Offering Flowers, Feeding Skulls: Popular Goddess Worship in West Bengal [Hardcover]

June McDaniel (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 5, 2004

In Offering Flowers, Feeding Skulls, June McDaniel provides an exhaustive, accessibly written overview of Bengali goddess worship or Shakti. McDaniel identifies three major forms of goddess worship, and examines each through its myths, folklore, songs, rituals, sacred texts, and practitioners. She traces these strands through Bengali culture and explores how they are interwoven with each other as well as with other forms of Hinduism and other forms of religion. McDaniel also discusses how Shakti practices have been reinterpreted in the West, where goddess worship has gained the values of sexual freedom and psychological healing, but lost its emphases on devotion and asceticism. She takes the reader inside the lives of practicing Shaktas, including religious professionals, hymn singers, philosophers, visionaries, gurus, and even a businessman, and offers vivid descriptions of their rituals, practices, and daily lives. Drawing on years of fieldwork and extensive research, McDaniel paints a rich, expansive portrait of this fascinating religious tradition.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A well-researched and documented study. ... Highly recommended."--Choice

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

About the Author

June McDaniel is at College of Charleston.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 368 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (August 5, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0195167902
• ISBN-13: 978-0195167900
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,097,564 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A treasure of information, May 25, 2008

By 

Oreste Reale (Laurel, MD) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Offering Flowers, Feeding Skulls: Popular Goddess Worship in West Bengal (Kindle Edition)

This magnificent book is a fascinating

journey among a variety of spiritual traditions which can be broadly encompassed under the name of Bengali Shaktism.

The Introduction provides a `classification'

of various Shakta types. Albeit a bit artificial

(these categories should be not taken rigidly because

much overlapping is possible), the use of these `strands'

in the book is a useful tool to emphasize

and appreciate the profound differences existing

between various Shakta types.

Most important, from the anthropological perspective, is the evidence

provided in the First Chapter of some surviving types of

Bengali Shaktism (Folk Shaktism) among the so-called

`tribals' or Adivasis (i.e., those who were in the

land first) which are obviously completely outside the mainstream

of traditional Hinduism. They are `outside' from the scriptural

perspective, mythological perspective, and ritual perspective.

Yet, they are Hindus.

Under the name of `folk' Shaktism the Author reports a complex set of believes incorporated into Hinduism, but still preserving

memories and a heritage of an incredibly ancient, pre-Hindu, past.

The remnant of a Shamanic component, [after Eliade's seminal

work, Shamanism cannot be possibly regarded with contempt, as it

was a century ago] is extremely fascinating and

indirect proof of enormous Antiquity.

The existence of forms of Hinduism among Bengali tribals

which have a surprisingly different mythology,

is a profound evidence of how rich and varied

and intrinsically encompassing true Hinduism is.

Hinduism can incorporate infinite amount

of varieties within, some philosophical (just consider

the immense amount of contrasting philosophical

literature produced during the Puranic age) and some,

as in the case of Adivasi Shaktism, ethnic and regional.

The Second Chapter emphasizes a Sanskrit-based Shakta Tradition,

and those texts in particular that have contributed

to create it, such as the Kularnava Tantra. It is important to stress how the `Tantric', Kaula tradition in the sense in which it is understood in Bengal is often

misunderstood, misjudged and slandered outside of Bengal.

This, I suspect, may be a remnant of last centuries foreign dominations

(Shaktism was the less tolerated of the various schools of Hinduism)

but this is not necessarily the opinion supported by the Author, who reports the problem but does not speculate on historical causes.

The third chapter summarizes the version of Skaktism

based on a `bhakti' sentiment, bearing some similarity

perhaps with Vaishnava, Krishna-centered Bhakti, except that

it is focused on Kaali, Durgaa, or regional varieties

of Hindu Devis. I find this section particularly fascinating

because it fills a gap in the western literature. Whereas

books on the Sanskrit Shaktism, from Woodroffe's onwards,

are available in the west, it is perhaps more difficult

to access documents on the immense amount of religious

literature produced in Bengali. This literature ranges

from the Mangal-Kavyas, [particularly appealing is

the beautiful story of the Goddess Manasaa, on which a comparative

mythologist could perhaps write an entire encyclopedia!]

to the moving biographies of the many Shakta saints. This chapter,

by documenting such vast amount of Bengali literature,

is truly a homage to the vast spiritual and cultural

heritage of Bengal.

The Fourth Chapter discusses in greater detail the

importance of Durgaa and Kaali

in Bengal. Albeit fascinating, this Chapter is

perhaps not unique, for there are several other books on this subject,

and on Durga Puja specifically, available in the English language.

