Hinduism in Five Minutes
Edited by
Steven W Ramey [+–]
University of Alabama
Steven W. Ramey is a Professor in Religious Studies at the University of Alabama, where he also directs the Asian Studies Program.
Hinduism in Five Minutes provides an accessible and lively introduction to common questions about the practices, ideas, and narratives commonly identified as Hindu. Suitable for beginning students and the general reader, the book offers more than 70 brief essays on a wide range of fascinating questions about Hinduism and its study, such as: How did Hinduism begin? How many gods / goddesses do Hindus worship? Which scriptures are important in Hinduism? Why are many Hindus vegetarian? What is the role of women in Hindu rituals? What do Hindus believe? What is caste, and why are some people treated differently because of it? How do Hindus celebrate festivals like Holi? Is yoga Hindu? What makes arranged marriage appealing to some Hindus? Do you have to be Indian to be a Hindu?
Each essay is written by a leading authority and offers succinct, insightful answers along with suggestions for further reading, making the book an ideal starting point for classroom use or personal browsing.
Because each chapter can be read in about five minutes, the books offer ideal supplementary resources in classrooms or an engaging read for those curious about the world around them.
Series: Religion in 5 Minutes
Table of Contents
Preface
Preface xi-xiii
University of Alabama
Steven W. Ramey is a Professor in Religious Studies at the University of Alabama, where he also directs the Asian Studies Program.
General Questions
University of North Carolina, Charlotte
Prea Persaud is a Lecturer in the Department of Religious Studies at the University of North Carolina in Charlotte.
2. How Many People Follow Hinduism? [+–] 6-8
University of Alabama
Steven W. Ramey is a Professor in Religious Studies at the University of Alabama, where he also directs the Asian Studies Program.
Beyond presenting the common population count for Hindus, this essay addresses the ways people debate who should be included in a count of Hindus, with some arguments expanding the number of Hindus in the world and some limiting who counts to a smaller group.
University of California, Santa Barbara
Maharshi Vyas is a PhD student in the Department of Religious Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara.
University of California, Santa Barbara
Collin Sibley is a graduate student in the Department of Religious Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara.
Westerners commonly assume that Hindi is the language spoken by all Hindu people. To the contrary, Hindi is only one of literally hundreds of languages spoken by Hindus in India alone. Although there has been a modern political push to present Hindi as the language of a Hindu India, many Hindus fiercely oppose this process.
5. What are the Primary Ideas in Hinduism? [+–] 16-18
Elon University
Brian K. Pennington is Director of the Center for the Study of Religion, Culture, and Society and Professor of Religious Studies at Elon University.
Although many scholars contend that belief is not as central to Hinduism as ritual practice, its central concepts orient Hindu understanding of humans and the world in which they construct lives and communities. This article introduces the ideas of dharma (duty), karma (moral causation), samsara (transmigration), and moksha (liberation) and briefly discusses belief in deities.
6. Do Hindus Follow a Particular Philosophy? [+–] 19-21
Appalachian State University
Thomas B. Ellis is Professor of Religion in the Department of Philosophy and Religion at Appalachian State University (Boone, NC). Having published a book on the life and work of the twentieth century Hindu philosopher, Jarava Lal Mehta, Ellis’s current research pursues psychological and biological explanations of religion. Along these lines, Ellis has published “Disgusting Bodies, Disgusting Religion: The Biology of Tantra” and “Evoked Puja: The Behavioral Ecology of an Equatorial Ritual,” both of which appeared in the Journal of the American Academy of Religion. He is currently working on a book-length manuscript on religion, disease and immunology.
This chapter begins with a consideration of the most widely adopted philosophical position throughout the world and history, that is, dualism. Dualism is cognitively and affectively appealing. The chapter then goes on to consider the six systems of philosophy classically associated with Hinduism, that is, the darshanas.
Swarthmore College
Varun Khanna did his MPhil in Sanskrit and PhD in Hinduism at the University of Cambridge, England. He is currently Visiting Assistant Professor of Classics at Swarthmore College. His interests include Sanskrit grammar, Advaita Vedanta philosophy, and social justice.
Beginnings
8. What is the Creation Story in Hinduism? [+–] 27-29
University of South Florida
Gil Ben-Herut is an Associate Professor in the Religious Studies Department, University of South Florida.
