Popular religion in village India is overwhelmingly dominated by goddess worship. Goddesses can be nationally well-known like Durga or Kali, or they can be an obscure deity who is only known in a particular rural locale. The origins of a goddess can be both ancient with many transitions or amalgamations with other cults having occurred along the way and very recent. While some have tribal origins, others sprout up overnight due to a vivid dream. Inventing and Reinventing the Goddess: Contemporary Iterations of Hindu Divinities on the Move looks at the nature of how and why goddesses are invented and reinvented historically in India and how social hierarchy, gender differences, and modernity play roles in these emerging religious phenomena."

"The Life of Hinduism" brings together a series of essays - many recognized as classics in the field - that present Hinduism as a vibrant, truly 'lived' religion. Celebrating the diversity for which Hinduism is known, this volume begins its journey in the 'new India' of Bangalore, India's Silicon Valley, where global connections and local traditions rub shoulders daily. Readers are then offered a glimpse into the multifaceted world of Hindu worship, life-cycle rites, festivals, performances, gurus, and castes. The book's final sections deal with the Hinduism that is emerging in diasporic North America and with issues of identity that face Hindus in India and around the world: militancy versus tolerance and the struggle between owning one's own religion and sharing it with others. Contributors of this title include: Andrew Abbott, Michael Burawoy, Patricia Hill Collins, Barbara Ehrenreich, Evelyn Nakano Glenn, Sharon Hays, Douglas Massey, Joya Misra, Orlando Patterson, Frances Fox Piven, Lynn Smith-Lovin, Judith Stacey, Arthur Stinchcombe, Alain Touraine, Immanuel Wallerstein, William Julius Wilson, and Robert Zussman.

Popular religion in village India is overwhelmingly dominated by goddess worship. Goddesses can be nationally well-known like Durga or Kali, or they can be an obscure deity who is only known in a particular rural locale. The origins of a goddess can be both ancient-with many transitions or amalgamations with other cults having occurred along the way-and very recent. While some have tribal origins, others sprout up overnight due to a vivid dream. Inventing and Reinventing the Goddess: Contemporary Iterations of Hindu Divinities on the Move looks at the nature of how and why goddesses are invented and reinvented historically in India and how social hierarchy, gender differences, and modernity play roles in these emerging religious phenomena.

Simultaneously a religion, a culture, and a way of life, Hinduism is one of the world's most venerable religious traditions, dating back to approximately 3,000 BC. Today it is the dominant faith of India and, through India's growing expatriate community, an increasingly familiar spiritual force in the West. This illustrated introduction to the key themes of Hinduism covers its ancient cosmology, philosophy, and sacred architecture, as well as its thousands of gods and goddesses who are all understood to be aspects of the one supreme Brahman. The literature of Hinduism is described and explained--from sacred texts such as the Vedas and Upanishads to the epics of the Ramayana and Mahabharata. A la vez una religion, una cultura y una manera de vivir, el Hinduismo es una de las religiones mas venerables del mundo, con origenes alrededor de 3000 AC. Hoy es la fe dominante de la India, y por medio de la migracion internacional, es tambien una fuerza espiritual en el occidente. Esta introduccion ilustrada a los temas centrales del Hinduismo cubre la cosmologia anciana, la filosofia, la arquitectura sagrada y los miles de dioses y diosas que son considerados manifestaciones de un brahman supremo. La literatura del Hinduismo esta explicada--desde textos sagrados como las Vedas y los Upanishads hasta la poesia epica del Ramayana y el Mahabharata.

Drawing from topics of religion in India such as bhakti, puja rituals, and spirit posessions, these essays offer a close study of the physical representations of god as the central feature of Hinduism. A valuable tool for students of anthroplogy and the philosophy and history of religion.

This fascinating volume provides a concise, illustrated introduction to five of the great religious traditions of the world--Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, Confucianism, and Shinto.
Buddhism, one of the world's great religious traditions, attracts millions of modern-day followers. Hinduism, one of the most ancient of all belief systems, is increasingly well known in the West through expatriate Indian communities. Taoism has been an important influence on Western thinking, especially through the impact of the Tao Te Ching. Confucianism, less metaphysical in its principles, emphasizes family values and the role of the individual within the state. And Shinto, distinctively Japanese in character, is the most animistic of the great religions, based on a belief in numerous individual spirits. The contributors explore a great variety of topics within these religions, including: the life of the Buddha; karma and rebirth; inspiring teachers and gurus; the life of Confucius; sacred Taoist texts; the epics of the Ramayana and Mahabharata; holy landscapes, shrines, and festivals; enlightenment; and--for all the faiths--the spiritual and ethical teachings, art and architecture, sacred writings, ritual and ceremony, and death and the afterlife.
Also included are extracts from or summaries of historical texts, with author commentaries that explain the significance of each piece and place in its full context. Authoritative and accessible, Eastern Religions provides a gateway for all those in the West who wish to move one step closer to the spirit of the East.

In this multifaceted work, John Carman and Vasudha Narayanan clarify historical developments in South Asian religion and make important contributions to the methodology of textual interpretation and the comparative study of world religions.