Imagining Karma: Ethical Transformation in Amerindian, Buddhist, and Greek Rebirth Volume 14 Paperback - 2002

First line

The major problem that I investigate in this work is the manner in which the "rebirth eschatologies" of small-scale societies are transformed in two large-scale historical developments: in the "karmic eschatologies" that one associates today with religions such as Buddhism and Hinduism and in the Greek religious traditions that could be broadly defined as "Pythagorean."

From the rear cover

"This work is a tour-de-force in cross-cultural scholarship, both sound and bold, constructing a new and refreshing theory on the rise to prominence of rebirth eschatology in India. Obeyesekere argues convincingly that 'ethicization' of rebirth through the theory of karma was the new ingredient that transformed a commonplace belief into a central philosophical and eschatological principle in most of Indian theologies. This is a book that will engage and challenge anthropologists, classicists, and Indologists alike, as well as non-specialists interested in culture and religion."--Patrick Olivelle, University of Texas at Austin

"This is a book in the grand tradition of comparative studies, pulling together anthropology, psychology, psychoanalysis, classics, Indology, and history of religions, but in a distinctly contemporary mode. Few scholars would attempt such a project today, let alone pull it off so intriguingly as Obeyesekere does. A brilliant and intellectually courageous book."--Paul B. Courtright, Emory University, author of Ganesha, Lord of Obstacles, Lord of Beginnings