Heinrich von Stietencron has been Professor of Indology and Comparative History of Religion (173-98) at the University of Tuebingen. He has written widely (mostly in German), on the epics and the Puranas, on temple symbolism and iconography, and on religious practice and social structure. He has devoted many years to field research in Orissa, documenting the many temples and studying the manuscript traditions of the region. He is chief editor of the annotated ...
There are many books on the Ganga and Yamuna rivers, pictorial and celebratory. The present one is of a different kind. Professor von Stietencron investigates the temple sculptures of Ganga and Yamuna in order to unveil a whole cosmos of Hindu ritual and conceptual tradition. He shows how an entire worldview informs the planning and sculptural embellishment of such a temple—conceived of as the body of the deity enshrined in it. Consequently this book is a ...