On Curse and the Power of Knowledge
Upanishadic Moments and the Aṣṭāvakra Tale of the Mahābhārata
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 9206484 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Naama Shalom (0009-0005-7326-4394, School of Law, Shiv Nadar University Chennai India), Yohanan Grinshpon (0009-0009-4086-9900, Department of Asian Studies, India, and Southeast Asian Studies, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem Jerusalem Israel) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Volume | 72 |
| Issue | 2-3 |
| Pages | 237-271 |
| Publication date | 2025-04-02 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Numen (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0029-5973 • E-ISSN: 1568-5276 |
| Publisher | Walter de Gruyter GmbH (PUBLISHER • DE) |
| DOI | 10.1163/15685276-07223005 |
| OpenAlex | W4409168175 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 4 |
The Mahābhārata tells a horrid tale of curse; a father curses his son to be born eightfold deformed ( aṣṭāvakra ). This moment of curse occurs in the household of none other than Uddālaka Āruṇi, the great Upanishadic sage and his notorious son, Śvetaketu. Our article offers a reflection on the significance and meanings of the intertextual space – obviously not incidental – of the two traditions, the Mahābhārata epic and the Upaniṣads. The notion and conception of curse ( śāpa ) sheds light on the diagnosis of the human condition shared by the two traditions. It is a “cursed” condition of self-alienation and disease, which can be released by the power of “knowledge” ( vidyā ) and true health ( svāsthya ) that emanates from residing in oneself ( ātman )
Curse · Economics · History of religions · Physics · Power (physics) · Sociology · Theology · Thermodynamics · Asian Geopolitics and Ethnography · Indian and Buddhist Studies · Medieval and Classical Philosophy · Philosophy · Religious studies
| Highly cited | No |
|---|