The Archaeology of the Nātha Sampradāya in Western India, 12th to 15th Century

Author: Vijay Sarde Series: Archaeology and Religion in South Asia

This book studies Natha Sampradaya through archaeological evidence for the first time. Drawing on a pioneering approach to the study of ascetic traditions, it investigates not only the nature of the Sampradaya's religious architecture but also examines the extent to which they shared space with other religious groups.

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This book studies Nātha sampradāya through archaeological evidence for the first time. Drawing on a pioneering approach to the study of ascetic traditions, it investigates not only the nature of the Nātha sampradāya’s religious architecture but also examines the extent to which they shared space with other religious groups such as the devotees of Siva and Sakti, Buddhism, and Islam, especially with the Sufi tradition.

Focusing on western India, the book sifts through a variety of archaeological evidence and documentation of their temples, caves, and maṭhas. It critically analyses iconographic representations of ascetics on temple walls and sculptural representations of yogic postures or āsanas. Further, these representations are discussed within a pan-South Asian framework to highlight both the commonalities of the tradition across the subcontinent and the regional specificities, along with their chronological spread.

Breaking new ground, this volume will be of great interest to scholars and researchers of religion, especially Hinduism, history, archaeology, and South Asian studies.

About the Author

Vijay Sarde, PhD, is an archaeologist working on ancient and medieval religious art and architecture in India. His doctorate from the Deccan College PGRI, Pune is on Archaeological Investigations of the Nātha sampradāya in Maharashtra (c. 12th to 15th century CE). He has participated in several excavations and explorations in western India and has published research papers in English, Marathi and Hindi. Presently, he is working as an independent researcher in archaeology and history.