Graduate Division of Religion
Emory University, S214 Callaway Memorial Center
537 Kilgo Circle, Atlanta, Georgia 30322
USA
Hinduism presents a plethora of creation myths with no clear organization between them. This chapter presents several known cosmological myths from different Hindu scriptures and reflects on how we may understand this plurality and what it might mean, as well as on the cultural expectations encoded in the question itself.
9. Where and When did Hinduism Originate? [+–] 30-32
Appalachian State University
Thomas B. Ellis is Professor of Religion in the Department of Philosophy and Religion at Appalachian State University (Boone, NC). Having published a book on the life and work of the twentieth century Hindu philosopher, Jarava Lal Mehta, Ellis’s current research pursues psychological and biological explanations of religion. Along these lines, Ellis has published “Disgusting Bodies, Disgusting Religion: The Biology of Tantra” and “Evoked Puja: The Behavioral Ecology of an Equatorial Ritual,” both of which appeared in the Journal of the American Academy of Religion. He is currently working on a book-length manuscript on religion, disease and immunology.
The chapter’s title elides two concerns. First, there is a question about the temporal and geographical origins of the term, “Hinduism.” Second, there is a question about the temporal and geographical origins of the practices we associate today with Hinduism. The term appears to be several centuries old, the practices several millennia old.
10. Who Founded Hinduism? [+–] 33-35
University of North Carolina, Greensboro
Jimi Wilson is lecturer with the Department of Library and Information Science at the University of North Carolina-Greensboro. He holds a Master of Arts in Religion from the University of Florida, and Master of Library and Information Studies from the University of North Carolina-Greensboro. His religious studies concentrations include religion and violence/harmony, Hinduism and musical subculture/postsubculture, and Hindu-led ecological movements.
Hinduism has no single founder, but a variety of groups and historical individuals have influenced its development across time. Questioning the assumption that each religion has a single founder, this chapter also considers how other religions described as having a single founder also are similar to Hinduism with its lack of a single founder.
University of Otago
Will Sweetman is Professor of Asian Religions at the University of Otago in New Zealand. His research focusses on interactions between religions in India in the early modern period. He is author of Mapping Hinduism: ‘Hinduism’ and the Study of Indian Religions, 1600–1776 (Harrassowitz, 2003); and co-author (with R. Ilakkuvan) of Bibliotheca Malabarica: Bartholomäus Ziegenbalg’s Tamil Library (Institut Francais De Pondichery, 2012). He is working on a book provisionally entitled “Genealogies of Hinduism.”
Hinduism is a fairly recent term for a tradition has much older historical roots. This chapter examines how the name came into use and the debate over its use.
University of South Florida
Gil Ben-Herut is an Associate Professor in the Religious Studies Department, University of South Florida.
Graduate Division of Religion
Emory University, S214 Callaway Memorial Center
537 Kilgo Circle, Atlanta, Georgia 30322
USA
Deities in Hinduism are many and varied, not only in terms of each’s nature and role but also in terms of historical background and the original place in which their worship developed. This chapter focuses on three major deities to demonstrate the cultural and geographical complexity of Hindu deities.
13. Where Did the Concept of Caste Begin? [+–] 42-44
University of South Florida
Gil Ben-Herut is an Associate Professor in the Religious Studies Department, University of South Florida.
Graduate Division of Religion
Emory University, S214 Callaway Memorial Center
537 Kilgo Circle, Atlanta, Georgia 30322
USA
“Caste,” an originally Portuguese word, masks a broad gamut of social attitudes in Hinduism through history. This chapter examines two early indigenous terms, varṇa and jāti, and points to the thick history of the idea of social hierarchy as well as its rejection.
Development
14. Has Hinduism Changed Since its Creation? [+–] 47-49
University of Alabama
Steven W. Ramey is a Professor in Religious Studies at the University of Alabama, where he also directs the Asian Studies Program.
What we call Hinduism today has continually changed, like all religions. This essay considers the difficulty answering this question, as it depends on determining what counts as the point of creation, but change has been so common that each change becomes another potential point of creation.
Cornell University
Vincent E. Burgess is a Ph.D. candidate in the Asian Religions doctoral program of the Department of Asian Studies at Cornell University. His research is currently focused on discourses of renunciation and environmentalism with regard to modern, North Indian religious traditions.
