Hindu Selves In A Modern World

Author : Maya Warrier
Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 1134298935
Total Pages : 331 pages
Book Rating : 4.38/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Hindu Selves in a Modern World written by Maya Warrier and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2004-11-10 with total page 331 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book explores devotional Hinduism in a modern context of high consumerism and revolutionised communications. It focuses on a fast-growing and high-profile contemporary Hindu guru faith originating in India and attracting a transnational following. The organisation is led by a vastly popular female guru, Mata Amritanandamayi, whom devotees worship as an avatar and a healer of the ills of the contemporary world. By drawing upon multi-sited ethnographic fieldwork among the mata's primarily urban, educated 'middle class' Indian devotees, the author provides crucial insights into new trends in popular Hinduism in a post-colonial and rapidly modernising Indian setting.

Author : Maya Warrier
Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 1134298943
Total Pages : 196 pages
Book Rating : 4.45/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Hindu Selves in a Modern World written by Maya Warrier and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2004-11-10 with total page 196 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book explores devotional Hinduism in a modern context of high consumerism and revolutionised communications. It focuses on a fast-growing and high-profile contemporary Hindu guru faith originating in India and attracting a transnational following. The organisation is led by a vastly popular female guru, Mata Amritanandamayi, whom devotees worship as an avatar and a healer of the ills of the contemporary world. By drawing upon multi-sited ethnographic fieldwork among the mata's primarily urban, educated 'middle class' Indian devotees, the author provides crucial insights into new trends in popular Hinduism in a post-colonial and rapidly modernising Indian setting.

Author : Brian A. Hatcher
Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 113504631X
Total Pages : 341 pages
Book Rating : 4.16/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Hinduism in the Modern World written by Brian A. Hatcher and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2015-10-05 with total page 341 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Hinduism in the Modern World presents a new and unprecedented attempt to survey the nature, range, and significance of modern and contemporary Hinduism in South Asia and the global diaspora. Organized to reflect the direction of recent scholarly research, this volume breaks with earlier texts on this subject by seeking to overcome a misleading dichotomy between an elite, intellectualist "modern" Hinduism and the rest of what has so often been misleadingly termed "traditional" or "popular" Hinduism. Without neglecting the significance of modern reformist visions of Hinduism, this book reconceptualizes the meaning of "modern Hinduism" both by expanding its content and by situating its expression within a larger framework of history, ethnography, and contemporary critical theory. This volume equips undergraduate readers with the tools necessary to appreciate the richness and diversity of Hinduism as it has developed during the past two centuries.

Author : Aparna Devare
Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 1136197079
Total Pages : 232 pages
Book Rating : 4.79/5 ( download)

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Download or read book History and the Making of a Modern Hindu Self written by Aparna Devare and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2013-04-03 with total page 232 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Taking the contentious debates surrounding historical evidence and history writing between secularists and Hindu nationalists as a starting point, this book seeks to understand the origins of a growing historical consciousness in contemporary India, especially amongst Hindus. The broad question it poses is: Why has ‘history’ become such an important site of identity, conflict and self-definition amongst modern Hindus, especially when Hinduism is known to have been notoriously impervious to history? As modern ideas regarding notions of history came to India with colonialism, it turns to the colonial period as the ‘moment of encounter’ with such ideas. The book examines three distinct moments in the Hindu self through the lives and writings of lower-caste public figure Jotiba Phule, ‘moderate’ nationalist M. G. Ranade and Hindu nationalist V. D. Savarkar. Through a close reading of original writings, speeches and biographical material, it is demonstrated that these three individuals were engaged with a modern historical and rationalist approach. However, the same material is also used to argue that Phule and Ranade viewed religion as living, contemporaneous and capable of informing both their personal and political lives. Savarkar, the ‘explicitly Hindu’ leader, on the contrary, held Hindu practices and traditions in contempt, confining them to historical analysis while denying any role for religion as spirituality or morality in contemporary political life. While providing some historical context, this volume highlights the philosophical/ political ideas and actions of the three individuals discussed. It integrates aspects of their lives as central to understanding their politics.

Author : J. Barton Scott
Publisher : University of Chicago Press
ISBN 13 : 022636867X
Total Pages : 280 pages
Book Rating : 4.72/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Spiritual Despots written by J. Barton Scott and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2016-07-19 with total page 280 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Spiritual Despots by historian of religion J. Barton Scott zeroes in on the quaint term "priestcraft" to track anticlerical polemics in Britain and South Asia during the colonial period. Scott's aim is to show how anticlerical rhetoric spread through the colonies alongside ideas about modern secular subjectivity. Through close readings of texts in English, Hindi, and Gujarati, he shows in compelling detail how the critique of priestly conspiracy gave rise to a new ideal of the self-disciplining subject and a vision of modern Hinduism that was based on unmediated personal experience and self-regulation rather than priestly tutelary power. Spiritual Despots offers a new perspective on what some scholars have called "Protestant Hinduism," and, more broadly, contributes to the emerging field of "post-secular" studies by shedding light on the colonial genealogy of secular subjectivity.

Author : Jessica Frazier
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN 13 : 1474251587
Total Pages : 239 pages
Book Rating : 4.87/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Hindu Worldviews written by Jessica Frazier and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2017-02-09 with total page 239 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Designed to help readers deepen their understanding of Hinduism, and reflecting themes central to the study of religion and culture, Jessica Frazier explores classical Hindu theories of self, the body, the cosmos, and human action. Case studies from Hindu texts provide readers with direct access to primary sources in translation, ranging from ancient cosmology to philosophical teachings and modern ritual practices. Hinduism is often depicted as being so diverse that it is the most difficult of all of the world religions to understand or explain. Hindu Worldviews explains core ideas about the human mind and body, showing how they fit into concepts of the Self, and practices of embodiment in Hinduism. It draws on western theoretical concepts as a point of entry, connecting contemporary Hindu culture directly with both western and classical Hindu theories. Through the theme of the Self in classical Hindu sources, the chapters provide an interpretative framework for understanding classical approaches to ethics, liberation, and views of the body and the mind. These provide a key to the rationale behind many forms of modern practice such as divinisation rituals, worship of deities, and theological reflection. Reflecting central themes in courses on Hinduism and Indian Philosophy, Hindu Worldviews provides an accessible new perspective on both Hinduism and modern theory in the study of religion.

