlsO lIkE tO INfORm tHE REàDER tHàt àll tHE REf- ERENCEs tO tHEMānavadharmaśāstratàkEN fROm tHE àRE CRItICàl EDItION Of PàtRICk olIvEllE (2005), WHOm i WOUlD lIkE tO tHàNk fOR HàvINg gIvEN mE tHE OppORtUNIty tO CONsUlt àND UsE It bEfORE Its pUblICàtION. FINàlly, vàRIOUs pERsONs NEED tO bE mENtIONED HERE, sINCE tHEIR HElp àND gUIDàNCE Hàs bEEN DECIsIvE fOR tHE àCCOmplIsHmENt Of tHIs WORk: PIERO càpEllI, cRIstIàNO GROttàNEllI, alEssàNDRO GRàHElI, StEvEN LINDqUIst, Kà- RIN PREIsENDàNz, aNtONEllà rONDINONE, MàRINà rUstOW, FRàNCEsCO SfERRà, LàRà TàvàRNEsI, dàvIDE TOmbà, VIN- CENzO VERgIàNI.

F EDERICO S QUARCINI wàsHINgtON 2003 - FlORENCE 2007

Tradition, Veda and Law