Mesocosm is a study of Hinduism in its most fully realized form as a symbolic system for organizing the life of a particular kind of city—what the author terms an "archaic" city. The work is a detailed description and analysis of the symbolic world of Bhaktapur; a unicultural city in the Kathmandu Valley; a city which is perhaps the last surviving example of a type of organization once widespread in the ancient world.Robert Levy views Bhaktapur as a structured "mesocosm;" mediating between the microcosm of individual self-conception and the macrocosm of the culturally conceived larger universe. The city is a bounded entity; grounded on a minutely divided and interrelated sacrilized space. It uses that space; roles assigned by an elaborate caste system; a semantically differentiated pantheon; and the tempos and forms of the festival year and rites of passage to construct a "civic dance;" a web of communication and instruction which deeply affects the experience of Bhaktapur's citizens. Levy investigates the meaning of the community to the people who live there and suggests how the religious forms that have challenged Hinduism in South Asia—Christianity and; above all; Islam—are profoundly antithetical to Hinduism as the organizing principle for cities such as Bhaktapur. Mesocosm is a groundbreaking contribution to anthropology; social and religious history; and Indian and Nepalese studies.
#191100 in Books Broadway Books 1997-05-27 1997-05-27Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.24 x .80 x 6.05l; .99 #File Name: 0517888521384 pagesGreat product!
Review
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful. Ordinary; Compared to Other Books by the AuthorsBy Wojtek_USo far; I've read a couple of Hancock's books; including some of them written by Hancock and Bauval. And so far; this book is the weakest of all. While all other books sucked me in so much that I was unable to stop reading; the "Message of the Sphinx" took me two months to complete - give or take; 50 days longer than any of the previous books.The book is good - it's interesting; full of wonderful; detailed information and it's still written in this great Hancock's/Bauval's style that makes is sound like a good mystery novel. If this would be the first book of those author that I read; then I would give 4 stars out of 5; or maybe even 5/5. But I can't free myself from comparing this book to other works I've read already - and compared to the Fingerprints of the Gods; or the one about Mars; or the Sign and the Seal; the Message of the Sphinx is merely ordinary.2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. What Happened in 10;500 BC?By PastAgesandFutureWorldsWhen the Orion alignment of the pyramids at Giza was first suggested decades ago; it was ignored as some fringe idea. Now it is widely accepted and archaeoastronomy has matured as a respected discipline. This is one of the books that really explained it all. I had read some of this years ago in Hancock's Fingerprints Of The Gods; but I still wondered what I would encounter here. While Hancock/Buval have uncovered many fascinating things in their books; sometimes they do go over the deep end (like Hancock's book on supposed structures on Mars. One of the few blatant oddities in this book is when they imply there is no reason to believe Eden was real; a "hard-to-find; never-never land;" apparently not noticing that the Bible gives a precise geographic location for it). Nevertheless; this is a fairly orthodox look at alignments of Giza; dating issues with the Sphinx; the challenges of building the pyramids and so forth. The most important question is this: Why were the pyramids aligned to star patterns that were overhead thousands of years before they were built? 10;500 BC was a time of turmoil for mankind. Few now dispute that some worldwide catastrophe caused havoc to man and put a final end to the ice ages. The causes are debated (see The Cycle of Cosmic Catastrophes and Forgotten Civilization); but the actual event is not. Were the pyramids simply marking this date? What are we to make of the empty tombs inside? Are the chambers all there is; or is much more hidden within and underneath these monuments? Students of history will be troubled that so many roadblocks are often put up against bringing modern science's best tech to explore these sites. The potential new chambers and caverns that have been found over the past 3 decades should be sufficient cause for a new era an Egyptian archaeological study.1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Ancient Egyptian AstronomersBy Violet BunnyHancock Bauval prove; thru archeo-astronomy; that the Great Sphinx in Egypt is much older than previously thought. Originally claimed to have been built in 2;500 BCE; they show a more likely date of 10;500 BCE. Working with astronomical software; they were able to determine that the Sphinx; originally carved with a lion's face as well as body; greeted the rising constellation of Leo on the morning of the Spring Equinox around 10;500 BCE. The Sphinx; which faces due east; was a monument to celebrate the Spring Equinox back during Egypt's Golden Age. The ancient Egyptians were indeed accomplished astronomers.
