Papers by Ithamar Theodor
The Bhagavad Gita is a unique literary creation but deciphering its meaning and philosophy is not... more The Bhagavad Gita is a unique literary creation but deciphering its meaning and philosophy is not easy or simple. This careful study of the Bhagavad Gita approaches the ancient text with a modern mind and offers a unifying structure which is of a universal relevance. ...
Cambridge University Press eBooks, Jun 15, 2023
This chapter looks at the three main Indian Jewish communities since the establishement of the Br... more This chapter looks at the three main Indian Jewish communities since the establishement of the British Raj following the mutiny, up untill the mass emigration of the Indian Jewish community to Israel during the 1950s. The chapter looks into the Indian Jewish community’s struggle of identity during this period, characterzied by the rise of two national movements; the Indian national movement and the Jewish national movement known as Zionism. It also looks into their identities as Jewish Indians, self perception and their inter-relations as well as their invovlement and contribution to Indian society.
International Journal of Hindu Studies Special Issue: Gandhi, Israel and the Jews, 2023
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11407-023-09345-2
This special issue comme... more https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11407-023-09345-2
This special issue commemorates the 150th anniversary of Gandhi's birth, as well as 30 years of diplomatic relations between India and Israel. It is also the first issue of the International Journal of Hindu Studies to examine Gandhi from Jewish and Israeli perspectives. Gandhian studies and ideology have been attracting substantial attention in Jewish and Israeli circles during the last decade, exemplified by the growing number of publications in Hebrew of Gandhi and about Gandhi, including My Experience with the Truth, Satyāgraha in South Africa, and Hind Swaraj.
The Wiley Blackwell Companion to Comparative Theology A Festschrift in Honor of Francis X. Clooney, SJ, 2024
Medieval Vedānta has been divided into two major worldviews; pariṇāma-vāda and vivarta-vada. The ... more Medieval Vedānta has been divided into two major worldviews; pariṇāma-vāda and vivarta-vada. The pariṇāma-vādins maintain that the world is a transformation or development (pariṇāma) of ultimate reality (Brahman), whereas the second group, the vivarta-vādins hold that the world is a false appearance (vivarta) of ultimate reality. In many ways Kabbalah is similar to pariṇāma-vāda as it holds a similar concept according to which, divinity descends into the world through transformation, thus enabling human beings to encounter the divine reality through mind and matter. This chapter highlights two such similarities, in the realm of ontology and in the realm of ethics. In the realm of ontology, a central concept of Kabbalah is that of the sefirot which are often depicted in anthropomorphic terms; this concept is similar in various ways to the ‘Virāṭ Puruṣa’, a Vedic concept of a Universal Person, which receives a theistic interpretation by the Bhāgavata Purāṇa. In the realm of ontology, the ethics of Mesilat Yesharim by the Ramhal is compared to the Bhagavad-gītā's ladder of ethical actions, as depicted by Viśvanātha.
Jewish Communities in Modern Asia
This chapter looks at the three main Indian Jewish communities since the establishement of the B... more This chapter looks at the three main Indian Jewish communities since the establishement of the British Raj following the mutiny, up untill the mass emigration of the Indian Jewish community to Israel during the 1950s. The chapter looks into the Indian Jewish community’s struggle of identity during this period, characterzied by the rise of two national movements; the Indian national movement and the Jewish national movement known as Zionism. It also looks into
their identities as Jewish Indians, self perception and their inter-relations as well as their invovlement and contribution to Indian society.
Jewish Communities in Modern Asia, 2023
This chapter looks at the three main Indian Jewish communities since the establishement of the B... more This chapter looks at the three main Indian Jewish communities since the establishement of the British Raj following the mutiny, up untill the mass emigration of the Indian Jewish community to Israel during the 1950s. The chapter looks into the Indian Jewish community’s struggle of identity during this period, characterzied by the rise of two national movements; the Indian national movement and the Jewish national movement known as Zionism. It also looks into their identities as Jewish Indians, self perception and their inter-relations as well as their invovlement and contribution to Indian society.
