Table of Contents

Illustrations
Preface

1. Introduction

PART I: The Text in Its Context

2. The Historical Setting

1. Introduction
2. Sanskrit and Sanskritization
3. The Names of the Goddess
4. The Myths in the Devi-Mahatmya
5. The Divine Protector or Protectress

3. The Text in Translation

1. A Note on the Translation
2. The Translation

Part II: Encounters With the Goddess

4. The Legacy of a Text

5. Encounter with the Text I--The Ritual and Philosophy of the Angas

1. Introduction
2. The Armor, the Stopper, the Bolt: Kavaca, Argala, and Kilaka
3. The Secrets Pertaining to Primordial Matters, Subsequent Modifications, and Forms: The Pradhanika, Vaikrtika, and Murti Rahasyas

6. Encounter with the Text II--The Commentaries

1. Introduction
2. Bhaskararaya and Nagoji Bhatta
3. Bhaskararaya's Guptavati: "Containing What is Hidden"
4. Comparative Considerations

7. Encounters in the Contemporary World

1. Introduction
2. Scholar and Translator
3. Pujari and Professor
4. "Standing at the Feet of the Mother"
5. Conclusion

Appendix: Translation of the Angas
Notes
Glossary
Bibliography
Index

About the Author

Thomas B. Coburn is Charles A. Dana Professor of Religious Studies and Classical Languages at St. Lawrence University. He is the author of Devi-Mahatmya: The Crystallization of the Goddess Tradition.

Reviews

"Encountering the Goddess is likely to be the standard scholarly translation for years to come."--C. Mackenzie Brown, Trinity University