Overview

Presenting diverse responses to important ethical questions, contestations and debates, this book offers a critical appraisal of Hindu ethics by engaging with classical and contemporary perspectives. With the plurality of Hinduism in mind, this book focuses on the human, sociological and situational ethical framework underpinning Hindu ethics. Chapters go beyond the traditional classical sources—such as the Vedas, epics, mythological narratives and Dharmasastra texts—to include lesser known vernacular based moral texts, as well as contemporary sources from organizations, intellectuals and movements of religious, social and political nature. Going beyond only theological and philosophical discussions, this handbook presents a truly multidisciplinary approach to Hindu ethics. This book will benefit not only scholars and students within religious studies and philosophy, but also those from sociology, history, theology, law, anthropology and literature.

Full Product Details

Author:   Pratap Kumar Penumala (University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa) ,  Arvind Sharma (McGill University, Canada)
Publisher:   Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Imprint:   Bloomsbury Academic
ISBN:  

9781350457218

ISBN 10:   1350457213
Pages:   552
Publication Date:   02 April 2026
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   Manufactured on demand  
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Table of Contents

Preface: Pratap Kumar Penumala (University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa) and Arvind Sharma (McGill University, Canada) Foreword: Prof. Patrick Olivelle (University of Texas at Austin, USA) Note on Contributors Introduction: Pratap Kumar Penumala (University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa) and Arvind Sharma (McGill University, Canada) Section 1: Background to Hindu Ethics 1. Karmam and Samsara: Evolution of Ethical Values in Hinduism, Naoko Nishimura (Tohoku University, Japan) 2. Dharma, Artha and Niti: Evolution of Hindu Ethics from the Ecclesiastical to the Secular, Pratap Kumar Penumala (University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa) 3. The Ethical Function of the ""Inner Witness"" as taught in the Manava-Dharma Sastra: A Vedic Source, Hideki Teshima (Ryukoku University, Japan) Section 2: Theological and Philosophical Issues 4. Developing Hindu Ethics from Advaita perspective, Ananta Rambachan (St. Olaf College, USA) 5. Hindu Ethical Views from the Perspectives of Vedanta Philosophy, with special reference to Sankara and Ramanuja, Yoshi Sawai (Tenri University, Japan) 6. The Relationship between the Social Dharmas (Norms) and the Religious Dharmas: From the Viewpoint of Madhusudana Sarasvati’s Theory of Advaita Bhakti, Tomohiro Manabe (Hokkaido University, Japan) Section 3: Classical and Contemporary Issues 7. Hindu Ethics, White Supremacy and the Hindu Right, Shyam Ranganathan (York University, Canada) 8. War, virtue, and the obligatory life: ethics in the Mahabharata, Adam Bowles (University of Queensland, Australia) 9. Good Lives in the Mahabharata, Chris Framarin (University of Calgary, Canada) 10. Is There Still a Role for Sruti in Contemporary Hindu Ethics? The Test Case of Varna in the Mimamsa Sutras and Uttara Mimamsa Sutras, Francis Clooney (Harvard University, USA) 11. Can There be a Tantric Ethics?: Authority and Gender, June McDaniels (College of Charleston, USA) 12. Ethics of Sexuality and Contemporary Hindu Asceticism, Antoinette DeNapoli (Texas Christian University, USA) Section 4: Issues in Applied Hindu Ethics 13. Race in the Bhagavad Gita, Sarju Patel (University of Toronto, Canada) 14. Stridharmam (duties of women) and what women can/should and cannot do According to Srivaisnava-sadacara-nirnayam, Suganya Anandakichinin (University of Hamburg, Germany) 15. Hinduism and Human Rights, Arvind Sharma (McGill University, Canada) 16. Gandhi, Non-Violence and Moral Casuistry, Roy Perrett (University of Hawaii, USA) 17. Natural World and Samkhya-Yoga ethical responses, Knut A. Jacobsen (University of Bergen, Norway) 18. The Rights of Nature and Hindu Ethics, Kusumita Pedersen (St. Francis College, U.S.A.) 19. Universal Oneness: The Foundation of Ethics in the Teaching of Swami Vivekananda, Jeffrey Long (Elizabethtown College, USA) 20. Aparigraha: Bridging Spirituality and Sustainability in Hindu Ethics, Puneet Bindlish (Free University, Netherlands) 21. Hindu Medical Ethics: Past and Present, Katherine Young (McGill University, Canada) 22. Palliative Care and End of Life Ethics: Hindu Perspectives, Mar Gil Alvarez, Jonathan Lambaerts and Bert Broekaert, (University of Leuven, Belgium) 23. Varieties of Non-Violence and Hindu Ethics, Sarang Patel (University of Toronto, Canada) 24. Divine Love of Bhakti and the Problem of Terrorism: A comparative perspective, Graham Schweig (Gradutate Theological Union, California, USA) 25. The Ethics of Abortion in the Contemporary Society from the perspective of Hindu Dharmasastras, Sreedhar Chintalapaty (Independent Scholar, USA) 26. Hindu Ethics, History and Military Artificial Intelligence, Kaushik Roy (Jadavpur University, India) 27. Hindu Ethics & Art/Aesthetics, Sowparnika Balaswaminathan (Concordia University, Canada) 28. Hindu Ethics and the Baniya Community: An Amalgamation of Religion and Capitalism, Raj Singh (University of Delhi, India) 29. Madrassis in New York City: Community Building along ethical issues among twice migrant Hindus, Mathieu Claveyrolas (National Center for Scientific Research, France) 30. Artificial Intelligence (Krtrim Buddhi): Ethical Challenges from the Perspective of Hindu Dharma Shastras, Sriram Subramanian (Hindu University of America, USA) Section 5: Hindu Ethics from a Comparative Perspective 31. Western Ethics and Hindu Ethics A Comparative Engagement, Ankur Barua (Cambridge University, UK) 32. Hindu Ethics: Between Jewish and Confucian Ethicsm, Ithamar Theodor (Zefat Academic College, Israel) 33. Hindu Ethics: A Meta and Applied Discourse, Purushottama Bilimoria (University of Melbourne, Australia) Index

Reviews

This collection is the most diverse and engaging survey of Hindu Ethics that I have seen. The contributors and perspectives are truly international and the insights that emerge from each chapter will move the field forward in a meaningful way. A vast range of topics, expert analysis of textual and ethnographic evidence, and original argumentation all mean that this volume will start a thousand wonderful conversations * Donald R. Davis, Jr., University of Texas at Austin, USA * An unusually wide-ranging work that rigorously explores Hindu ethical thought across early textual traditions, philosophical lineages, theological orientations, and the urgent moral questions of contemporary life. With contributions from leading scholars across several continents, Penumala and Sharma’s volume illuminates both the astonishing plurality of dharma and the challenges posed by analytic categories and constructs. A landmark and most welcome volume * Leela Prasad, Brown University, USA *

Author Information

Arvind Sharma is the Birks Professor of Comparative Religion in the School of Religious Studies at McGill University in Montreal, Canada. Pratap Kumar Penumala is an emeritus professor of Hindu Studies and Indian Philosophy at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.

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