The Fifth chapter is an attempt to describe some

of the changes imposed on Shaktism when incorporated

in New Age believes. The Author reports some of these appropriations

with an attempted cold, dispassionate and scholarly style, but there seems to be an occasional underlying polite irony, when

somewhat hilarious quotations from Authors such as Selby or Condron are

inserted. On the other hand, I personally found

the report of a former student of the Author,

who felt a profound call towards Durgaa, to be

very impressive and convincingly `real'.

I think that a few points should be emphasized:

The Author seems to suggest that some of the Shakta

traditions are endangered, and may disappear soon.

This applies to both the Sanskrit-based tradition

(Kaula Tantra), and to the Shakta traditions of the Adivasi.

A coalition of opposers, coming partly from the Communist Bengali

government, partly from an attitude sadly nourished by

some Orthodox Hindus, partly because of a secularist

tendency within India which is taking its aim on Shaktism

particularly, seems to converge against the Shaktas.

Particularly sad is the report that many Adivasis

perceive the role of Indians from the central government

as a form of `colonialism'. This feeling (which has been

successfully exploited by foreign missionaries in

other States such as Tripura or Nagaland where many Adivasis have

been converted to Christianity and have therefore lost their ancestral

spiritual knowledge forever) is a serious problem and should be

taken very seriously by all Hindus of all traditions, be

Vaishnavas, Shaivas, Skaktas or Smartas... if they don't want

a precious part of the Hindu heritage disappear.

Hinduism has been among the most tolerant

religions *because* it does not consider a problem to worship the Divine

under many aspects. What appears to be contradictory

in our limited minds is not such from the perspective

of the Divine. To have Myths in which one

God does not appear in a favorable light as in other

Mythological Sources shows the complexity, the variety,

the immense amount of possibilities of the Human Paths

towards the Divine. That beyond the humans, Apsaras,

Yakshas, Asuras, Devas and Devis exist a

Substance, or a `Condition', be it called Atman, Brahman, or Shakti, from which All is made, is one fundamental Hindu belief. That

the -particular- path one chooses, or the particular

Deities one chooses to worship, will lead there,

as long as one follows the Dharma with sincerity and devotion,

is also a Hindu tenet.

On this matter, I need to comment on a couple

of Reviewers who, in my opinion, have used unnecessarily

harsh words against the Author. It is certainly true

that some western Authors write on Hinduism with

little knowledge, and is even truer that some western Authors

have profoundly slandered the Hindus. But I strongly believe

that these accusations should not be brought against Dr. McDaniel.

To document Shakta traditions which do not depict Shiva as depicted in

the Shaiva Puranas is -not- an insult to Shiva, as one negative

and very superficial Reviewer suggests. Nor it means that the

Author endorses specifically any of these traditions. It is instead

simply an attempt to provide information on existing, little known,

aspects of that multiform planet named Hinduism. Hinduism

is immensely rich -because- such traditions exist,

and the tendency of eradicating un-orthodox traditions, so dominant in other religions, has never really appealed -so far- the Hindu mind.

As for accusing the Author of `ignorance', I really

believe that is a perplexing accusation. The reviewer who thinks so,

should perhaps scroll the reference and note

list, [which encompasses Maha- and UpaPuranas, Tantric Sanskrit text,

medieval Bengali literature (Mangalkavyas), a vast amount

of scholarly books and articles written by Indian scholars,

often in Bengali] and compare it with references in other

books on Hinduism published in the West.

As for accusing the Author of being disrespectful to Hinduism,

the last page of her Conclusions shows very clearly her

sympathy and her love for India and the Indian culture.

Quite an unexpectedl conclusion for a book which a Reviewer

accuses to be offensive to Hinduism, indeed.

I am not a scholar of Hinduism, but I have continuously

nourished an interest in Hinduism for 30 years, and

on Shaktism for the last 10 years. I can surely

say that I found an immense amount of information in

Professor McDaniel's book,

which is a precious addition to my library on Hinduism.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars great insight, February 25, 2008

By 

Sapna S. Nair - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Offering Flowers, Feeding Skulls: Popular Goddess Worship in West Bengal (Paperback)

This book is a great way to understand the worship of the great goddess Kali. I like the fact that the written has given varies examples of her worhip through out india. I think it's a great book for people who would like to get to know the goddess Kali.

6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Superb overview of Bengali women's religious practices, September 15, 2004

By 

Fenton Johnson, professor, University of Arizona - See all my reviews

This review is from: Offering Flowers, Feeding Skulls: Popular Goddess Worship in West Bengal (Paperback)

Professor McDaniel's "Offering Flowers" presents an exhaustively researched but eminently readable overview of the religious and spiritual practices of the women of rural Bengal. Highly recommended for anyone seeking to learn more about Indian culture as it manifests itself outside of the institutionalized forms. An enjoyable and vivid journey back in time -- or maybe outside of time -- to a place where religious beliefs and rituals are still directly connected to the tangible natural world.