Hinduism is a complicated, interwoven tapestry of philosophies, practices, and related religious systems. Within Hinduism there are many various sectarian divisions and traditions—often distinguished by devotion to a particular deity, guru, or distinct philosophical system.
Wooster College
Bhakti Mamtora is Assistant Professor of Religious Studies and South Asian Studies at Wooster College.
This chapter examines regional differences in Hinduism across India by focusing on two case studies, temple constructions and festival celebrations. Regional differences in Hindu traditions can often be attributed to differences in beliefs regarding manifestations of the divine and social, cultural, and linguistic variations across India.
Texas Christian University
Antoinette DeNapoli is Associate Professor of Religion, Texas Christian University.
University of North Carolina, Greensboro
Jimi Wilson is lecturer with the Department of Library and Information Science at the University of North Carolina-Greensboro. He holds a Master of Arts in Religion from the University of Florida, and Master of Library and Information Studies from the University of North Carolina-Greensboro. His religious studies concentrations include religion and violence/harmony, Hinduism and musical subculture/postsubculture, and Hindu-led ecological movements.
Swarthmore College
Varun Khanna did his MPhil in Sanskrit and PhD in Hinduism at the University of Cambridge, England. He is currently Visiting Assistant Professor of Classics at Swarthmore College. His interests include Sanskrit grammar, Advaita Vedanta philosophy, and social justice.
Victoria University of Wellington
Richard S. Weiss is Adjunct Professor of Religious Studies at Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand. His research focusses on modern Hinduism in Tamil South India. He is the author of two books: Recipes for Immortality: Medicine, Religion and Community in South India (Oxford, 2009) and The Emergence of Modern Hinduism: Religion on the Margins of Colonialism (California, 2019).
This chapter examines how new technologies, namely print, film, television, and the internet, and new ideas of social and gender equality, have enabled the transformation of prior Hindu practices and narratives.
University of North Carolina, Charlotte
Prea Persaud is a Lecturer in the Department of Religious Studies at the University of North Carolina in Charlotte.
Texts and Stories
University of Alabama
Steven W. Ramey is a Professor in Religious Studies at the University of Alabama, where he also directs the Asian Studies Program.
People organize and count texts associated with Hinduism in various ways. This essay describes some of these sets of texts and addresses debates over what texts count as “sacred” and which groups can be counted as a single text or multiple texts.
23. What are the Vedas? 78-80
Swarthmore College
Varun Khanna did his MPhil in Sanskrit and PhD in Hinduism at the University of Cambridge, England. He is currently Visiting Assistant Professor of Classics at Swarthmore College. His interests include Sanskrit grammar, Advaita Vedanta philosophy, and social justice.
University of South Florida
Gil Ben-Herut is an Associate Professor in the Religious Studies Department, University of South Florida.
Graduate Division of Religion
Emory University, S214 Callaway Memorial Center
537 Kilgo Circle, Atlanta, Georgia 30322
USA
Although absent from the earliest strands of Hindu scriptures, the idea of reincarnation (or rebirth) is ancient and widely held in South Asia, and also resonates with notions held elsewhere about retribution in a future life. The chapter discusses stories about reincarnation from the Bhagavad Gītā and the Upaniṣads.
Independent Scholar
Jennifer B. Saunders is an independent scholar of transnational, contemporary Hinduism who received her Ph.D. from Emory University. She is the author of Imagining Religious Communities: Transnational Hindus and their Narrative Performances (Oxford University Press, 2019) and co-editor of Intersections of Religion and Migration: Issues at the Global Crossroads, with Elena Fiddian-Qasmiyeh and Susanna Snyder, Religion and Global Migrations Series (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2016).
Because people associate thousands of stories with Hindu traditions, it is not simple to claim which of them are “most important.” This chapter reviews one of many stories but it provides only a partial answer, as the answer relies on who you ask.
Juniata College
Susan Prill is Professor of Religious Studies at Juniata College in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania. Her research interests include Sikhism, bhakti literature, contemporary yoga in the West, and religious engagement with environmentalism and the natural world. Her recent scholarly work includes “Sustainable Sikhi: Sikh Approaches to Environmentalism” for Sikh Formations (2015) and “Sikhi through Internet, Films & Videos” for The Oxford Handbook of Sikh Studies, edited by Pashaura Singh and Louis Fenech (2014). Her current work is on evaluating the effectiveness of contemplative pedagogies in the liberal arts setting.
