This book review in the online edition of Studies in Comparative Religion examines the book Introduction to Hindu Dharma: Illustrated by HH The 68th Jagadguru of Kanchi. The review is by Samuel Bendeck Sotillos, and appeared first in the journal Sophia. The review carefully summarizes the various sections of the book and concludes that "This book is an invaluable contribution to the treasury of traditional wisdom.…"

The author states that "the primary object of [this essay] is to present the Indian Flood Legend as a special case of the Patriarchal Voyage (pitryâna), and at the same time in coherent and intelligible relation with other fundamental conceptions of Vedic cosmology and eschatology. Some analogies with other traditional aspects of the Flood Legend are incidentally noted." Coomaraswamy explains various doctrines regarding time in Hindu tradition as well as the symbolism of the movement through states of being, creation, avataras, salvation, and reincarnation.

Both Indian Cosmology and modern science constitute attempts to understand the cosmos at its most basic level. However, modern science is essentially materialistic, seeking an explanation of the universe in terms of "basic particles", whereas Hindu Cosmology is concerned with non-substantial, "basic principles." The adoption of science as the ultimate approach to understanding the cosmos is based on the assumption that the universe must be reduceable to physical phenomena alone. Ian Watson offers Hindu Vedānta, which rejects this notion, as an alternative.

Hindu society prescribes a standard of purity for women that requires rigorous dedication and sacrifice. Likening the story of Sita to the Crucifixion of Christ, Iengar explains how her banishment by Rama served not only to purify the generations of women before and after her, but also to reveal the incessant pride and skepticism of man.

Author Marco Pallis here presents a detailed and comprehensive explanation of the fundamental Buddhist concept of karma. In order to accomplish this, he also explains such related terms as samsara, dharma, "selfhood," "rebirth," and "Buddhahood." Although the emphasis is clearly upon the Buddhist perspective, Pallis finds ways to make points about spiritual states of mind, human actions, and eschatological states that apply equally to Christians and practitioners of other faiths.

This article relates the situation of Hinduism in India as it has come in contact with modernism and Islam. The result of these two influences on Hindu culture has had an inevitably threatening result on Hindu religion. Saran emphasizes the impossibility of the privatization of religion in the Hindu tradition as it has been implied by secular and outside social influences. In addition to modernism and Islam, Saran also discusses the implications of British colonial rule and Christianity as these also limited the sustainability of the Hindu tradition. He questions the compatibility of Hindu principles with the ideas of social reform introduced by western ideals and industries in part because this synthesis of society overturns the doctrine of karma that is central to Hindu belief.

Ananda K. Coomaraswamy reveals the symbolism of archery that underlies this seemingly mundane sport. He describes its original function in initiation ceremonies of disciples, across a number of traditions, as they dedicated themselves to their spiritual paths. The author sums up the essay with the observations that "one sees how in a traditional society every necessary activity can be also the Way, and that in such a society there is nothing profane; a condition the reverse of that to be seen in secular societies, where there is nothing sacred. We see that even a "sport" may also be a yoga, and [that] the active and contemplative lives, outer and inner man can be unified in a single act of being in which both selves cooperate."

Guenon offers a linguistic introduction to the symbolism of the cave, the heart and the mountain as they function as spiritual metaphor. He describes the heart and the cave as "the place of the 'second birth'" because its eternal movement inward suggests the beginning of development. He continues on to explore the paradoxical nature of existence, which encourages the unity between opposites. Specifically, Guenon examines the example of this paradox in the etymological roots of the words heart, cave and mountain as they exist in various languages. This article is meant as an introduction to a deeper exploration of the symbolic nature of these images.

With ironic humor, Whitall N. Perry traces the career and teachings of Gopi Krishna as set out in this book. Having received an exemplary traditional upbringing, Gopi Krishna later espoused Modernism and rationality and set about using yoga as a biological tool to achieve the “bliss of unembodied existence”. However, things went awry when he awakened the solar nerve by mistake.... Perry concludes that “not even the ‘imprimatur’ of an authority like Spiegelberg [who wrote the introduction to the book] can get this man into the company of the saints, which in any case would be irrelevant if not incongruous to a deist concerned with biological evolution rather than traditional orthodoxy.”

René Guénon explores the hierarchical assumption of symbols over rites in the context of spiritual expression. He suggests that symbols are permanent representations of rites and that rites are symbols that are actions “performed in time”. He uses the example of the sign of the cross to suggest that this gesture is a symbol expressed in bodily movement. While symbols are represented in their figure, rites are represented by a performance, but both of these take place on a transcendent plane that is beyond human creation or the origin of the mind and serve to communicate “with the higher states of being.”

Maureen Seneviratne discusses the history and religious symbolism of the Hindu shrine of the god of Kataragama, which is located in what is now Sri Lanka. The cult of Kataragama is that of the Hindu war-god.

The author discusses similarities and differences between Greco-Roman Stoicism and Hinduism. He argues that the reason for these similarities is that there may be universally valid moral truths which have been known to “men in all times and places and are not therefore exclusive to one particular society or culture”. However, Bishop is concerned mostly with making an objective comparison of the two perspectives, instead of attempting to come to a conclusion about their origins. After comparing various ideas concerning the nature of virtue, duty, honor, and greatness, Bishop makes this conclusion: “The Humanist and Hindu call us back to the original criterion of greatness which is a qualitative not quantitative one. Greatness is measured not by what has but by what one is. Being not having is the primary category”.

J.C. Cooper summarizes Thakur’s argument concerning similarities and differences between Hindu and Christian ethics. Cooper discusses the basis of Thakur’s argument, which is based on his contrasts and comparisons of the creation myths of the two religions.

Burckhardt comments on the symbolic importance of the image of the Heavenly Jerusalem, which first appeared in a medieval manuscript. He compares this image side-by-side with a drawing of the mandala of Vaikuntha, the home of the Hindu god, Vishnu. Also comparing relevant scriptural texts, Bruckhardt is more interested in the objective comparison of the two images/texts than in drawing conclusions as to why and how such similarities came into existence.

Saran discusses the revolution that Gandhi caused within the schism of the ‘freedom-cum-nationalist movement’ in India; how Gandhi went about changing the foundation, goals and nature of the freedom movement and the effects this had both on the movement and on the spiritual revival within India. According to Saran, “Gandhi changed the nature of Indian politics by spiritualizing it.” Saran goes on to investigate the meaning and philosophy behind Gandhi’s life and works, contrasting this philosophy with the modern world which Gandhi attempted to combat.

J.C. Cooper reviews this book which he says is a collection of lectures given at the University of Delhi; these lectures discuss religions like Hinduism and Christianity, as well as lesser known religions like Jainism, Buddhism, and the non-dualism of Shankara and Ramanuja. According to the reviewer Smart regards Christianity “over-intellectualized” and “rejecting Natural Theology”. Cooper claims that an argument of this book is that “two aspects of religion must not merely live in harmony and equality, but must be complementary”.