The Wiley Blackwell Companion to Comparative Theology: A Festschrift in Honor of Francis X. Clooney, SJ, 2023
Medieval Vedānta has been divided into two major worldviews; pariṇāma-vāda and vivarta-vada. The ... more Medieval Vedānta has been divided into two major worldviews; pariṇāma-vāda and vivarta-vada. The pariṇāma-vādins maintain that the world is a transformation or development (pariṇāma) of ultimate reality (Brahman), whereas the second group, the vivarta-vādins hold that the world is a false appearance (vivarta) of ultimate reality. In many ways Kabbalah is similar to pariṇāma-vāda as it holds a similar concept according to which, divinity descends into the world through transformation, thus enabling human beings to encounter the divine reality through mind and matter. This chapter highlights two such similarities, in the realm of ontology and in the realm of ethics. In the realm of ontology, a central concept of Kabbalah is that of the sefirot which are often depicted in anthropomorphic terms; this concept is similar in various ways to the ‘Virāṭ Puruṣa’, a Vedic concept of a Universal Person, which receives a theistic interpretation by the Bhāgavata Purāṇa. In the realm of ontology, the ethics of Mesilat Yesharim by the Ramhal is compared to the Bhagavad-gītā's ladder of ethical actions, as depicted by Viśvanātha.
The ‘Fifth Veda’ of Hinduism, 2016
Person: encounters, paradigms, commitment and applications, 2023
In discussing persons and personhood, one may examine the term in the Hindu context; as such, th... more In discussing persons and personhood, one may examine the term in the Hindu context; as such, this paper surveys three such notions of personhood in Hinduism. It argues that there is another such notion, a forth one and in order to articulate it, it surveys the classical construction of personhood by Boethius, which has occupied a central position in Western thought. Having surveyed this definition, the paper constructs a forth Indian notion of personhood, based upon the medieval text the Bhāgavata Purāṇa and defines it as an Aesthetic Notion of Personhood.
Journal of Dharma Studies
This paper aims at articulating a humanistic philosophy of social and environmental well-being ou... more This paper aims at articulating a humanistic philosophy of social and environmental well-being out of the Bhagavad-gītā. It points at the limits of various central themes and argues that due to these limits, these themes cannot serve as philosophical foundations. As such it offers a different method, according to which the text is divided into three metaphysical layers, and proposes to focus on the lower, humanistic one. It then highlights two major humanistic ethical philosophies found in the Gītā, which aim at social and environmental well-being; these are varṇāśrama dharma offering a four sectors social division, and the guṇa humanistic ethics, which promotes the ideal person as grounded in sattva guṇa, resembling the ideal Confucian gentleman or junzi. The paper argues that the Bhagavad-gītā offers a unique amalgamation of the two, and that this convergence has much potential for the development of a contemporary ethical doctrine. At last, the paper suggests to link the Bhagavad gītā's categories with existing contemporary social categories.
Journal of Dharma Studies, 2022
This paper aims at articulating a humanistic philosophy of social and environmental well-being ... more This paper aims at articulating a humanistic philosophy of social and environmental well-being out of the Bhagavad-gītā. It points at the limits of various central themes and argues that due to these limits, these themes cannot serve as philosophical foundations. As such it offers a different method, according to which the text is divided into three metaphysical layers, and proposes to focus on the lower, humanistic one. It then highlights two major humanistic ethical philosophies found in the Gītā, which aim at social and environmental well-being; these are varṇāśrama dharma offering a four sectors social division, and the guṇa humanistic ethics, which promotes the ideal person as grounded in sattva guṇa, resembling the ideal Confucian gentleman or junzi. The paper argues that the Bhagavad-gītā offers a unique amalgamation of the two, and that this convergence has much potential for the development of a contemporary ethical doctrine. At last, the paper suggests to link the Bhagavad gītā's categories with existing contemporary social categories.
gsb.haifa.ac.il
The course aims at introducing Indian civilization, history, culture and thought, as well as to c... more The course aims at introducing Indian civilization, history, culture and thought, as well as to contemporary business. It is engaged with Ancient Indian History, Classical Indian Thought, Hinduism, Modern Indian History, Modern Indian Thought, Contemporary Israeli-Indian Business Issues. It is ...
