{"product_id":"god-at-play-lila-in-hindu-and-christian-traditions-paperback-softback-9781531510091","title":"God at Play; Līlā in Hindu and Christian Traditions (Paperback \/ softback) 9781531510091","description":"\u003cfont face=\"Georgia\"\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cfont size=\"6\"\u003eGod at Play\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\r\n\u003cfont size=\"5\"\u003eLīlā in Hindu and Christian Traditions\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003eDaniel Soars (Edited by), Michelle Voss (Afterword by), Sucharita Adluri (Contributions by), Ankur Barua (Contributions by), Stephen R.L. Clark (Contributions by), Francis X. Clooney (Contributions by), Rachel Fell McDermott (Contributions by), Jessica Frazier (Contributions by), Bernard McGinn (Contributions by), Douglas Hedley (Contributions by), Srilata Raman (Contributions by), Daniel Soars (Contributions by), Daniel Tolan (Contributions by), Peter Tyler (Contributions by), Dominic White (Contributions by)\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e9781531510091\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003ePaperback \/ softback, published 1 July 2025\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e320 pages\u003cbr\u003e22.9 x 15.2 x 1.5 cm, 0.431 kg\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\u003cp align=\"justify\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe first comparative treatment of the topic of \u003ci\u003elīlā \u003c\/i\u003ein Hindu and Christian traditions, this volume explores what it means to consider divine and human action under the categories of play, wit, drama, grace, and compassion\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003eGod at Play \u003c\/i\u003epresents a theological exploration of the multifaceted motif of \u003ci\u003elīlā \u003c\/i\u003eacross diverse Hindu and Christian landscapes and its wide-ranging connections to divine and human creativity. Given its ubiquity in Hindu theologies and life-forms, \u003ci\u003elīlā \u003c\/i\u003eoffers a rich comparative framework for exploring certain ways of understanding divine and human action as expressed in Hindu and Christian sacred texts, philosophical theology, and ritual practices.\u003cbr\u003e Though \u003ci\u003elīlā \u003c\/i\u003eis often interpreted simply as \"play,\" the essays in this volume reflect a far richer semantic and conceptual field, ranging from spontaneity and gratuitousness, through joy and humor, to mercy and compassion. By focusing on the different contexts in which \u003ci\u003elīlā \u003c\/i\u003eis found in Hindu traditions and resisting any uniform translation of the term, the contributors to this volume avoid the risk of using predominantly western or Christian categories to understand the Hindu other. The volume thus explores how \u003ci\u003elīlā \u003c\/i\u003efunctions in a variety of distinctive philosophical, theological, and devotional ways across Hindu traditions, and listens for echoes in Christian understandings of the gratuitousness of the created order in relation to God.\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003eGod at Play \u003c\/i\u003eis a genuine experiment in deep learning across traditions. Each chapter reflects on what is learned by taking \u003ci\u003elīlā \u003c\/i\u003eas the category of comparison and invites the reader to think about what these conversations add, confirm, or change in relation to earlier twentieth-century scholarship on play—not least, in terms of what difference it might make to understand human life as an imitation and a participation in the divine life of a playful deity.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eIntroduction: \u003c\/b\u003eGod at Play: Līlā in Hindu and Christian Traditions   1\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003eDaniel Soars\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003ePart I: Līlā as Divine Will and Divine Creativity\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003e1 \u003c\/b\u003ePlay in East and West   21\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003eDouglas Hedley\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003e2 \u003c\/b\u003eCreating without a \"Why\": Divine Play as Metaphor\u003cbr\u003e for Creation in John Scottus Eriugena, Thomas Aquinas, and Meister Eckhart   43\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003eBernard McGinn\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003e3 \u003c\/b\u003eGod's Willand the Creative Act:\u003cbr\u003e Origen on Divine Volition and the Intelligibility of the Cosmos   63\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003eDaniel J. Tolan\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Part II: Grace, Compassion, and Suffering: Some Pastoral Connotations of Līlā\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003e4 \u003c\/b\u003eCreation, Vision, Bliss: Līlā as Grace according to Rāmānuja, with\u003cbr\u003e Reference Also to Thomas Aquinas and Gregory Palamas   89\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003eFrancis X. Clooney, SJ\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003e5 \u003c\/b\u003eLīlā and Divine Mercy in the Hundred Verses to Compassion of Vedānta Deśika   109\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003eSucharita Adluri\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003e6 \u003c\/b\u003eWhat Does It Mean for the Goddess to Play?\u003cbr\u003e Līlā (or Its Absence) in the Śākta Traditions   135\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003eRachel Fell McDermott\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003ePart III: Some Aesthetic and Dramatic Dimensions of Līlā\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003e7 \u003c\/b\u003e\"You have made me endless, such is thy pleasure\":\u003cbr\u003e The Līlā of Love in the Metaphysical Poetry of Rabindranath Tagore   153\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003eAnkur Barua\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003e8 \u003c\/b\u003eThe Metaphysics of Emotion: Divine Play in Caitanya Vaiṣṇava Philosophy   178\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003eJessica Frazier\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003e9 \u003c\/b\u003eThe Making of the Sacred City: Līlā as God's Violence in a Tamil Śaiva Talapurāṇam   197\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003eSrilata Raman\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003ePart IV: Human Playfulness as Imitation of Divine Līlā\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003e10 \u003c\/b\u003eLooking to the Leader: The Divine Dance in Neoplatonism   221\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003eStephen R.L. Clark\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003e11 \u003c\/b\u003eSerio Ludere! Divine Lessons from Tricksters and Holy Fools   244\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003ePeter Tyler\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003e12 \u003c\/b\u003eThe Serious Subject of Play: Play in Dance and Music   264\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003eDominic White, OP\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003eAfterword: \u003c\/b\u003eDivine Līlā and Human Play   289\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003eMichelle Voss\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003eContributors \u003c\/i\u003e  299\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003eIndex \u003c\/i\u003e  303\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\u003c\/font\u003e","brand":"Fordham University Press","offers":[{"title":"Brand New","offer_id":52656099295512,"sku":"9781531510091","price":26.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"url":"https:\/\/freshlyprintedbooks.co.uk\/products\/god-at-play-lila-in-hindu-and-christian-traditions-paperback-softback-9781531510091","provider":"Freshly Printed Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}