bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The Economics of Ecstasy
Authors: Urban Hugh B. , Doniger Wendy 
Published: October 2003

Abstract
This is a study of the Bengali Kartābhajā sect and its place in the broader movement of Tantrism, which is an Indian religious movement, notorious for its alleged use of shocking sexual language and rituals. The author looks closely at the relationship between the rise of the Kartābhajās, who flourished at the turn of the nineteenth century, and the changing economic context of colonial Bengal. Made up of the poor lower classes labouring in the marketplaces and factories of Calcutta (India), the Kartābhajās represent “the underworld of the imperial city.” It is shown that their esoteric poetry and songs are saturated with the language of the marketplace and the bazaar, which becomes for them the key metaphor used to communicate secret knowledge and mystical teachings. Not only do they employ the imagery in the market of moneylending and brokering, but also name their sect after the British East India Company, giving themselves the ironic title of the “Poor Company.” The case of the Kartābhajās opens many new insights not merely into the specific case of one Bengali cult, but also into much larger cross‐cultural and theoretical issues, including the changing role of the lower class, marginalized groups under the changing conditions of colonialism, the changing role of Tantric traditions during the period of British rule, and the topic of secrecy as a cross‐cultural category in the study of religion. The book is arranged in three parts: I. The Secret Marketplace: Historical Origins and Socioeconomic Contexts; II. The Power of Secrecy: Esoteric Discourse and Practice; and III. The Liability of Secrecy: Secrecy as a Source of Scandal and Slander, Elitism, and Exploitation.
Introduction
Authors: Urban Hugh B. 
Published: October 2003

Abstract
The phenomena of secrecy and esotericism remain among the most persistent and pervasive, yet poorly studied and misunderstood aspects of the history of religions. The field of South Asian studies is no exception to this trend, although it has generated a growing interest in the role of secrecy in Indian traditions, and specifically in the texts and rituals of Tantrism. However, Tantric studies have hardly made any inquiry into the real historical and social contexts in which Tantra is practised, have not looked at any of the broader comparative issues involved in the study of esoteric traditions, and have yielded little critical reflection on the historical construction of the category of Tantrism. This book aims to address these issues through the study of one specific esoteric and secret sect: that of the Kartābhajās or “Worshippers of the Master,” which spread throughout Calcutta (Bengal, India) in the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, and still has some living and practising representatives. The first half of this introduction provides a general background on the Kartābhajās and their importance for the scholarly imagining of Tantrism, and the study of esoteric traditions as a whole; the second half engages the larger theoretical snarls inevitably involved in the study of something that is supposed to be secret.
The Religion of Man (Mānuṣer Dharma)
Authors: Urban Hugh B. 
Published: October 2003

Abstract
Like the economic field of the late eighteenth century, the religious world of early colonial Bengal was also a vast “bazaar,” a marketplace of spiritual goods, both genuine and fake, in which traders from all lands haggled and bartered; amidst this teeming market, with its host of Hindu, Muslim, Christian, and other competing factions, the Kartābhajā sect would emerge as perhaps the most successful of the various minor sects that spread among the lower classes. It is argued in this chapter that not only did the Kartābhajās emerge at a key locus and critical historical moment but they also represented a profound transformation within the older Sahajiyā tradition, which was especially well suited to this changing social context, and which offered a highly marketable set of spiritual commodities. The primary appeal of the Kartābhajās, and the main reason for their striking growth and success, lay in their remarkable capacity for synthesis; their tradition represents a rich bricolage (a method of borrowing elements from a variety of different “exoteric” traditions, while weaving them into a new esoteric synthesis that transcends them) of diverse elements, operating on at least three levels, which are examined in each of the three sections of this chapter. First, on the religious level, the Kartābhajās skilfully combine elements of esoteric Sahajiyā Tantric teachings, more orthodox Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava theology, a strong element of Sufism, and even a degree of Christian influence; second, on the social level, the Kartābhajās bring together members of all classes and social factions, rejecting caste distinctions and proclaiming the divinity of all human beings; and third, on the gender level, the Kartābhajās offered a new social space in which men and women could mix freely, even providing new opportunities for women in roles of spiritual authority. The result is a rather ingenious religious fusion – or “subversive bricolage,” which skilfully adapts and reconfigures elements from a wide range of sources – a kind of poaching or pilfering by poor lower‐class consumers in a dominated religious market that demanded the subtle use of secrecy, both, as a tactic of appropriation, and as a key social strategy or way of life.
The Poor Company
Authors: Urban Hugh B. 
Published: October 2003