27. What is the Bhagavad Gita? [+–] 90-93
Cornell University
Vincent E. Burgess is a Ph.D. candidate in the Asian Religions doctoral program of the Department of Asian Studies at Cornell University. His research is currently focused on discourses of renunciation and environmentalism with regard to modern, North Indian religious traditions.
The Bhagavad Gita comprises a relatively small portion of the Mahabharata epic, but has been a very significant text for Hinduism, historically and culturally. It presents a dialogue between the Pandava archer Arjuna and the avatara Krishna, with a discussion of duty versus morality at the center of the dialogue.
28. Can Things be Added to Hindu Texts? [+–] 94-96
Wooster College
Bhakti Mamtora is Assistant Professor of Religious Studies and South Asian Studies at Wooster College.
This chapter examines how the meanings of sacred words in their oral, textual, and digital forms are expounded upon or expanded through adaptive reuse, commentarial interpretation, and contextualization practices.
University of North Carolina Asheville
Katherine C. Zubko is Professor of Religious Studies and NEH Distinguished Professor of the Humanities (2018-23) at University of North Carolina Asheville. Her areas of expertise include aesthetics, ritual, performance and embodied religion in South Asia. Zubko is the author of Dancing Bodies of Devotion: Fluid Gestures in Bharata Natyam (2014), and co-editor with George Pati of Transformational Embodiment in Asian Religions (Routledge 2019). Current research interests include exploring the role of embodied gestures of compassion and hospitality in performances on conflict transformation, and inclusive, interdisciplinary curriculum design as part of the scholarship of teaching and learning.
An overview of the different genres that convey Hindu narratives in relation to bhakti, or devotion, including songs, TV shows, and visual depictions. The early role of pilgrimage by poet-saints to local manifestations of the gods is highlighted.
Gods and Goddesses
University of Florida
Vasudha Narayanan is Distinguished Professor, Department of Religion, at the University of Florida and a past President of the American Academy of Religion. She is the author or editor of seven books, the associate editor of the six-volume Brill’s Encyclopedia of Hinduism, and has written numerous articles and chapters in books. Her research has been supported by grants and fellowships from several organizations including the Centre for Khmer Studies, the American Council of Learned Societies, the John Simon Guggenheim Foundation, National Endowment for the Humanities, the American Institute of Indian Studies/ Smithsonian, and the Social Science Research Council.
University of Florida
Vasudha Narayanan is Distinguished Professor, Department of Religion, at the University of Florida and a past President of the American Academy of Religion. She is the author or editor of seven books, the associate editor of the six-volume Brill’s Encyclopedia of Hinduism, and has written numerous articles and chapters in books. Her research has been supported by grants and fellowships from several organizations including the Centre for Khmer Studies, the American Council of Learned Societies, the John Simon Guggenheim Foundation, National Endowment for the Humanities, the American Institute of Indian Studies/ Smithsonian, and the Social Science Research Council.
32. What does Each God Represent? [+–] 110-112
Appalachian State University
Thomas B. Ellis is Professor of Religion in the Department of Philosophy and Religion at Appalachian State University (Boone, NC). Having published a book on the life and work of the twentieth century Hindu philosopher, Jarava Lal Mehta, Ellis’s current research pursues psychological and biological explanations of religion. Along these lines, Ellis has published “Disgusting Bodies, Disgusting Religion: The Biology of Tantra” and “Evoked Puja: The Behavioral Ecology of an Equatorial Ritual,” both of which appeared in the Journal of the American Academy of Religion. He is currently working on a book-length manuscript on religion, disease and immunology.
This chapter begins by acknowledging the enormity of the Hindu pantheon, recognizing that each god or goddess may represent different things to different people. It then discusses four deities that appear to enjoy the largest sectarian followings, that is, Vishnu, Shiva, Devi, and Ganesha, and what they may represent.
Juniata College
Susan Prill is Professor of Religious Studies at Juniata College in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania. Her research interests include Sikhism, bhakti literature, contemporary yoga in the West, and religious engagement with environmentalism and the natural world. Her recent scholarly work includes “Sustainable Sikhi: Sikh Approaches to Environmentalism” for Sikh Formations (2015) and “Sikhi through Internet, Films & Videos” for The Oxford Handbook of Sikh Studies, edited by Pashaura Singh and Louis Fenech (2014). Her current work is on evaluating the effectiveness of contemplative pedagogies in the liberal arts setting.