Asian Philosophy, 2007
This paper offers a literary and ideological deconstruction of the Bhāgavata Purāṅa; it traces th... more This paper offers a literary and ideological deconstruction of the Bhāgavata Purāṅa; it traces the Purāṅa's formation through the convergence of the Vedāntin, the Aesthetic and the Vai⋅ṅava traditions, and argues that it is the doctrine of Pariṅāma which underlies the treatise. I first examine the Bhāgavata Purāṅa's literary components; the roots of these are traced back historically to the Vedānta and Ālvār traditions, and the Bhāgavata Purāṅa's nature as an opus universale, representing an all Indian cultural ‘melting pot’, is highlighted. The paper then looks at the relations of Vai⋅ṅavism and dramaturgy, both historically as well as theologically, and argues that the Bhāgavata Purāṅa was traditionally read as a drama. It proceeds to decipher the aesthetic theory underlying the Bhāgavata Purāṅa, and argues that it is Bharata's dramaturgical rasa theory. Within the rasa tradition, Abhinavagupta's and Bhoja's positions are highlighted and compared through three seminal points and it becomes apparent that the Bhāgavata Purāṅa's underlying aesthetic theory is close to the Pariṅāma doctrine of Bhoja where śṙṅgāra is considered to be the supreme rasa. As Bhoja's date is no doubt later than the Bhāgavata Purāṅa's it is assumed that the Bhāgavata Purāṅa was influenced by one of Bhoja's predecessors. The paper ends by reinforcing this analysis by highlighting a later tradition which had actually accepted this point of view and that is the Gau[ddot]iya Vai⋅ṅava tradition.
Brahman and Dao, 2013
This is my chapter in "Brahman and Dao", in which I draw parallels between the Bhagavad... more This is my chapter in "Brahman and Dao", in which I draw parallels between the Bhagavad gita's ethics and metaphysics, and similar concepts in Classical Chinese thought. I argue that underlying both systems is a concept which I call "natural"; this refers to the concept of the three gunas derived from Sankhya Philosophy, and its Chinese equivalent which could be found in the concept of Yin-Yang and then Dao as the balancing force.
"Chapter by chapter, this edited collection reconstructs categories and unsettles assump... more "Chapter by chapter, this edited collection reconstructs categories and unsettles assumptions that have long dominated how we imagine religion. The scholars included here lay out thoughtful, focused comparative studies of Hindu and Jewish ritual, ethics, and theology. Along the way, they decenter European and North American approaches to religion, engaging scholars from around the world. This is the globalization of the study of religion: rich data, diverse scholarly voices, and expansive frameworks that lead to new insights concerning the human religious experience."-K AT H RY N M c C LY M O N D , Georgia State University "Scholars who still think of comparisons between Hinduism and Jewish as unlikely will find this volume a convincing argument for the possibility of comparisons. This book offers an important contribution to the growing field of Hindu-Jewish studies with many diverse and insightful chapters, several of them opening up new avenues of research. The overviews of the field and full bibliographies make this volume a resource guide and suitable for classrooms."-A L A N B R I L L , Seton Hall University In recent decades, there has been a rising interest among scholars of Hinduism and Judaism in engaging the comparative study of these ancient traditions. Academic interests have also been inspired by the rise of interreligious dialogue by the respective religious leaders. Dharma and Halacha: Comparative Studies in Hindu-Jewish Philosophy and Religion represents a significant contribution to this emerging field, offering an examination of a wide range of topics and a rich diversity of perspectives and methodologies within each tradition while underscoring significant affinities in textual practices, ritual purity, sacrifice, ethics, and theology.
Religions, 2020
The idea of avatāra no doubt presents a philosophical challenge, as it appears to stand in contra... more The idea of avatāra no doubt presents a philosophical challenge, as it appears to stand in contrast to the Vedāntic principle of non-duality; the Bhāgavata purāṇa (BhP) offers an opportunity to look into this question due to its unique structure, which combines the Vedānta and Rasa traditions. As such, this paper looks into the theology of Avatāra in the Bhāgavata purāṇa; it argues that reading the purāṇic genre in light of Śaṅkara’s Advaita Vedānta is not as conducive to the understanding of the avatāra as reading it in light of Rāmānuja’s Viśiṣṭādvaita Vedānta, which indeed is compatible with the purāṇic genre. Moreover, uncovering the underlying assumptions of Western notions of personhood, it seems that classical ideas of “the person” have to be looked into, and offering an alternative idea of personhood may be necessary in order to better understand the theology of avatāra.