Abstract
The three sections of this chapter examine the unique use by the Bengali Kartābhajā sect of mercantile imagery in their Mint Language, first in the general metaphor of the “marketplace of the world,” second, in their unusual use of terminology drawn from the East India Company, and finally in their ingenious appropriation of the metaphors of the “Poor Company” and the “Mad Company.” The primary focus is on the economic dimensions of Kartābhajā esoteric songs. This is by no means intended to be a kind of “vulgar economism” or a simplistic reduction of religious language to material interests. To the contrary, it is argued that the social agents are not the only people capable of deploying religious myths and rituals in order to express more concrete economic or political motives, religious actors are also capable of appropriating very secular, economic, and political discourse while transforming it into a profound bearer of deeper religious or spiritual ideals.
Secret Bodies
Authors: Urban Hugh B. 
Published: October 2003

Abstract
The role of secrecy is looked at as a practical and ritual strategy. It is argued that the esoteric practices and ecstatic techniques of the Kartābhajās involve a key strategy of deconstructing and reconstructing the human body; their aim is to dismantle or dissolve the ordinary socialized body of the initiate, along with the conventional social hierarchy itself, and to create in its place a new, divinized (spiritualized) body, which is in turn reinscribed into an alternative social hierarchy, with its own relations of authority and power. The chapter begins with a brief discussion of the relationship between the body and the social body in mainstream Bengali culture, as well as the ritual sacraments used to inscribe the physical body into the greater Bengali social hierarchy. Next, the role of initiation and bodily practice within the Kartābhajā tradition is discussed as it serves to deconstruct the conventional socialized body, and to create in its place an alternative, liberated body. Finally, an examination is made of the attempt of the Kartābhajās to construct not simply an alternative body, but an entire alternative identity or secret self – the “supreme” or ultimate identity, which is at once freed from the bonds of labor and servitude in the exoteric social hierarchy, while at the same time it is inscribed into a new hierarchy of power within the Kartābhajā sect itself.
The Stinking Fruit in the Garden of Love
Authors: Urban Hugh B. 
Published: October 2003

Abstract
This chapter engages the more problematic side of Kartābhajā secrecy as a source of scandal and embarrassment – above all, with regard to Tantric sexual practices, and the corresponding “meta‐strategies” of self‐censorship, concealment, deodorization, and disguise, which esoteric traditions must often employ in order to protect themselves. After a brief summary of the history of the debate surrounding parakīyā love (intercourse with another man's wife) in the Tantric Vaiṣṇava and Sahajiyā traditions, an examination is made of the rise of the Bengali Kartābhajā sect within the context of colonial Bengal, and of their highly enigmatic songs describing the “stinking fruit” of parakīyā love. The chapter concludes by suggesting that this basic ambivalence at the heart of the Kartābhajā tradition opens up a number of larger questions for the study of Tantra in Bengal. First, it demonstrates the ways in which Tantric traditions are deeply rooted in real social, political, and cultural conditions and the ways in which these traditions change historically, creatively adapting in the face of changing circumstances; second, it raises the critical question of censorship – the central ambivalence surrounding Tantra and the constant attempts to mask, suppress, or eradicate any elements smacking of scandal or immorality; and last, and perhaps most important, the Kartābhajās also raise the question of the very definition of Tantra itself – i.e.,, how certain groups come to be identified (or attacked) as “Tantric,” and how the term Tantra has come to be constructed in the popular and scholarly imaginations.
The Economics of Ecstasy
Authors: Urban Hugh B. 
Published: October 2003

