Gods on Earth: Ten Incarnations of Vishnu With Robert P. and Sally J. Sutherland Goldman

Literature Courses
The ten incarnations of the Hindu deity Vishnu, approx. 1975–1982, by Batohi Jha (Indian, active approx. 1975-2000). Ink and colors on paper. Courtesy of Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, Museum purchase, 1999.39.45. © Batohi Jha. Photograph © Asian Art

Gods on Earth: Ten Incarnations of Vishnu With Robert P. and Sally J. Sutherland Goldman

Instructor: 
Robert P. and Sally J. Sutherland Goldman
When: 
Repeats every week every Sunday until Sun Oct 23 2016 except Sun Sep 25 2016, Sun Oct 02 2016.
September 11, 2016
Time: 
Sundays, September 11, 18, October 9, 16, 23. 10:15 am – 12:15 pm
Place: 
Education Studios, Opera Plaza 10/23
Fee: 
$100 Society members, $120 non-members (after Museum admission). This series is full, but if you would like to be placed on the waitlist please contact the SAA Office.

One of the most colorful, dramatic, and popular elements of Hinduism is the Vaishnava tradition of Lord Vishnu’s ten avataras, or earthly incarnations. These grand manifestations of God on earth range in evolutionary sequence through the animal kingdom to such towering epic heroes as Rama and Krishna. Through readings of primary texts and secondary scholarship, renowned experts Professors Robert and Sally Goldman will explore the fascinating histories and deeper meanings of these iconic religious figures. The readings are illustrated with artistic representations of the avataras across time from antiquity to modernity, and across genres from temple sculpture and courtly painting to modern cinema, television, and popular ephemera.

Primary reading materials for this class will be taken from Classical Hindu Mythology (Cornelia Dimmit and J.A.B. van Buitenen, Temple University Press, 1978). In addition, other selected readings will be provided.

Professors Robert Goldman and Sally Goldman teach in the Department of South and Southeast Asian Studies at UC Berkeley. Both have published widely in the fields of Sanskrit literature and Indian epics. Their most recent scholarly work is the definitive, critical and fully annotated translation of Valmiki’s Ramayana.

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