{"product_id":"the-hagiographer-and-the-avatar-antonio-rigopoulos-9781438482293","title":"The Hagiographer and the Avatar: The Life and Works of Narayan Kasturi","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eExamines the key role of a hagiographer within a charismatic religious movement.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn this biographical study, Antonio Rigopoulos explores the fundamental role of a hagiographer within a charismatic religious movement: in this case, the postsectarian, cosmopolitan community of the Indian guru Sathya Sai Baba. The guru's hagiographer, Narayan Kasturi, was already a distinguished litterateur by the time he first met Sathya Sai Baba in 1948. The two lived together at the guru's hermitage more or less continuously from 1954 up until Kasturi's death, in 1987. Despite Kasturi's influential hagiography, \u003ci\u003eSathyam Sivam Sundaram\u003c\/i\u003e, little scholarly attention has been paid to the hagiographer himself and his importance to the movement. In detailing Kasturi's relationship to Sathya Sai Baba, Rigopoulos emphasizes that the hagiographer's work was not subordinate to the guru's definition of himself. Rather, his discourses with the holy man had a reciprocal and reinforcing influence, resulting in the construction of a unified canon. Furthermore, Kasturi's ability to perform a variety of functions as a hagiographer successfully mediated the relationship between the guru and his followers. Drawing on years of research on the movement as well as interviews with Kasturi himself, this book deepens our understanding of this important pan-Indian figure and his charismatic religious movement.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Antonio Rigopoulos\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 1438482299\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781438482293\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e State University of New York Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 04\/01\/2021\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 526\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.80lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.10h x 6.20w x 1.70d","brand":"Antonio Rigopoulos","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":48065580794111,"sku":"9781438482293","price":99.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_84252860-9234-42bb-af59-2a98583ead1d.jpg?v=1768675915","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/the-hagiographer-and-the-avatar-antonio-rigopoulos-9781438482293","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}