The Asrama System

"Patrick Olivelle's revelatory book-the first full-length study of asrama-begins to right the balance and in the process greatly expands our understanding of Indian civilization. As a bonus, it gives the reader a valuable education in the principles of Brahmanical hermeneutics....This is a work that will interest anyone concerned with the cultural role of the exegetical impulse. It is also a work that nobody with a serious interest in Indian civilization should leave unread." --History of Religions "Olivelle's study is both revisionist and exemplary....An intellectually engaging study of the way ideas evolve and change within a tradition. Highly recommended."--Religious Studies Review "[A] superb volume....[A] masterful account..."--The Journal of Religion "This is the first book-length study of the asrama system, and should revolutionize current thinking and teaching on the subject....Olivelle's work is careful, and instructive....Full of interesting information and argumentation....The Asrama System is helpful and thought-provoking."--Journal of the American Oriental System "...a book which illuminates not only the history of the asramar system but much else in the tradition of Indian hermeneutics. All in all, this is a book to be warmly welcomed and carefully studied."--Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies "Patrick Olivelle's revelatory book-the first full-length study of asrama-begins to right the balance and in the process greatly expands our understanding of Indian civilization. As a bonus, it gives the reader a valuable education in the principles of Brahmanical hermeneutics....This is a work that will interest anyone concerned with the cultural role of the exegetical impulse. It is also a work that nobody with a serious interest in Indian civilization should leave unread." --History of Religions "Olivelle's study is both revisionist and exemplary....An intellectually engaging study of the way ideas evolve and change within a tradition. Highly recommended."--Religious Studies Review "[A] superb volume....[A] masterful account..."--The Journal of Religion "This is the first book-length study of the asrama system, and should revolutionize current thinking and teaching on the subject....Olivelle's work is careful, and instructive....Full of interesting information and argumentation....The Asrama System is helpful and thought-provoking."--Journal of the American Oriental System "...a book which illuminates not only the history of the asramar system but much else in the tradition of Indian hermeneutics. All in all, this is a book to be warmly welcomed and carefully studied."--Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies "This book is of immense value not only to Indologists and historians of religion concerned with the interpretation of classical texts, but also to anthropologists and sociologists engaged in studies of contemporary Indian institutions."--The Journal of Asian Studies