Author : Lecturer South Asian Studies John Zavos
Publisher : Sage Publications Pvt. Limited
ISBN 13 : 9789353882143
Total Pages : 540 pages
Book Rating : 4.41/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Public Hinduisms written by Lecturer South Asian Studies John Zavos and published by Sage Publications Pvt. Limited. This book was released on 2012-08-08 with total page 540 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Public Hinduisms critically analyses the way in which Hinduism is produced and represented as an established feature of modern public landscapes. It examines the mediation, representation and construction of multiple forms of Hinduism in a variety of social and political contexts, and in the process establishes it as a dynamic and developing modern concept. The essays in this volume are divided into themes that address different aspects of the processes that form modern Hinduism. The book includes discussions on topics such as ecumenical initiatives, the contemporary interpretation of particular sampradaya and guru traditions, modes of community mobilisation and the mediation strategies of different groups. It also provides India and diaspora-focused case studies as well as ′Snapshot′ views elaborating on different themes. Taking a critical approach to the idea of Hinduism and the way it becomes public, the book provides an interesting read on contemporary Hinduism.

Author : Hindol Sengupta
Publisher : Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN 13 : 1442267461
Total Pages : 201 pages
Book Rating : 4.66/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Being Hindu written by Hindol Sengupta and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2017-10-13 with total page 201 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Winner of the 2018 Wilbur Award There are more than one billion Hindus in the world, but for those who don’t practice the faith, very little seems to be understood about it. Followers have not only built and sustained the world’s largest democracy but have also sustained one of the greatest philosophical streams in the world for more than three thousand years. So, what makes a Hindu? Why is so little heard from the real practitioners of the everyday faith? Why does information never go beyond clichés? Being Hindu is a practitioner’s guide that takes the reader on a journey to very simply understand what the Hindu message is, where it stands in the clash of civilizations between Islam and Christianity, and why the Hindu way could yet be the path for plurality and progress in the twenty-first century.

Author : Aparna Devare
Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 1136197087
Total Pages : 251 pages
Book Rating : 4.86/5 ( download)

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Download or read book History and the Making of a Modern Hindu Self written by Aparna Devare and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2013-04-03 with total page 251 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Taking the contentious debates surrounding historical evidence and history writing between secularists and Hindu nationalists as a starting point, this book seeks to understand the origins of a growing historical consciousness in contemporary India, especially amongst Hindus. The broad question it poses is: Why has ‘history’ become such an important site of identity, conflict and self-definition amongst modern Hindus, especially when Hinduism is known to have been notoriously impervious to history? As modern ideas regarding notions of history came to India with colonialism, it turns to the colonial period as the ‘moment of encounter’ with such ideas. The book examines three distinct moments in the Hindu self through the lives and writings of lower-caste public figure Jotiba Phule, ‘moderate’ nationalist M. G. Ranade and Hindu nationalist V. D. Savarkar. Through a close reading of original writings, speeches and biographical material, it is demonstrated that these three individuals were engaged with a modern historical and rationalist approach. However, the same material is also used to argue that Phule and Ranade viewed religion as living, contemporaneous and capable of informing both their personal and political lives. Savarkar, the ‘explicitly Hindu’ leader, on the contrary, held Hindu practices and traditions in contempt, confining them to historical analysis while denying any role for religion as spirituality or morality in contemporary political life. While providing some historical context, this volume highlights the philosophical/ political ideas and actions of the three individuals discussed. It integrates aspects of their lives as central to understanding their politics.

Author : Anantanand Rambachan
Publisher : SUNY Press
ISBN 13 : 1438454554
Total Pages : 244 pages
Book Rating : 4.59/5 ( download)

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Download or read book A Hindu Theology of Liberation written by Anantanand Rambachan and published by SUNY Press. This book was released on 2014-11-07 with total page 244 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Discusses Hindu Advaita Ved?nta as a philosophy of social justice for the modern world. This expansive and accessible work provides an introduction to the Hindu tradition of Advaita Ved?nta and brings it into discussion with contemporary concerns. Advaita, the non-dual school of Indian philosophy and spirituality associated with ?a?kara, is often seen as “other-worldly,” regarding the world as an illusion. Anantanand Rambachan has played a central role in presenting a more authentic Advaita, one that reveals how Advaita is positive about the here and now. The first part of the book presents the hermeneutics and spirituality of Advaita, using textual sources, classical commentary, and modern scholarship. The book’s second section considers the implications of Advaita for ethical and social challenges: patriarchy, homophobia, ecological crisis, child abuse, and inequality. Rambachan establishes how Advaita’s non-dual understanding of reality provides the ground for social activism and the values that advocate for justice, dignity, and the equality of human beings. “Rambachan has written an original, creative, and provocative book that will assure that Hinduism has a greater voice in the general arena of interreligious dialogue.” — Paul F. Knitter, Union Theological Seminary “This is an important contribution to the advancement of constructive work in Hindu theology, comparative theology, and the study of South Asian religious traditions. It has the potential to revolutionize how scholars view Hinduism generally, and Advaita Ved?nta in particular.” — Jeffery D. Long, Elizabethtown College