Religious studies and comparative methodology : the case for reciprocal illumination / Arvind Sharma.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Sharma, Arvind.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Religion--Study and teaching.

Religions.

Physical Description:

x, 314 pages ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Albany : State University of New York Press, [2005]

Summary:

Comparison is at the heart of religious studies as a discipline and foundational to the field's methodology. In this book, Arvind Sharma introduces the term "reciprocal illumination" to describe the mutual enlightenment that can occur when a comparison is made between one tradition and another, one method and another, or between a tradition and a method. Developing the concept of reciprocal illumination through historical, phenomenological, and psychological methods. Sharma demonstrates how to use comparison, while avoiding the pitfall of treating it as merely raw material for higher order generalizations.

Contents:

Chapter 1 Does One Religious Tradition Help Us Understand Another? A Wide Lens Approach 3

Chapter 2 Does One Religious Tradition Help Us Understand Another? A Zoom Lens Approach 11

Chapter 3 Reciprocal Illumination as a Formal Concept 23

Chapter 4 Reciprocal Illumination in Relation to the Lived Experience of Other Religions 37

Chapter 5 Reciprocal Illumination and Comparative Religion 45

Chapter 6 Reciprocal Illumination in Relation to the Views of W. C. Smith and Mircea Eliade 67

Chapter 7 Reciprocal Illumination and the Historical Method 79

Chapter 8 Reciprocal Illumination and the Phenomenological Method 85

Chapter 9 Parallelisms between Hinduism and Christianity as Further Examples of Reciprocal Illumination 91

Chapter 10 Reciprocal Illumination within a Tradition 113

Chapter 11 Reciprocal Illumination between Traditions 117

Chapter 12 Reciprocal Illumination among Traditions 135

Chapter 13 Reciprocal Illumination among Types of Traditions 149

Chapter 14 Reciprocal Illumination between Religion and the Secular Tradition 161

Chapter 15 Reciprocal Illumination within a Method 183

Chapter 16 The History of Religions: Buddhism and Judaism 187

Chapter 17 The Phenomenology of Religion and Buddhism 193

Chapter 18 The Psychology of Religion and Buddhism 197

Chapter 19 The Psychology of Religion and Hinduism 213

Chapter 20 The Sociology of Religion and Hinduism 229

Chapter 21 Reciprocal Illumination and the Dialogue of World Religions 241.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 255-297) and indexes.

ISBN:

0791464555

OCLC:

55962296