The divine player attempts to analyze the relationship between play and
religion in the context of Hinduism. It focuses primarily on the youthful
god Krsna. The first part part of the book surveys the role of play among
the gods and concludes that play seems to be an intrinsic part of the
divine in Hinduism. The second part of the book investigates the role of
play in religious cult, again focusing on the various Krsna cults. This
section concludes that, although playful themes pervade man's religious
activity in devotion to Krsna, cultiic activity may not be reduced to play,
as some scholars have suggested. The final section of the book points to
examples of divine and cultic play in non-Hindu traditions.
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