Abstract
Discusses the more problematic aspects of Kartābhajā secrecy as a potential strategy of elitism and economic exploitation. The central ambivalence over religion and economics at the very heart of the Kartābhajā sect tradition – its simultaneously liberating and exploitative character – is nowhere more apparent than in the infamous festival (melā) held each spring in Ghoshpara. As the most public and popular side of this tradition – what might be called the exoteric side of an esoteric tradition – the melā was widely discussed throughout nineteenth‐century Bengal, and was notorious both because of the unusual degree of freedom from ordinary social constraints that it allowed and because of the seeming crass commercialism and vulgar profiteering that went on among its organizers. As an alternative social space, the melā is a temporary event in which normal social boundaries and religious laws do not apply, a time when those who normally have little symbolic capital can suddenly rise to new status and social power, and normal social relations are turned topsy‐turvy; at the same time, the melā also has a very pronounced economic dimension, and the primary beneficiaries are not the poor lower classes but, rather the Kartās (boss or head men) and Mahāśays (regional gurus). It is noted finally that the Kartābhajā tradition also opens up a number of illuminating insights into the heterogeneous world of colonial Bengal, and perhaps into some broader questions of colonial studies as a whole.
Conclusions and Comparative Comments
Authors: Urban Hugh B. 
Published: October 2003

Abstract
The conclusion then zooms back out once again, to review the larger implications of this study of the Kartābhajā sect. These are (in order from the most specific to the most general and comparative) the implications for: the study of colonial Bengal; Tantric studies (as embodied and historicized Tantra); and the study of esoteric traditions (uninitiated understanding). Reflections are then given on the general problem of secrecy, discourse, and authority. Finally, the author voices the hope that the approach taken in the book might have some broader comparative implications for the study of secrecy in other cultures (cross‐cultural studies).
A Persian Philosopher
Authors: Chittick William C. 
Published: October 2003

Abstract
The majority of Muslim philosophers were Persian speakers, but they wrote their works in Arabic so that all Muslim scholars would be able to benefit. Kâshânâ (Bâbâ Afdal) was an exception to this general rule because he wrote mainly in Persian for his own students, who were not well trained in the Islamic sciences. He considered philosophy a spiritual discipline whose goal was to transform the soul, actualize the intelligence that lies at the root of the cosmos, and achieve perfect virtue. His careful attention to the Persian language produced not only remarkably beautiful prose but also deep insights into the concrete meanings of Arabic technical terms that had become too abstract to convey their original meanings. He wrote six books, translated five treatises from Arabic into Persian, abridged the introduction of Ghazâlî's Kîmiyâ‐yi sa`âdat, addressed six letters to disciples, composed 30 essays, and authored a good deal of poetry, mostly quatrains.
Background Texts
Authors: Chittick William C. 
Published: October 2003

Abstract
Bâbâ Afdal drew inspiration both from Greek writings in Arabic and from the writings of various Muslim thinkers. This chapter provides excerpts from his Persian translations of the pseudo‐Aristotelian Liber de Pomo, Aristotles’ De anima, and the Hermetic Fountain of Life. Also included is a full translation of his abridgement of Ghazâlî's introduction to Kîmiyâ‐yi sa`âdat (The Alchemy of Felicity), which provides a straightforward introduction to basic philosophico‐religious concepts such as soul, spirit, heart, body, God, this world, and the next world.
Writings on Practice
Authors: Chittick William C. 
Published: October 2003

Abstract
Includes translations of a number of Bâbâ Afdal's works that stress the importance of engaging in the philosophical quest for the sake of perfecting one's soul, actualizing the intellect, achieving a sound moral character, and attaining salvation. Included are six essays, 60 quatrains and other poems, and six letters addressed to disciples. The letters represent rare instances in Islamic philosophical literature in which a philosopher demonstrates his concern for training his disciples in extremely personal terms.
Writings on Theory
Authors: Chittick William C. 
Published: October 2003

