Modern Hinduism in Text and Context

Description

Modern Hinduism in Text and Context brings together textual and contextual approaches to provide a holistic understanding of modern Hinduism. It examines new sources – including regional Saiva texts, Odissi dance, and biographies of Nationalists – and discusses topics such as yoga, dance, visual art, and festivals in tandem with questions of spirituality and ritual. The book addresses themes and issues yet to receive in-depth attention in the study of Hinduism. It shows that Hinduism endures not only in texts, but also in the context of festivals and devotion, and that contemporary practice, devotional literature, creative traditions, and ethics inform the intricacies of a religion in context. Lavanya Vemsani draws on social scientific methodologies as well as history, ethnography, and textual analysis, demonstrating that they are all part of the toolkit for understanding the larger framework of religion in the context of emerging nationhood and transnational and transcultural interactions. Cover Half-title Title Copyright Dedication Contents List of Figures List of Contributors Acknowledgments Notes to Diacritics and Pronunciation 1. Introduction Part One. Traditional Hinduism: Classical Texts, Traditions, and Practices 2. Multiregional and Multi-linguistic Vīraśaivism: Change and Continuity in an Early Devotional Tradition 3. Entering the South Asian City: Praveśa in Literature and Practice 4. Demonic Devotees and Symbolism of Violence in Hindu Literature 5. Sacred Groves: The Playground of the Gods 6. Religious Symbolism in Contemporary Political Art: Hussaini and Tamil Popular Culture Part Two: Hinduism in the Modern World: Colonial, Diasporic, and Women’s Religion 7. “Rite of Passage” in India’s National Struggle: Understanding Rabindranath Tagore’s Gora in the Context of Religion 8. America, the Superlative, and India, the Jewel in the Crown: Religious Ideologies, Transnationalism, and the End of the Raj 9. The Integral Yoga of the Sri Aurobindo Āśram: Gender, Spirituality, and The Arts 10. In Relationship with the Goddess: Women Interpreting Leadership Roles and Shaping Diasporic Identities 11. Spirituality and Ritual in Odissi Dance: Health, Healing, and Ritual in a Diaspora Performance Tradition 12. A Mandal of Their Own: Gender and the Reimagining of Community by Hindu Renouncers in Northern India 13. Conclusion Appendix: Poetry by Ananya Chatterjea Glossary Notes References Index