Searching for the Hidden “One”: Muslim and Early European Interpretations of the Indian Upaniṣads
The Upaniṣads are commonly regarded as the ultimate summary of the Indian Weltanschauung. This high esteem is the result of a rather convoluted history of reception in different cultural environments. The article draws on their first interpretations in the Muslim and the European horizon, which are...
| Published in: | Numen |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Brill
2018
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| In: |
Numen
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| Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Upaniṣad
/ Orientalism (Cultural sciences)
/ Esotericism
/ Islamic literature
/ Sufism
/ The Hidden
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| RelBib Classification: | AX Inter-religious relations BJ Islam BK Hinduism, Jainism, Sikhism |
| Further subjects: | B
Hinduism
Upaniṣads
Mughal Empire
Sufi
Western esotericism
sacred texts
history of reception of Indian religion
orientalism
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| Online Access: |
Volltext (Verlag) |
| Summary: | The Upaniṣads are commonly regarded as the ultimate summary of the Indian Weltanschauung. This high esteem is the result of a rather convoluted history of reception in different cultural environments. The article draws on their first interpretations in the Muslim and the European horizon, which are closely interconnected by a fascinating story of translation, namely the Sirr-i akbar of the Mughal prince Dārā Shukūh (1615–1659) and the Oupnek’hat by A. H. Anquetil-Duperron (1731–1805). As will be argued, both mediators have a comparable attitude towards the Indian corpus, and their search for the “one” (= God = Allah) is deeply rooted in perceptions of a single “sacred book” containing the ultimate expression of the truth, which is the object of a “hidden” transmission undetected so far. The goal of this article is to present the common features of their approaches based on a detailed historical examination of the available material. |
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| ISSN: | 1568-5276 |
| Contains: | In: Numen
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1163/15685276-12341487 |