Religious and Philosophical Thought in Ancient India

The historical development of the main themes of ancient Indian religious and philosophical thought. Part I: The rise of monism in tension with polytheism, the efficacy of Vedic words and Vedic rites, and early Brahminic cosmology and psychology. Part II: The rise of the non-Brahminic traditions (Jainas, Ājīvikas, and Buddhists) challenging Vedic revelation and everything based upon it (mainly the rites and authority of brahmins). Part III: The ensuing 'conversations' among the completing traditions, conversations that developed new world-views and new methods for effecting human well-being in the cosmos.