Texas Christian University
Antoinette DeNapoli is Associate Professor of Religion, Texas Christian University.
35. Are All of the Gods Equal in Ranking, or Do They Have Different Levels of Importance? [+–] 120-122
University of Alabama
Steven W. Ramey is a Professor in Religious Studies at the University of Alabama, where he also directs the Asian Studies Program.
People rank the various deities associated with Hinduism in many ways, suggesting that all are the same supreme being, all are equal, or one is supreme over others. This essay considers some of these debates about the relationships between the deities and some of the arguments people use to describe some as more important than others.
Personal Practices
Wooster College
Bhakti Mamtora is Assistant Professor of Religious Studies and South Asian Studies at Wooster College.
Hindus perform different types of activities daily to create or experience good in the world, to develop a personal relationship with or earn the favor of their chosen deity, and ultimately, to be liberated from the cycle of rebirth. Hindu daily practices broadly concern ethics, knowledge, and devotion and may vary according to one’s region, gender, conceptions of duty, sectarian tradition, and preferences of the deity being propitiated.
University of California, Santa Barbara
Maharshi Vyas is a PhD student in the Department of Religious Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara.
University of Alabama
Steven W. Ramey is a Professor in Religious Studies at the University of Alabama, where he also directs the Asian Studies Program.
While people who identify with Hinduism are typically happy for others to adopt ideas and practices associated with Hinduism, many Hindus do not see conversion as necessary. Nevertheless, some groups, particularly guru movements, actively recruit people to their movements, though other Hindus do not always recognize these converts as Hindu.
39. What does Someone have to Believe to be a Hindu? [+–] 134-136
Victoria University of Wellington
Richard S. Weiss is Adjunct Professor of Religious Studies at Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand. His research focusses on modern Hinduism in Tamil South India. He is the author of two books: Recipes for Immortality: Medicine, Religion and Community in South India (Oxford, 2009) and The Emergence of Modern Hinduism: Religion on the Margins of Colonialism (California, 2019).
This chapter explores the role of belief in Hindu traditions. It lists some common beliefs, but it also highlights that there is much disparity of beliefs among Hindus. The chapter argues that for Hindus, practices are at least as important as beliefs, especially when it comes to the ways that individuals identify as “Hindu.”
Juniata College
Susan Prill is Professor of Religious Studies at Juniata College in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania. Her research interests include Sikhism, bhakti literature, contemporary yoga in the West, and religious engagement with environmentalism and the natural world. Her recent scholarly work includes “Sustainable Sikhi: Sikh Approaches to Environmentalism” for Sikh Formations (2015) and “Sikhi through Internet, Films & Videos” for The Oxford Handbook of Sikh Studies, edited by Pashaura Singh and Louis Fenech (2014). Her current work is on evaluating the effectiveness of contemplative pedagogies in the liberal arts setting.
41. Why do Hindus Not Eat Beef? [+–] 140-142
University of Otago
Will Sweetman is Professor of Asian Religions at the University of Otago in New Zealand. His research focusses on interactions between religions in India in the early modern period. He is author of Mapping Hinduism: ‘Hinduism’ and the Study of Indian Religions, 1600–1776 (Harrassowitz, 2003); and co-author (with R. Ilakkuvan) of Bibliotheca Malabarica: Bartholomäus Ziegenbalg’s Tamil Library (Institut Francais De Pondichery, 2012). He is working on a book provisionally entitled “Genealogies of Hinduism.”
It is true that most Hindus do not eat beef, but the idea that this has always been a defining characteristic of Hindu practice is relatively recent. This chapter examines when Hindus stopped eating beef and considers some of the explanations for this change which have been proposed.
42. How does Caste Affect What a Person Does? [+–] 143-145
Elon University
Brian K. Pennington is Director of the Center for the Study of Religion, Culture, and Society and Professor of Religious Studies at Elon University.
Caste can and often does influence one’s work, but it generally does not determine it in a direct sense today. This chapter provides examples of how caste practices vary tremendously from place to place in India, in some cases affecting peoples’ daily lives significantly and in others not at all.