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Papers by Ithamar Theodor
This special issue commemorates the 150th anniversary of Gandhi's birth, as well as 30 years of diplomatic relations between India and Israel. It is also the first issue of the International Journal of Hindu Studies to examine Gandhi from Jewish and Israeli perspectives. Gandhian studies and ideology have been attracting substantial attention in Jewish and Israeli circles during the last decade, exemplified by the growing number of publications in Hebrew of Gandhi and about Gandhi, including My Experience with the Truth, Satyāgraha in South Africa, and Hind Swaraj.
their identities as Jewish Indians, self perception and their inter-relations as well as their invovlement and contribution to Indian society.
This special issue commemorates the 150th anniversary of Gandhi's birth, as well as 30 years of diplomatic relations between India and Israel. It is also the first issue of the International Journal of Hindu Studies to examine Gandhi from Jewish and Israeli perspectives. Gandhian studies and ideology have been attracting substantial attention in Jewish and Israeli circles during the last decade, exemplified by the growing number of publications in Hebrew of Gandhi and about Gandhi, including My Experience with the Truth, Satyāgraha in South Africa, and Hind Swaraj.
their identities as Jewish Indians, self perception and their inter-relations as well as their invovlement and contribution to Indian society.
It is perhaps time to look at the ties between Gandhi and the Jewish people from a broader perspective, and not only from a Zionist perspective. Some distance is now possible, given the time that had passed since the first half of the twentieth century when the relations between Gandhi and the Jewish world occurred. It may be time for a more realistic evaluation of Gandhi’s opposition to political Zionism, which may be less relevant today, considering the establishment of both Pakistan and the warm Indo-Israeli diplomatic relations. It may also be time to look deeper into Gandhi’s Satyagraha doctrine and evaluate it in more contemporary terms. On the one hand, it may have much to offer for the betterment of Israeli society and beyond, furthering peace, interreligious dialogue, environmentalism, and multiculturalism, thereby adding a spiritual dimension to Indo-Israeli relations. On the other hand, it may have limitations and not be applicable as a universal philosophy for all times and circumstances.
Summary: To attempt a critical introduction to a text such as the Bhagavad-gītā is no easy task; that, too, through an anthology containing nine distinct voices and interests. By collecting different perspectives and topics in one place, and by focusing attention on its exegetical histories, this book fills a real need often felt especially by English-language scholars of the Gītā. Many chapters also bring together traditional Indian scholarship on the Gītā, not always readily available to someone not immersed in that specific scholarship. So, this book is an important
and welcome addition to scholarship on the Gītā.
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Shlomy Mualem
Revisiting the Prophetic-Mystical Dichotomy Between
India and Israel: A Critical Examination of Zaehner’s
Theory of Comparative Religion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17
Isaac Lubelsky
Fantasy Vs. Reality: The Images of India in
Western (and Israeli) Eyes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .58
Shimon Lev
Land of Antiquity: The Jewish Textual Perspective on
India and Its Culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .81
Daniel Sperber
The Halachic Status of Hinduism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .126
Ithamar Theodor
Modification, Emanation and Pariṇāma in Medieval
Theistic Vedānta and Kabbalah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .144
Haviva Pedaya
Veils of Reality: Jewish Mysticism and Hindu Māyā in
Comparative Perspective . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .173
Shemer Arieli
The Indian Source of the Book of Creation (Sefer Yetzirah)
and its Jewish Meditative Character . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .218
Naphtali S. Meshel and Hillel Mali
Mīmāṃsā and Talmud . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .250
Moshe Idel
From Rituals to Techniques in Jewish Mysticism:
Between “East” and “West” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .273
Ephraim Meir
Gandhi and Buber on Individual and Collective
Transformation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .316
Hanoch Ben-Pazi
Tolstoy’s Farm: The Ethical Laboratory of
Mahatma Gandhi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .350
Moisés Orfali
Judaizers and Hindus on Trial by the Goa Inquisition . . . . . . . . .384
structure based on a traditional commentarial tradition.
