A collection of important essays by a pioneering interpreter of Indian art, philosophy, and mythology';Brilliant.'Joseph Campbell, author of The Hero with a Thousand Faces';Varied, imaginative, incredibly learned. . . . Fascinating.'John Kenneth Galbraith, New York Times Book ReviewAnanda K. Coomaraswamy (18771947) was a pioneer in the study of Indian art, philosophy, and mythologyand in the cultural meeting of East and West. A scholar in the tradition of the great Indian grammarians and philosophers, an art historian convinced that the ultimate value of art transcends history, and a social thinker influenced by William Morris, Coomaraswamy was a unique figure whose works provide virtually a complete education in themselves. Finding a universal tradition in past cultures ranging from the Hellenic and Christian to the Indian, Islamic, and Chinese, he presented his ideas in numerous essays. This volume includes a selection of his essays on art and symbolism that were written in the 1930s and 1940s, when he was at the height of his powers.