Bali is a central and intriguing figure in Hindu mythology. Designated as a demon, he nevertheless is traditionally described as being virtuous, an ideal devotee and a perfect king. Clifford Hospital resolves this paradox by sorting out variants of the Bali myth in some twenty-six texts which range from the Mahabharata to sections of Robert Southey's poem The Curse of Kehama. In the process he devises a method which will enable scholars to understand the literary genre known as Puranas.

The author organizes the myths about Bali into coherent groups based on chronology and thematic similarities. These groups are then arranged into more or less chronological order so that various phases of the central myth -- Bali's encounter with the Dwarf avatar of Visnu -- become evident. Each of these phases reveals shifts in the characterization of Bali. In the earliest stages of development, Bali is a great Asura, an enemy of the gods and therefore of good order. His loss of his kingdom to Visnu, however, becomes the basis of the portrayal of him in the late wisdom. The combination of this wisdom and his reputation as a great sacrificer gives rise to a tradition about Bali as virtuous, and the conditions of his kingdom as good.

The interpretation of the Bali myth as showing the hierarchy of dharma, bhakti, and prosperity is challenging and brings a new perception of the moral values of classical Hinduism. Hospital's translation and analysis of the many different versions of the myth makes a significant contribution to the study of Hindu mythology.