With contributions from major scholars across the world, this book will
be indispensable for scholars and researchers of religious studies, especially Hinduism, Indian philosophy, Asian philosophy, Indian history, literature and South Asian studies.
A Conference Abstract by Ithamar Theodor
The paper is engaged with the concept of God in the Bhagavad-gītā. It takes as its point of departure the works of R.C. Zaehner (OUP 1969) and Angelika Malinar (CUP 2007) on the Bhagavad-gītā, and offers a further development of the topic. Whereas Zaehner considers the 11th chapter to be the climax of the Gītā, and whereas Malinar considers the 9th and the subsequent chapters to present the theological basis for Kṛṣṇa's revelation as the highest, this paper argues that the concept of God in the Bhagavad-gītā is more complex as it is hierarchical. It argues that as opposed to the generally accepted philosophical practice which makes linear arguments that start with premises and build to larger conclusions, the Bhg's concept of jñāna or knowledge is not linear but is hierarchical in that it leads to higher and higher states of being and consciousness. As such, this paper suggests that the various concepts of God correspond to various types or levels of consciousness, defined as humanistic, yogic and liberated. Subsequently, various concepts of God appeal to various persons according to their state of mind, their consciousness or their existential states of being.
The paper catalogues the Bhg's concepts of God into three groups as follows:
Humanistic concepts: 3.15, 4.5-13: From the humanistic point of view, the notions of divinity are seen in relation to dharma, i.e., a vision of divinity which furthers prosperity and supports dharma. This also includes the avatāra section, according to which the Supreme Person descends to this world in order to establish dharma and destroy adharma. Moreover, this famous section also reinforces the idea that the supreme is the creator of the fourfold social division into varṇas.
Yogic concepts: 8.8-10, 8.20-22, 13.12, 13.13-18, 13.22, 13.31: From the yogic point of view, the concepts or rather visions of divinity further equanimity and are meditational, i.e., represent deep yogic meditation and supply objects to be meditated upon at the time of death. The text commences to describe the Paramātman, which is a personal form of divinity residing within the heart, known also as Antaryāmin, and accompanying the embodied soul in its voyage through the world of saṁsāra.
Liberated concepts: 7.3-6, 7.7-14, 9.4-6, 10.1-8, 10.12-15, 10.19-42: From the liberated point of view, the most theologically rich concepts of divinity are seen. whether these refer to the Supreme as Kṛṣṇa, the personal God, to an immanent concept of divinity, to the various manifestations, to the Universal Person or to Brahman, the impersonal divinity. These concepts are accompanied by deep emotions and mystical states and apparently are characterized by a vision or darśana of divinity through a direct experience.
Abstract by Ithamar Theodor
Department of Mysticism and Spirituality – Zefat Academic College
In order to understand the issue of forgiveness, one must first understand the issue of non-forgiveness, or alternatively, anger or resentment, since they are intertwined. In general, the Bhagavad-Gita provides a framework according to which anger or the observance of resentment is a product of the attachment of the senses to their objects. In Buddhism, there is a concept called "conditional formation", according to which the root of existence lies in ignorance; In the Bhagavad-Gita there is a similar idea according to which the earthly existence does not lie in ignorance but in reflection on the objects of the senses, which in a gradual process leads to anger rooted in lust. Lust itself lies in the guna of passion and therefore an explanation will be given to the issue of gunas in general and the guna subject of passion in particular. The paper will point to the concept of the gunas or qualities which underlies the metaphysical framework of the Bhagavad Gita, and within this framework will point to anger through several key verses, in particular 2.62-63 and 3.36-43. Next, several processes of sublimation leading to forgiveness will be presented, and these are the sublimation through karma yoga, sublimation through the jñāna yoga or knowledge, the sublimation through the yoga ladder, and the sublimation through the devotion including 12.13-20, and the ethics of virtue 13.7-11 and 16.1-3.