Hinduism : past and present / Axel Michaels.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Michaels, Axel, author.

Series:

Princeton paperbacks

Language:

English

German

Subjects (All):

Hinduism.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (450 pages)

Place of Publication:

Princeton, New Jersey : Princeton University Press, [2004]

Summary:

Hinduism is currently followed by one-fifth of humankind. Far from a monolithic theistic tradition, the religion comprises thousands of gods, a complex caste system, and hundreds of languages and dialects. Such internal plurality inspires vastly ranging rites and practices amongst Hinduism's hundreds of millions of adherents. It is therefore not surprising that scholars have been hesitant to define universal Hindu beliefs and practices. In this book, Axel Michaels breaks this trend. He examines the traditions, beliefs, and rituals Hindus hold in common through the lens of what he deems its "identificatory habitus," a cohesive force that binds Hindu religions together and fortifies them against foreign influences. Thus, in his analysis, Michaels not only locates Hinduism's profoundly differentiating qualities, but also provides the framework for an analysis of its social and religious coherence. Michaels blends his insightful arguments and probing questions with introductions to major historical epochs, ample textual sources as well as detailed analyses of major life-cycle rituals, the caste system, forms of spiritualism, devotionalism, ritualism, and heroism. Along the way he points out that Hinduism has endured and repeatedly resisted the missionary zeal and universalist claims of Christians, Muslims, and Buddhists. He also contrasts traditional Hinduism with the religions of the West, "where the self is preferred to the not-self, and where freedom in the world is more important than liberation from the world." Engaging and accessible, this book will appeal to laypersons and scholars alike as the most comprehensive introduction to Hinduism yet published. Not only is Hinduism refreshingly new in its methodological approach, but it also presents a broad range of meticulous scholarship in a clear, readable style, integrating Indology, religious studies, philosophy, anthropological theory and fieldwork, and sweeping analyses of Hindu texts.

Contents:

Cover Page

Half-title Page

Title Page

Copyright Page

Contents

List of Illustrations

List of Tables

Preface

Pronunciation of Indian Words

Theoretical and Historical Foundations

1. Theoretical Foundations

Is India Different?

The Identificatory Habitus

What Is Hinduism?

Hinduism and Hindu-ness

Religion and Dharma

Hindu Religions and Hindu Religiosity

Great and Little Hinduism

Continuity and Change

2. Historical Foundations

Epochs in the History of Religions

First Epoch: Prevedic Religions

Second Epoch: Vedic Religion

Third Epoch: Ascetic Reformism

Fourth Epoch: Classical Hinduism

Fifth Epoch: Sects of Hinduism

Sixth Epoch: Modern Hinduism

Religious Literature

Vedic Literature

The Literature of the Ascetic Reformism

The Literature of Classical Hinduism

The Literatures of the Hindu Sects

Literatures of Modern Hinduism

Religion and Society

3. Stages of Life and Rites of Passage

Initiation

The Salvational Goal of Initiation

The Second Birth

Pre-Rites

Tonsure

Natural Birth, Ritual Birth, New Birth

The Sacred Thread

Consecration of the Ascetic, Consecration of the Student, Consecration of the Man

Childhood and Socialization

The Early Years

Parentage and the "Oceanic Feeling"

Sacred Fatherhood

Wedding and Matrimony

The Wedding

The Daughter as Gift

Kinship, Alliance, and Descent

The Situation of the Woman

Death and Life after Death

The Brahmanic Ritual of Dying and Death

Ancestor Worship

Widow-Burning and Religiously Motivated Suicide

The Ban on Killing and Ahim. sa¯

Karma and Rebirth

Mortality and Immortality

4. The Social System

Social Stratification

The Caste Society

Segmentation

Social Contacts

Greeting

Touching

Eating

Purity and Impurity.

Religious and Social Hierarchy

Priests and the Supremacy of the Brahmans

Religious and Economic Centrality

Hierarchies of the Gift

5. Religiosity

The Idea of God and the Pantheon

Equitheism and Homotheism

Vis.n. u, Kr.s.n. a, and the Centrality of the Gods

Siva in the Great and Little Traditions

Ganes´a and the Miracle

Wild and Mild Goddesses

Elements of Religiosity

Prayer

Looks

Ritual Acts

Ritualism

The Brahmanic-Sanskritic Morning Ritual

Divine Worship (poja)

Sacrifice

Devotionalism and Theistic Traditions

Bhakti Movements

The Grace of the Gods

Spiritualism and Mysticism

The Identification Doctrine of the Upanis.ads

The Psycho-Physical Identifications of Sa¯m. khya and Yoga

Samkara's Doctrine of Nonduality

Special Features of Indian Mysticism

Heroism and Kingship

Akharas: Religious Centers of Strength

Power and Authority of the King

King and Ascetic

From Descent to Transcendence

6. Religious Ideas of Space and Time

Religious Awareness of Space

Spaces and Directions as Sacred Powers

Pilgrimage Sites and Their Hierarchy

Astrology and the Cosmic Place of Man

Religious and Scientific Concepts of Space

Religious Awareness of Time

Ancient Indian Cosmogonies

Creation in Classical Mythology

The Doctrine of the Ages of the World

Cyclical and Linear Time: The Calendar

Unity of Space and Time: Festivals

Religious and Scientific Ideas of Time

7. Immortality in Life

Asceticism: Life in Transcendence

Ascetic Practice and Sects

Asceticism and Sacrifice

The Salvation of Identifications

The Socioreligious Function of Norms of Purity

Descent and Autonomy

The Logic of the Identifications

The "Theology" of the Hindu Religions: Identity of God and Man

Notes

Glossary

References

Index.

Notes:

Literaturverz. S. 381 - 417

Description based on print version record.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9780691234014

0691234019

OCLC:

1259592371