Living Traditions and Puranas A Dialogue with Prof. McComas Taylor

Join Mukunda as he speaks with Dr. McComas Taylor, Associate Professor of Sanskrit at Australian National University. In this episode, we discuss a host of topics including:

00:01:09 Introduction and Journey of Dr. McComas Taylor

00:10:40 What drove Dr. Taylor to translate the Vishnu Purana and what is unique about the Vishnu Purana

00:15:13 What role of Vishnu Purana played in traditional commentaries and religious traditions

00:19:40 The oral living traditions of the Bhagavata Purana

00:26:20 Were the Puranas originally oral or written texts? Does it even matter? Does the critical edition even make sense?

00:35:30 Western Indology and Traditional Indian Scholars: clash of world views

00:43:15 The tension within texts in maintaining social order and pushing boundaries

00:50:30 The connection between the Mahabharata, Ramayana, and the Puranas

00:53:20 Glorification of different Devatas through a different telling of the same narrative

00:56:00 Dr. Taylor’s upcoming projects and Conclusion

You can find Professor McComas Taylor and Online Sanskrit Program at:

https://researchprofiles.anu.edu.au/en/persons/mccomas-taylor

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About Author

Mukunda

Mukunda Raghavan: Mukunda is a jack of all trades but master of none. His educational background is a mix of political science, criminology, psychological and philosophy. He received his Juris Doctorate in Law from Boston University and was simultaneously working on his Masters in Philosophy focusing on continental philosophy (not completed). He has practiced as a prosecutor in New York City, General Counsel and Operating Officer of a healthcare company in Southern California, Head of Business and Operations for a legal tech company in India and is now in Strategy and Development. Much like his career, Mukunda’s intellectual interests and knowledge is varied, he is interested in Indian and Western philosophy, world mythology, Quantum Physics, Consciousness Studies, Psychology and variety of other fields.

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