Why Sri Aurobindo's Hermeneutics Still Matters

Philology and the Transformative Possibilities of Scripture

Bibliographic Data

ID3219729
AuthorsSwami Medhananda (Ramakrishna Mission Vidyamandira, corresponding author)
Year2021
Volume12
Issue7
Pages484
Publication date2021-06-29
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueReligions (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2077-1444 • E-ISSN: 2077-1444
PublisherMDPI AG (PUBLISHER • IT)
DOI10.3390/rel12070484
OpenAlexW3174946120
LanguageEN
Citations received6
References cited10

Contemporary scholars, this article argues, stand to learn a great deal from Sri Aurobindo's sophisticated hermeneutic approach to the Vedāntic scriptures. After identifying the strengths and weaknesses of traditional and modern hermeneutic approaches to the scriptures, I summarize Sri Aurobindo's neglected essay, "The Interpretation of Scripture" (1912), where he outlines a timely hermeneutic method that combines elements from both traditional and modern approaches. I then focus on the Īśā Upaniṣad as a test case, critically comparing the commentaries of the traditional Advaita Vedāntin Śaṅkara, the modern Indologist Paul Thieme, and Sri Aurobindo. I make the case that Sri Aurobindo's interpretive approach to the Īśā Upaniṣad has significant advantages over the approaches of Śaṅkara and Thieme. Finally, I call for an Aurobindonian hermeneutics of śraddhā, which combines historico-philological inquiry with interpretive charity and an openness to the transformative possibilities of scripture

Epistemology · Feminism · Hermeneutics · Linguistics · Openness to experience · Pedagogy · Philology · Sociology · Transformative learning · Indian and Buddhist Studies · Indian History and Philosophy · Philosophy · Psychology · Social Psychology · Study and Philosophy of Religion

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