Abstract
Includes translations of 10 essays, several quatrains, 4 complete treatises, and excerpts from two others. The first treatise, Makings and Ornaments of Well‐Provisioned Kings, provides a mirror for princes presented in terms of perfecting the soul through the realization of the correspondence between microcosm and macrocosm and the actualization of the virtues. The Book of the Everlasting describes the origin of the soul and its return to God and, uniquely among the treatises, cites proof‐texts from the Koran. The Rungs of Perfection analyzes the soul in terms of being, perception, and the faculties and offers a systematic map of the stages whereby one can achieve full actualization of selfhood and linkage with the divine light. The Book of the Road's End provides a more technical discussion of many of the issues dealt with in the other three treatises. The chapter concludes with excerpts from The Clarifying Method, an important treatise on logic.
Theory and Elucidation
Authors: Weiner Joan 
Published: October 2003

AbstractWeiner argues in her essay that Frege explicitly acknowledged the necessity for what he called “elucidations” of his primitive notions. Such elucidations consist of hints, metaphors, and allusions, all of which resist being translated into the language of his logic and so cannot be characterized as objective by Frege’s lights. Weiner argues that Frege held that there is something about the understanding and communication of logic that cannot be argued for or perhaps even stated. On Weiner’s view, far from relying on an unfounded rationalist confidence in the correctness of his logic, Frege, like the early Wittgenstein, is consistently self conscious and self-critical about the standpoint from which essential requirements for rationality are to be articulated. In addition, Weiner provides a non-psychologistic account of elucidation as an activity, by reference to a reading of Edith Wharton’s The Age of Innocence, which Weiner takes as a model of how changes in attitude, not reducible to changes in beliefs expressible in begriffsschrift, can be objectively effected.
Bolzano, Frege, and Husserl on Reference and Object
Authors: Føllesdal Dagfinn 
Published: October 2003

AbstractHusserl’s notion of the intentional object may be compared and contrasted with Bolzano’s and Frege’s views on the reference of linguistic expressions, especially since Bolzano was a main influence on the development of Husserl’s views. Føllesdal responds to David Bell’s criticisms of Føllesdal’s earlier readings of Husserl on reference, directedness, and the notion of a determinable object x. He argues that Husserl’s treatment of indexicals and reference is in some ways more insightful than the treatments of either Bolzano or Frege. To preempt the charge that Husserl’s philosophy forwards a naïve, overly mentalistic model of the mind and its expressive capacities, Føllesdal mentions that Husserl developed a thought experiment nearly identical to the well-known Twin Earth scenario later framed by Hilary Putnam to criticize internalist, mentalistic theories of meaning. Føllesdal argues that Husserl was ahead of his time in trying to account for the semantics of indexical and demonstrative terms, partly under the influence of Brentano. This study shows that the opposition between so-called continental and so-called analytic philosophy is not historically as well-grounded as many have supposed.
Number and Ascriptions of Number in Wittgenstein's Tractatus
Authors: Floyd Juliet 
Published: October 2003

AbstractWittgenstein’s treatment of number words and arithmetic in the Tractatus reflects central features of his early conception of philosophy. In rejecting Frege’s and Russell’s analyses of number, Wittgenstein rejects their respective conceptions of function, object, logical form, generality, sentence, and thought. He thereby surrenders their shared ideal of the clarity a begriffsschrift could bring to philosophy. The development of early analytic philosophy thus evinces far less continuity than some readers of Wittgenstein, from Russell and the Vienna positivists to many contemporary readers of the Tractatus, have supposed.
Heidegger's Response to Skepticism in Being and Time
Authors: Minar Edward H. 
Published: October 2003

