Acting as a Way of Salvation: A Study of Raganuga Bhakti Sadhana

Sixteenth-century Hindu theologian Rupa Gosvamin established a technique by which, in imitating one of the significant figures in Krishna's dramatic world, a devotee might actually become the character whose part he or she was playing. Haberman here demonstrates that the Hindu view of reality accepts such role playing, called raganuga bhakti sadhana, as the preeminent way to salvation. He argues that Hindu devotional religion is not entirely a religion of grace, as many scholars have held, but one which requires discipline and effort. Throughout the book, Haberman explores Indian dramatic theory, Rupa's unique application of that theory to devotionalism, developments in the practice of this technique, and its contemporary manifestations.