Objects of worship are an aspect of the material dimension of lived religion in South Asia. The omnipresence of these objects and their use is a theme which cuts across the religious traditions in the pluralistic religious culture of the region. Divine power becomes manifest in the objects and for the devotees they may represent power regardless of religious identity.

This book looks at how objects of worship dominate the religious landscape of South Asia, and in what ways they are of significance not just from religious perspectives but also for the social life of the region. The contributions to the book show how these objects are shaped by traditions of religious aesthetics and have become conceptual devices woven into webs of religious and social meaning. They demonstrate how the objects have a social relationship with those who use them, sometimes even treated as being alive. The book discusses how devotees relate to such objects in a number of ways, and even if the objects belong to various traditions they may attract people from different communities and can also be contested in various ways.

By analysing the specific qualities that make objects eligible for a status and identity as living objects of worship, the book contributes to an understanding of the central significance of these objects in the religious and social life of South Asia. It will be of interest to students and scholars of Religious Studies and South Asian Religion, Culture and Society.

This book explores the phenomenon of aniconism-the denotation of the presence of gods, saints, or spiritual forces using non-figural visual markers that do not resemble these supranatural entities. The contributors show how various types of aniconism differ in how they mediate divine presence and relate to other modes of representation. Aniconism is rarely absolute; each aniconic form needs to be considered within a spectrum of visual modes ranging from the abstract to the anthropomorphic. The chapters examine aniconism in paleolithic cultures; in ancient Egypt, Israel, and Greece; in early Christianity and Islam; in medieval and contemporary Hinduism; and in 17th-19th century Scottish-Gaelic contexts. The volume also provides a critical historiography of 'aniconism' as an academic concept, a new fine-tuned terminology, and some general characteristics of aniconic expressions in the context of the broader field of material religion. Offering a multi-faceted discussion of this important category of religious material culture, this book will be of interest to those with an interest in aniconism, as well as those involved in the wider study of how religion intersects with art and anthropology. This book was originally published as a special issue of the Religion journal.

This book explores the phenomenon of aniconism-the denotation of the presence of gods, saints, or spiritual forces using non-figural visual markers that do not resemble these supranatural entities. The contributors show how various types of aniconism differ in how they mediate divine presence and relate to other modes of representation. Aniconism is rarely absolute; each aniconic form needs to be considered within a spectrum of visual modes ranging from the abstract to the anthropomorphic. The chapters examine aniconism in paleolithic cultures; in ancient Egypt, Israel, and Greece; in early Christianity and Islam; in medieval and contemporary Hinduism; and in 17th-19th century Scottish-Gaelic contexts. The volume also provides a critical historiography of 'aniconism' as an academic concept, a new fine-tuned terminology, and some general characteristics of aniconic expressions in the context of the broader field of material religion. Offering a multi-faceted discussion of this important category of religious material culture, this book will be of interest to those with an interest in aniconism, as well as those involved in the wider study of how religion intersects with art and anthropology. This book was originally published as a special issue of the Religion journal.

Objects of worship are an aspect of the material dimension of lived religion in South Asia. The omnipresence of these objects and their use is a theme which cuts across the religious traditions in the pluralistic religious culture of the region. Divine power becomes manifest in the objects and for the devotees they may represent power regardless of religious identity. This book looks at how objects of worship dominate the religious landscape of South Asia, and in what ways they are of significance not just from religious perspectives but also for the social life of the region. The contributions to the book show how these objects are shaped by traditions of religious aesthetics and have become conceptual devices woven into webs of religious and social meaning. They demonstrate how the objects have a social relationship with those who use them, sometimes even treated as being alive. The book discusses how devotees relate to such objects in a number of ways, and even if the objects belong to various traditions they may attract people from different communities and can also be contested in various ways. By analysing the specific qualities that make objects eligible for a status and identity as living objects of worship, the book contributes to an understanding of the central significance of these objects in the religious and social life of South Asia. It will be of interest to students and scholars of Religious Studies and South Asian Religion, Culture and Society.

When the constitution of independent India took effect in 1950 this meant a break with a more than two thousand year legacy of Untouchability a set of discriminative practices that bound the lowest castes to low-status jobs and restricted their social mobility. For centuries large sections of Indian society had lived under the many forms of discrimination connected with this stigma. In order to compensate for the social and economic setback caused by discrimination, a reservation policy that guaranteed the former Untouchables access to education and jobs was introduced. These measures have changed the life conditions of the targeted groups, but they have also created tensions in a society where many other groups experience economic stress.The preservation of caste itself as something that matters in the competition for economic benefits thus creates today s paradox: that caste assertiveness has become a means to counter inequalities.This collection of articles, written by distinguished scholars in the field, addresses these and other important pre- and post-independence developments impinging on the notion of Untouchability and the Hindu caste system. By putting these developments in a wider temporal perspective covering pre-colonial textual material as well as recent debates over the rights and identity of the Untouchables this volume can be seen as a significant contribution to an understanding of why caste continues to play an important role in contemporary India.Mikael Aktor is Associate Professor of History of Religion at the University of Southern Denmark.Robert Deliege is Professor at ACLA Unite d anthropologie culturelle et du langage, Universite catholique de Louvain, Belgium.Contributors: Mikael Aktor, Simon Charsley, Jocelyn Clarke, Robert Deliege, Kathinka Froystad, Marie-Caroline Saglio-Yatzimirsky, Andrew Wyatt, Eleanor Zelliot.