Pragmatism, Spirituality and Society

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xxxiii

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2. Pragmatism, Spirituality and Society: An Introduction and Invitation to New Pathways of Consciousness, Freedom and Solidarity

   • Ananta Kumar Giri

   Pages 1-14

3. Pragmatism, Spirituality and Society: Consciousness, Freedom and Solidarity

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 15-15

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   2. Pragmatism and Belief

      • Nishant Alphonse Irudayadason

      Pages 17-26

   3. Pragmatism, Consciousness and Spirituality: William James and Rudolf Steiner

      • Robert McDermott

      Pages 27-39

   4. Pragmatic Non-Duality in William James, Swāmī Vivekānanda and Trika Shaivism

      • Sarah Louise Gates

      Pages 41-64

   5. Peterson vs. Žižek on the Evolution of Consciousness and Happiness: From Pragmatism to Sarkar’s Tantra

      • Justin M. Hewitson

      Pages 65-87

   6. Spirituality, Pragmatism, Vedanta and Universal Consciousness: A Study of the Philosophy of R. Balasubramanian

      • Ramesh Chandra Pradhan

      Pages 89-102

   7. A Quantum Bridge Between Science and Spirituality: Toward a New Geometry of Consciousness

      • Subhash Sharma

      Pages 103-114

   8. Freedom, Spiritual Praxis and Categorical Imperative

      • Meera Chakravorty

      Pages 115-133

   9. Spiritual Pragmatism and an Economics of Solidarity

      • John Clammer

      Pages 135-145

   10. Pragmatism and Socio-Political Movement Toward Solidarity

       • Julie M. Geredien

       Pages 147-176

4. Pragmatism and Spirituality: Reconstructing Language, Self and the World

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 177-177

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   2. ‘Pragmatic Metaphysics: Language as a Battlefield Between Truth and Darkness’: An Interpretive Approach to the View on Language, Truth and World in the Philosophy of Śaiva Siddhānta—In the Light of Heidegger’s ‘Being and Time’

      • Mikael Stamm

      Pages 179-203

   3. Monistic Elements in Lévi-Strauss’s Structuralism: New Pathways of Consciousness, Pragmatism and Spirituality

      • Rafaela Campos de Carvalho

      Pages 205-217

   4. Action, Language, Art, and Mysticism as Reflection-Levels of an Alternative Semiotics and the Spiritual Perspective of a Value-Levels-Democracy

      • Johannes Heinrichs

      Pages 219-248

   5. Paul Valéry “Mystique sans Dieu”: Writing as a Spiritual Practice?

      • Benedetta Zaccarello

      Pages 249-260

   6. Spirituality of Action: Reading O. V. Vijayan’s Khasakkinte Ithihasam and Gurusagaram Through William James’ Concept of Religion

      • Vinod Balakrishnan, Shintu Dennis

      Pages 261-274

   7. Is Homing Spiritual Praxis?

      • Nirmal Selvamony

      Pages 275-296

   8. Performative as the Language of Pragmatism: A Reading of Indian Spirituality

      • Ranjan Kumar Panda

      Pages 297-314

This book explores the dynamics of interaction between pragmatism and spirituality in the constitution and working of consciousness, freedom and solidarity. This book is cross-cultural and transdisciplinary in nature and brings critical and transformative perspectives from different philosophical and spiritual traditions of the world. It discusses the works of seminal thinkers such as William James, Rudolf Steiner, John Dewey, Swami Vivekananda, Martin Heidegger, Claude Levi-Strauss, Jordan Peterson, Slavos Zizek, Paul Valeri and O.V. Vijayan. It also explores dialogues between pragmatism and other philosophical and intellectual traditions such as Semiotics, Saiva Siddhanta, Vedanta, Trika Shaivism and Tantra. It explores themes such as pragmatism and belief, evolution of consciousness and happiness, spiritual pragmatism and economics of solidarity, value levels democracy, the perforamtive as an aspect of spirituality and transformation of political theology from Kingdom of God to Gardens of God.

• Spiritual Pragmatism and Consciousness
• Spiritual Pragmatism, Freedom and Solidarity
• Pragmatic Non-Duality
• Spiritual Pragmatism, Evolution of Consciousness and Happiness
• Spiritual Pragmatism and Vedanta
• Spiritual Pragmatism and A Geometry of Consciousness
• Spiritual Pragmatism and an Economics of Solidarity
• Pragmatic Metaphysics
• Spiritual Pragmatism and Performative
• Pragmatism and Gardens of God

“In the West, pragmatism tends to have the dismal reputation of being humdrum and tied to status quo politics. But this book is anything but humdrum. It injects into the topic a welcome, uplifting elan by showing its connection with idealism, spirituality and religious faith. I think Dewey would have been pleased.”

--Fred Dallmayr, Emeritus Faculty, University of Notre Dame, USA

 “One of the hardest things to do in the world today is to reach out to multiple communities and perspectives whose voices are disparate and seemingly irreconcilable. This book has taken us on this hard journey here with attention to the practical yet spiritual aspects of the search for freedom and solidarity.”

--David Blake Willis, Professor of anthropology and education, Fielding Graduate University, USA

 “This rich collection of essays reminds us that genuine spirituality bears cultural and social fruits. The book invites one to consider thought-provoking ways of articulating spiritual life with the common good in our world of confusion and conflicts.”

--Patrick Laude, Professor, Georgetown University, Doha, Qatar

• Madras Institute of Development Studies, Chennai, India

  Ananta Kumar Giri

Ananta Kumar Giri is a Professor at the Madras Institute of Development Studies, Chennai, India. He has taught and done research in many universities in India and abroad, including Aalborg University (Denmark), Maison des sciences de l’homme, Paris (France), the University of Kentucky (USA), University of Freiburg & Humboldt University (Germany), Jagiellonian University (Poland) and Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. He has an abiding interest in social movements and cultural change, criticism, creativity and contemporary dialectics of transformation, theories of self, culture and society, and creative streams in education, philosophy and literature.  

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