Dr. Rita D. Sherma
New Release
Swami Vikenanda
His Life, Legacy, and Liberative Ethics (2022)
Swami Vivekananda’s philosophical, religious, and ethical ideas, especially the manner in which they were applied or appropriated in recent times, have been variously discussed. His legacy, however, is being reappraised within these pages in terms of its continuity and discontinuity from tradition and examined from postcolonial, feminist, hermeneutical, and ethical perspectives. Swami Vivekananda: His Life, Legacy, and Liberative Ethics offers a multilayered exploration of the contributions of Swami Vivekananda to a range of discursive and practical engagements that address concerns of the fields of philosophy, theology, interreligious studies, ethics, postcolonial studies, gender studies, and social justice. This work brings together North American, European, British, and Indian scholars associated with a broad array of humanistic disciplines toward critical-constructive, contextually sensitive reflections on one of the most important thinkers and theologians of the modern era.
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"...In their diverse understandings of him [Swami Vivekananda], the various authors provide valuable insights and in the process challenge some of the misunderstandings and assumptions about Vivekananda and the broader Hindu tradition. Every reader will likely come away with a heightened awareness about and respect for Swami Vivekananda and the legacy of wisdom he left for us to learn from and follow.” ~ Dr. Ramdas Lamb, University of Hawai'i
Swami Vivekananda: His Life, Legacy, and Liberative Ethics is a superb collection of essays that revisit and resituate for our own times the legacy of Swami Vivekananda in the fields of Hindu self-understanding, religious dialogue, women and spirituality, and socially engaged liberation. The thematic landscape framed by the book encompasses highly creative engagements with the Swami’s work and writings.” ~ Dr. Ankur Barua, Cambridge University
This book is a comprehensive multidisciplinary, multilayered analysis of Swami Vivekananda’s philosophical and religious ideas within South Asia’s historical and sociological background. His life, ideology, and achievements have been viewed in terms of his continuity with past Vedanta traditions as well as his roots in contemporary colonial discourse of modernism. The book is a brilliant exposition of the contributions
of Swami Vivekananda to philosophy, ethics, and social justice—issues that are relevant to contemporary global society.” ~ Dr. Nalini Rao, Soka University of America
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About Dr. Rita D. Sherma
Rita D. Sherma is founding Director and Associate Professor at the Center for Dharma Studies; Core Doctoral Faculty; Department Chair of Theology & Ethics; and Co-Chair of Sustainability 360 Initiative at the Graduate Theological Union, Berkeley, California, USA.