Samnyasa Upanisads Hindu Scriptures on Asceticism and Renunciation

The first readable and accurate translation of twenty of the mostauthoritative Hindu documents pertaining to ascetic ideals and the ascetic wayof life, this text opens to students a major source for the study of the Hinduascetical institutions and of the historical changes they underwent during aperiod of a thousand years or more. Beginning with an analysis of the historicalcontext that gave rise to Indian ascetical institutions and ideologies, PatrickOlivelle moves on to elucidate the meaning of renunciation--the centralinstitution of holiness in most Hindu traditions--and the function andsignificance of the various elements that constitute the rite of renunciation.The Samnyasa Upanisads will be an unparalleled source of information and insightfor students of Hinduism and Indianeticism, mysticism, and holiness.Olivelle, Patrick is the author of 'Samnyasa Upanisads Hindu Scriptures on Asceticism and Renunciation' with ISBN 9780195070453 and ISBN 0195070453.