Caitanya Caritamrta of Krsnadasa Kaviraja: A Translation and Commentary (Harvard Oriental Series, 56.)

Rating:
Summary: Scholarly Translation of a Seminal Religious Text
Review: Dimock and Stewart's translation of the Caitanya Caritamrta (The Nectar of the Acts of Caitanya) is a readable and extremely well-researched edition of the biography of Sri Caitanya, a 16th century Bengali ascetic who is believed by Gaudiya Vaisnavas to have been the androgynous dual incarnation of Krsna and Radha. The lengthy introduction and notes on translation provide readers unfamiliar with the tradition with all the background they need to appreciate the layers of meaning hidden in the text and the narrative strategies of Krsnadasa that come across so well in this translation. For more background, read Dimock's 1966 book, "The Place of the Hidden Moon". a true classic in the literature of South Asian studies. Highly recommended.

Rating:
Summary: A Treasure
Review: In a crowning achievement to a long and illustrious career, Prof. Dimock has provided us with a wonderful new version of this essential text. For a long time the most available version of CC has been the Hare Krsna (ISKCON) 17 volume set. It is a relief to have this careful, brilliantly done and very readable version in one volume without the eccentric "purports" of the Hare Krsna version. Although a hefty academic text, this book is quite an easy read. Cannot be too highly recommended.