43. What is the Meaning of the Mark on the Forehead? [+–] 146-148
University of North Carolina, Greensboro
Jimi Wilson is lecturer with the Department of Library and Information Science at the University of North Carolina-Greensboro. He holds a Master of Arts in Religion from the University of Florida, and Master of Library and Information Studies from the University of North Carolina-Greensboro. His religious studies concentrations include religion and violence/harmony, Hinduism and musical subculture/postsubculture, and Hindu-led ecological movements.
People who identify with Hinduism mark their foreheads for two reasons, generally. Some marks relate to devotional practices and others signify a proper, married woman. Within these two general purposes, people mark the forehead in various ways and ascribe a range of meanings to the marks.
44. What does a Guru do in Hinduism? [+–] 149-151
Syracuse University
Professor and Director of Graduate Studies
Department of Religion
Syracuse University
Department of Religion
Syracuse University
Two hundred years ago, contact with gurus was limited to wealthy or royal families. Today new gurus offer entertaining discourses to audiences of thousands. Gurus remain both powerful sources of enlightenment for some, and of obfuscation and politicization for others. They still stand at the corner of possibility and peril.
Rituals and Worship
Appalachian State University
Thomas B. Ellis is Professor of Religion in the Department of Philosophy and Religion at Appalachian State University (Boone, NC). Having published a book on the life and work of the twentieth century Hindu philosopher, Jarava Lal Mehta, Ellis’s current research pursues psychological and biological explanations of religion. Along these lines, Ellis has published “Disgusting Bodies, Disgusting Religion: The Biology of Tantra” and “Evoked Puja: The Behavioral Ecology of an Equatorial Ritual,” both of which appeared in the Journal of the American Academy of Religion. He is currently working on a book-length manuscript on religion, disease and immunology.
This chapter begins with a consideration of the contested nature of the “sacred,” proposing that something deemed “sacred” often reflects something held to be special. Some rituals are so routine that their special quality may be diminished. Other rituals, especially life cycle and devotional rituals, may retain their sacredness.
46. How is Caste Determined? 158-160
University of California, Santa Barbara
Maharshi Vyas is a PhD student in the Department of Religious Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara.
Juniata College
Susan Prill is Professor of Religious Studies at Juniata College in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania. Her research interests include Sikhism, bhakti literature, contemporary yoga in the West, and religious engagement with environmentalism and the natural world. Her recent scholarly work includes “Sustainable Sikhi: Sikh Approaches to Environmentalism” for Sikh Formations (2015) and “Sikhi through Internet, Films & Videos” for The Oxford Handbook of Sikh Studies, edited by Pashaura Singh and Louis Fenech (2014). Her current work is on evaluating the effectiveness of contemplative pedagogies in the liberal arts setting.
University of Alabama
Steven W. Ramey is a Professor in Religious Studies at the University of Alabama, where he also directs the Asian Studies Program.
Hindus across India celebrate a variety of holidays, but no festivals are celebrated by everyone. This essay presents some examples of that variety and the regional and local factors that contribute to the range of festivals associated with Hinduism.
49. What does Worship in Hinduism Look Like? [+–] 167-169
University of North Carolina Asheville
Katherine C. Zubko is Professor of Religious Studies and NEH Distinguished Professor of the Humanities (2018-23) at University of North Carolina Asheville. Her areas of expertise include aesthetics, ritual, performance and embodied religion in South Asia. Zubko is the author of Dancing Bodies of Devotion: Fluid Gestures in Bharata Natyam (2014), and co-editor with George Pati of Transformational Embodiment in Asian Religions (Routledge 2019). Current research interests include exploring the role of embodied gestures of compassion and hospitality in performances on conflict transformation, and inclusive, interdisciplinary curriculum design as part of the scholarship of teaching and learning.
After noting some key contextual differences across religious traditions connoted by the word ‘worship’, the frameworks of hospitality and reciprocity guide an overview of puja practices In Hindu traditions.
Syracuse University
Aarti Patel is a PhD candidate in Religion at Syracuse University.
51. With so Many Gods and Goddesses in Hinduism, how can a Hindu Manage to Worship all of Them? [+–] 173-175
University of Alabama
Steven W. Ramey is a Professor in Religious Studies at the University of Alabama, where he also directs the Asian Studies Program.
People who identify with Hinduism do not attempt to worship all of the deities but select certain deities to emphasize in their personal, family, and community practices. This essay considers some of the interests and influences that lead people to be devoted to selected deities.
University of North Carolina, Charlotte
Prea Persaud is a Lecturer in the Department of Religious Studies at the University of North Carolina in Charlotte.
