Easy Returns
Easy Returns
Return within 7 days of
order delivery.See T&Cs
1M+ Customers
1M+ Customers
Serving more than a
million customers worldwide.
25+ Years in Business
25+ Years in Business
A trustworthy name in Indian
art, fashion and literature.

Seasons of the Divine

$29
Express Shipping
Express Shipping
Express Shipping: Guaranteed Dispatch in 24 hours
Specifications
HBH952
Author: Arun Gupto
Publisher: Rupa Publication Pvt. Ltd.
Language: English
Edition: 2024
ISBN: 9789361565229
Pages: 138 (Color Illustrations)
Cover: PAPERBACK
8.5x5.5 inch
210 gm
Delivery and Return Policies
Ships in 1-3 days
Returns and Exchanges accepted with 7 days
Free Delivery
Easy Returns
Easy Returns
Return within 7 days of
order delivery.See T&Cs
1M+ Customers
1M+ Customers
Serving more than a
million customers worldwide.
25+ Years in Business
25+ Years in Business
A trustworthy name in Indian
art, fashion and literature.
Book Description
About the Book
The book is a textual and visual representation of Kathmandu Valley, weaving discourses on festivals, narratives and performances during August, September and October, which are intense months of festivals. The book deals with urbanism and its relation to myth and religion, reconciliation of the opposites, agrarian and post-human consciousness, and the philosophical mind of the city and its people. The relationship between the city and religion allows Kathmandu Valley to hold an energetic potential to represent art in an urban setting. This potential makes itself visible in the interaction of people of the valley with deities through performances, art, and reverence towards plants, animals and multiple natural objects. The people also celebrate the self as a part of the community. These interactions give way to a system of thought that drives the religion-mythical discourse in Kathmandu Valley and perpetuates the interpretation of the past in the present.

About the Authors
Dr Arun Gupto is a professor of English. His areas of research are literary theory, postcolonial studies, and South Asian Studies. The latest books by him are Goddesses of Kathmandu Valley: Grace, Rage, Knowledge (Routledge, 2016) and Theory and Criticism: Recent Writings from South Asia (Routledge, 2022). He has also written and directed documentaries titled Art of the Lake (2014), Art and the City (2022), and Anger and the Mahatma (2023).

Ms Renuka Khatiwada is a doctoral student at The University of Texas at El Paso, USA. She is a photographer and documentary maker. Her photographs have been exhibited in Nepal and abroad. She works with Prof. Gupto as a Director of Photography and researcher on visual cultural studies. Her current project is a soon-to-be-released book Diary of a Teenage Wife.

Acknowledgements
The Kathmandu valley had been a ballad-tune in my imagination while studying in the Terai and in India. I came to Kathmandu and saw how nature, myth, and humans interact to make an art of the city. My book is indebted to the cities of the valley.

I am always thankful to my gurus Prof. Shreedhar Lohani for enriching my knowledge of art and philosophy, literature and literary theory and Prof. Abhi Subedi for interacting with me for decades on art and literature of the valley. They both are my best companions in academia.

Those who traveled with me during the making of the documentaries, for writing, and for engaging in indolence by watching art and culture of the city are the ones who inspire me to work. Along with Renuka Khatiwada, Salil Subedi, Abhas Rajopadhyaya, Rajan Phelu also have been my co-walkers at times.

Their enthusiasm to work with me are exemplary. Mr. Madhab Maharjan has always encouraged me to write books; I thank him for guiding me through the world of publication.

My family from parents to grand daughters provide best education to me. Some read with me, some edit, some provide professional advice, some walk past smilingly. They help so that I write. My grand daughter, Nieva has promised to write books like me and I think Anya will be inspired by her elder sister.

Preface
Myth has been the most profound space for me as a teacher and researcher. Myth evokes poetry making sensibility, myth is allegorical, agrarian, it is innocent. But religion for me is institutional, coded, and dogmatic. Myth helps me conceptualize ideas to understand the art of the city, art in general. Myth thus is cognitive, which does not force you to believe something in absolutist way, you can accept and reject ideas.

My research in the field of myth and art has three fold experiences. I walk, make documentaries, and offer courses. Walking is cognitive knowledge with body in motion, making documentaries is visualizing and then retrospecting in quietude, and offering courses is finding spaces to discourse with students.

Divine is an idea. It is the myth of the highest order, which encompasses the beautiful and the grotesque, demonic and godly when the double bind seeps in to shape thinking. The divine cannot exist if the profane and sacred are decoupled. The divinity of knowledge is the divinity of sexual body, of sublime as the terror of nature. The idea of the city of Kathmandu is attributed by such double binds spread in the seasons. Our work has found more than four and more than six seasons. The chilly wind of dark nights in the forest hill emits the smell of summer flowers; the deep opening of the clouds in the rainy days sensualizes ingenuous shivering in the body. Season is an idea.

Frequently Asked Questions
  • Q. What locations do you deliver to ?
    A. Exotic India delivers orders to all countries having diplomatic relations with India.
  • Q. Do you offer free shipping ?
    A. Exotic India offers free shipping on all orders of value of $30 USD or more.
  • Q. Can I return the book?
    A. All returns must be postmarked within seven (7) days of the delivery date. All returned items must be in new and unused condition, with all original tags and labels attached. To know more please view our return policy
  • Q. Do you offer express shipping ?
    A. Yes, we do have a chargeable express shipping facility available. You can select express shipping while checking out on the website.
  • Q. I accidentally entered wrong delivery address, can I change the address ?
    A. Delivery addresses can only be changed only incase the order has not been shipped yet. Incase of an address change, you can reach us at help@exoticindia.com
  • Q. How do I track my order ?
    A. You can track your orders simply entering your order number through here or through your past orders if you are signed in on the website.
  • Q. How can I cancel an order ?
    A. An order can only be cancelled if it has not been shipped. To cancel an order, kindly reach out to us through help@exoticindia.com.
Add a review
Have A Question
By continuing, I agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy
Book Categories