Interpreting Devotion

Karen Pechilis is Professor of Religious Studies and NEH Distinguished Professor of Humanities at Drew University, USA. She is an experienced theorist of devotion and translator of Tamil Śiva-bhakti hymns and their scholarly interpretation. Her previous books are The Embodiment of Bhakti (1999) and The Graceful Guru: Hindu Female Gurus in India and the United States (2004).

• 1. Gestures of Interpretation 2. The Poet’s Words 3. The Poet’s Vision 4. The Biographer’s View 5. A Public’s Vantage 6. Concluding Thoughts

"An excellent piece of scholarship from someone who could well have been a poet." - Bharati Jagannathan, University of Delhi; Himal Southasian, July 2012. "Karen Pechilis’ delightful book on Karaikkal Ammaiyar offers a multifaceted approach to this pioneering South Indian female devotee of Civa... Pechilis’ book offers an excellent theoretical framework for bhakti that adds to other work already published on Karaikkal Ammaiyar." - Loriliai Biernacki, University of Colorado; International Journal of Hindu Studies 17, 1 (2013)"Given its theoretical investment and topical location, this book will appeal to scholars of bhakti traditions, Indian religions, and comparative studies of devotion across religious traditions." – Varuni Bhatia, University of Michigan, Religious Studies Review 2013