AbstractSection 43 of Heidegger’s Being and Time attempts to demonstrate that external world skepticism is self-defeating. Crucial to this effort is the claim that Dasein is Being-in-the-world, that we are always already involved with external things. Does starting with this phenomenological claim beg the question against the skeptic? No, because Heidegger is contesting the obviousness of the skeptic’s starting point, his depiction of our relation to the world. The essay shows that this strategy renders the skeptic’s demand for justification of Heidegger’s own description of Dasein as Being-in-the-world illegitimate and that charging Heidegger’s phenomenological response to skepticism with idealism is empty.
Tolerance and Analyticity in Carnap's Philosophy of Mathematics
Authors: Friedman Michael 
Published: October 2003

AbstractThis essay is an interpretation of Carnap’s principle of tolerance in his 1934 Logical Syntax of Language, as expressed in his philosophy of mathematics. Friedman argues that Carnap’s deepest philosophical motivation was to offer scientifically minded philosophers an intellectual responsible, undogmatic way out of their philosophical perplexities. Carnap’s dream of replacing dogmatic metaphysical dispute with the construction of formalized languages failed, for interesting reasons internal to the development of logic. Carnap hoped to provide a purely formal characterization of the intuitive distinction between questions which concern the real natures of objects and those which merely concern alternative ways of speaking. Yet in relying on Gödel’s arithmetization of syntax to formulate a language-relative distinction between synthetic and analytic truth, Carnap’s Syntax philosophy foundered on the incompleteness theorem, for that result shows that there is in principle no wholly formal (philosophical neutral) way to survey the logical consequences of each and every alternative theory of mathematics. This left Carnap with no way to formulate his principle of tolerance neutrally.
“The Defensible Province of Philosophy”: Quine's 1934 Lectures on Carnap
Authors: Hylton Peter 
Published: October 2003

Abstract
Hylton argues that some of the characteristic concerns of Quine are already in place by the 1930s. Hylton examines Quine’s 1934 Harvard lectures on Carnap, his first attempt to explain Carnap’s logical syntax program to an American audience. By pointing out tensions within the exposition the young Quine offered of Carnap’s views, Hylton shows how these lectures already point toward Quine’s subsequent disagreements with Carnap over the analytic/synthetic distinction. Hylton finds that in these lectures Quine departs from exposition because of a philosophical discomfort with Carnap’s assumption that our actual, pre-analytic, language contains a set of implicitly given definitions or rules from which the category of the a priori arises. Moreover, Quine also fastidiously departs from Carnap in trying to avoid assuming that our language contains a distinction between the a priori and the empirical. In the context of an exposition of Carnap’s program, this invites a question Quine was soon to ask: what sort of explanation of a given sentence’s truth could Carnap’s notion of “analytic” possibly provide? Hylton argues that Quine’s later well-known holism about meaning, his famed denial of empiricism’s second reductionist dogma—that “each meaningful statement is equivalent to some logical construct upon terms which refer to immediate experience”—was not the sole or primary philosophical factor shaping Quine’s differences with Carnap. Hylton’s examination of the origins of Quine’s differences with Carnap shows that what is fundamentally at stake is the very conception of what counts as a philosophical explanation.
Non‐Negotiable Demands: Metaphysics, Politics, and the Discourse of Needs
Authors: Scheman Naomi 
Published: October 2003

AbstractScheman discusses the history of analytic philosophy in America juxtaposing Cora Diamond’s Wittgensteinian critique of metaphysics (or of philosophical “requirements”) with Nancy Fraser’s use of Habermas and Foucault to develop a discourse of needs. Examining the of problems of philosophy from historical context in the analytic tradition in post–World War II America, Scheman critically examines Cornel West’s interpretation of American pragmatism as a resolute evasion of moral and political engagement, arguing that analytic philosophy did answer to particular cultural needs given the politics of that time. She then shows how arguments over the mind-independence of reality, the transcendence of moral standards, and the idea of privileged access may, despite their history, form a crucial and indeed inevitable part of a politically aware, morally engaged conception of philosophy, as useful for the disenfranchised as for those who benefit from the current arrangements of society.