53. Is the Temple a Central Location for Worship, and What is in the Central Place of Worship? 179-181
Syracuse University
Aarti Patel is a PhD candidate in Religion at Syracuse University.
Syracuse University
Aarti Patel is a PhD candidate in Religion at Syracuse University.
Hindus in Relation to Non-Hindus
Otterbein University
Alexander Rocklin is an assistant professor in the department of Religion and Philosophy at Otterbein University. He teaches courses in religions of Asia and religions of the Americas. His work examines the politics of the categories religion and race in the interactive making of Hinduism, Islam, and Afro-Atlantic religions in the colonial Caribbean. His first book is The Regulation of Religion and the Making of Hinduism in Colonial Trinidad (University of North Carolina Press 2019).
The definitions of religion used by governments to grant religious freedom are often modeled on the religion of the dominant group. Whether Hindus have adapted to fit the dominant definition of religion will help determine if it is hard for Hindus to practice in places that have other dominant religions.
Freie Universtät Berlin
Jürgen Schaflechner is a research group leader at the Department for Social and Cultural Anthropology, Freie Universtät Berlin. He and his team study the political and social movements of religious minorities in South Asia in the advent of social media and communicative capitalism. Jürgen’s research and teaching cover cultural and post-colonial theory, the religious and ethnic minorities in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, the socio-anthropology of martial arts, and the role of documentary film in ethnographic research. His books include: Hinglaj Devi. Identity, Change, and Solidification at a Hindu Temple in Pakistan (OUP, 2018), Ritual Journeys (Routledge, 2019, co-edited with Christoph Bergmann), and Pakistan. Alternative Imaginings of the Nation-State (OUP, 2020, coedited with Ayesha Asif and Christina Oesterheld).
Wooster College
Bhakti Mamtora is Assistant Professor of Religious Studies and South Asian Studies at Wooster College.
This essay analyzes historical and contemporary examples of Hindu-Muslim conflict and cooperation in the Indian subcontinent and shows how Hindu- Muslim relations have been shaped by political and economic concerns, legacies of colonialism, religious perspectives, and everyday experiences.
58. What is the Main Difference between Hinduism and the More Popular Religions in America? [+–] 196-199
University of Alabama
Michael J. Altman is Assistant Professor of Religious Studies at the University of Alabama where he researches and teaches course on colonialism, Asian religions in America, and critical theory. He holds a Ph.D. in American Religious Cultures from Emory University, a M.A. in Religion from Duke University, and a B.A. in Religious Studies and English from the College of Charleston.
There are two main differences between Hinduism and the more popular religions in America: history and race. This chapter briefly examines how the history of North America and the construction of racial identity have set Hinduism apart as different from the most popular forms of religion in America, white Christianity.
59. What do Hindus Think about Christianity? [+–] 200-202
University of Otago
Will Sweetman is Professor of Asian Religions at the University of Otago in New Zealand. His research focusses on interactions between religions in India in the early modern period. He is author of Mapping Hinduism: ‘Hinduism’ and the Study of Indian Religions, 1600–1776 (Harrassowitz, 2003); and co-author (with R. Ilakkuvan) of Bibliotheca Malabarica: Bartholomäus Ziegenbalg’s Tamil Library (Institut Francais De Pondichery, 2012). He is working on a book provisionally entitled “Genealogies of Hinduism.”
Although Christianity has long been present in India, modern communications and the colonization of India by European powers greatly intensified the engagement between Hindus and Christians. This chapter examines the various ways in which Hindus have understood Christianity as they have encountered it in the modern period.
Elon University
Brian K. Pennington is Director of the Center for the Study of Religion, Culture, and Society and Professor of Religious Studies at Elon University.
Most Hindu temples in the world welcome visitors. This chapter offers some advice for how dress, move around and sit in temple space, and participate in common rituals so that visitors can feel confident they are conducting themselves as respectful guests.
61. Do People Who are Not Hindu have a Caste? [+–] 206-208
University of California, Santa Barbara
Collin Sibley is a graduate student in the Department of Religious Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara.
Caste has a long history in Hindu scripture. However, there are some important differences between how Hindu texts define caste and how caste actually works in the modern Hindu world. Although Hindu scripture does not assign castes to non-Hindus, non-Hindu communities often fit into Hindu-majority societies in similar ways to Hindu caste communities.
