Ganesh

Robert L. Brown is Assistant Professor of Art History at the University of California, Los Angeles, and Adjunct Curator of the Pacific Asia Museum.

• ForewordA. K. NarainAcknowledgmentsNote on TransliterationIntroductionRobert L. Brown 1.  Ganesa: A Protohistory of the Idea and the IconA. K. Narain 2.  Ganesa: Myth and RealityM. K. Dhavalikar 3.  Ganesa's Rise to Prominence in Sanskrit LiteratureLudo Rocher 4.  Ganesa as Metaphor: The Mudgala PuranaPhyllis Granoff 5.  Images of Ganesa in JainismMaruti Nandan Tiwari and Kamal Giri 6.  The Wives of GanesaLawrence Cohen 7.  "Vatapi Ganapatim": Sculptural, Poetic, and Musical Texts in a Hymn to GanesaAmy Catlin 8.  Ganesa in Southeast Asian Art: Indian Connections and Indigenous DevelopmentsRobert L. Brown 9.  The Tantric Ganesa: Texts Preserved in the Tibetan CanonChristopher Wilkinson 10. Ganesa in China: Methods of Transforming the DemonicLewis R. Lancaster 11. Literary Aspects of Japan's Dual-Ganesa CultJames H. Sanford List of ContributorsIndex

"This book displays 'state of the art' scholarship on the mythology, literature, iconography, and practice surrounding Ganaa. No single scholar could take on the range of traditions, texts, languages, and practices that are represented here. It is a case of strength through diversities of scholarly background and interests with each study thoroughly grounded in original sources." — Paul B. Courtright, Emory University"I liked the wide-range of information presented about Ganaa from a variety of Asian countries, the depth of detail it makes available, the translations of texts otherwise not available, the data on actual rituals, and the data it gives on Tantrism. The book will be useful to those who want to explore a single theme that has run through South, Southeast, and East Asia. It is especially significant for the insight it provides into Tantric practices in Tibet and Japan." — Dennis Hudson, Smith College"It provides a great deal of original and unpublished material which will be of much interest to scholars in the field. It will be an indispensable reference work on the subject." —Pratataditya Pal, Senior Curator, Los Angeles County Museum of Art