Contemporary Issues
Swarthmore College
Varun Khanna did his MPhil in Sanskrit and PhD in Hinduism at the University of Cambridge, England. He is currently Visiting Assistant Professor of Classics at Swarthmore College. His interests include Sanskrit grammar, Advaita Vedanta philosophy, and social justice.
63. Do You have to be Indian to be a Hindu? [+–] 214-216
University of California, Santa Barbara
Collin Sibley is a graduate student in the Department of Religious Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara.
The rise of Hindu nationalism in contemporary Indian politics has made the question of the relationship between Indian and Hindu especially politically charged. However, by any definition someone does not have to be Indian to be Hindu. There are many Hindus who are not Indian by nationality, and there are major Hindu communities in many places outside the borders of modern-day India.
64. How do Hindus Respond to Environmental Issues? [+–] 217-220
Cornell University
Vincent E. Burgess is a Ph.D. candidate in the Asian Religions doctoral program of the Department of Asian Studies at Cornell University. His research is currently focused on discourses of renunciation and environmentalism with regard to modern, North Indian religious traditions.
Hinduism has historically placed tremendous importance on the natural world and on protecting, respecting, and revering the environment. However, Hindus have also articulated varied responses to ecological crises, and have not always agreed on how to best confront environmental concerns or catastrophes.
Texas Christian University
Antoinette DeNapoli is Associate Professor of Religion, Texas Christian University.
Elon University
Brian K. Pennington is Director of the Center for the Study of Religion, Culture, and Society and Professor of Religious Studies at Elon University.
The practice of sati, whereby some Hindu wives burned on the funeral pyres of their deceased husbands, was outlawed by British authorities in 1829. Prior to that, it was always very rare and always challenged within India by Hindus who denied that it was an authentic Hindu practice.
University of California, Santa Barbara
Maharshi Vyas is a PhD student in the Department of Religious Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara.
68. Why is there Discrimination Based on Caste? [+–] 231-233
Victoria University of Wellington
Richard S. Weiss is Adjunct Professor of Religious Studies at Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand. His research focusses on modern Hinduism in Tamil South India. He is the author of two books: Recipes for Immortality: Medicine, Religion and Community in South India (Oxford, 2009) and The Emergence of Modern Hinduism: Religion on the Margins of Colonialism (California, 2019).
This chapter examines two levels of caste discrimination. The first involves the differentiation of castes based on distinct vocations, dress, assigned moral virtues and vices, and other aesthetic and ethical characteristics. The second involves oppression, where some caste communities seek social and economic dominance over other caste communities.
69. As India Continues to Grow and Become a More Developed County, will Hinduism Remain the Leading Religion? [+–] 234-236
University of Alabama
Steven W. Ramey is a Professor in Religious Studies at the University of Alabama, where he also directs the Asian Studies Program.
Hinduism’s prominence in India continues, alongside its development and contemporary changes. This essay considers different ways of measuring what is a “leading” religion while illustrating for many measures Hinduism remains dominant.
Freie Universtät Berlin
Jürgen Schaflechner is a research group leader at the Department for Social and Cultural Anthropology, Freie Universtät Berlin. He and his team study the political and social movements of religious minorities in South Asia in the advent of social media and communicative capitalism. Jürgen’s research and teaching cover cultural and post-colonial theory, the religious and ethnic minorities in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, the socio-anthropology of martial arts, and the role of documentary film in ethnographic research. His books include: Hinglaj Devi. Identity, Change, and Solidification at a Hindu Temple in Pakistan (OUP, 2018), Ritual Journeys (Routledge, 2019, co-edited with Christoph Bergmann), and Pakistan. Alternative Imaginings of the Nation-State (OUP, 2020, coedited with Ayesha Asif and Christina Oesterheld).
University of North Carolina, Charlotte
Prea Persaud is a Lecturer in the Department of Religious Studies at the University of North Carolina in Charlotte.
End Matter
Index 243-253
University of Alabama
Steven W. Ramey is a Professor in Religious Studies at the University of Alabama, where he also directs the Asian Studies Program.
ISBN-13 (Hardback)
9781800502390
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ISBN-13 (Paperback)
9781800502406
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£23.95 / $28.95
ISBN (eBook)
9781800502413
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Publication
08/08/2022
Pages
268
Size
216 x 140mm
Readership
students and general readers
