Hindu God Research Articles

Gods in Patnakalam: Tradition and Modernity in Colonial Art

The appearance of Hindu gods was an essential feature of various indigenous Indian art tradition. The rise of hybrid Indo-Western art schools, notably Patnakalam heralded a fundamental shift in the way gods appeared in art and the meaning their iconography carried. This may be understood as one of the ways in which a kind of modernity took shape in nineteenth century Indian art.

Dutch spirits, East Indians, and Hindu deities in Guyana: Contests over land

AbstractIn modern‐day Guyana (formerly British Guiana) residents of the coastal region of the country are susceptible to other‐than‐human powers: the spirits of Dutch colonizers, who claim ownership over the land, especially in areas where sugar plantations once operated. Regarded as the “masters of the land,” or “boundary masters,” Dutch spirits demand offerings and the recognition of land rights from their human co‐habitants. Through a description of rituals towards the land performed by members of a heterodox Hindu sect, the worship of the goddess Kali, this article addresses territorial sovereignty through the lens of lived and embodied practices of co‐habitation between East Indians and Dutch spirits, giving special attention to the processes of establishing proprietary rights over the land through such acts as planting trees.

Moralizing gods, local gods, and complexity in Hindu god concepts: evidence from South India

ABSTRACT Cultural evolutionary approaches to religion have found that in small-scale societies, “local gods” (LGs) usually care about ritual, in-group cooperation, and ecological challenges, whereas in large-scale societies, “moralizing gods” (MGs) are more concerned with prosociality. In contrast, Hindu deities are considered aspects of one god, and urban regions include LGs, complicating the prevailing distinction. The current study investigated perceptions of deities in Mysore, India, among Hindus (N = 165) who primarily worship Shiva, a prototypical MG, and Chamundeshwari, the LG. Using surveys and experimental games, our results indicated that Chamundeshwari is perceived as possessing characteristics typical of both LGs and MGs. Furthermore, beliefs about Shiva as a moralizing and punitive god were associated with prosocial game allocations in three experimental economic games, but similar beliefs about Chamundeshwari were not. Participation in rituals for Shiva predicted allocations toward outgroup members in one game, whereas participation in rituals for Chamundeshwari predicted selfish allocations in one game. These mixed results demonstrate the challenges that demographic and cultural variation can impose on dichotomous models of deities to explain religious variation, and we offer directions for future research to better understand such complexity.

Kelly Sinnapah Mary’s Quarantine

Working with multiple mediums (oil painting, pastels, watercolour, textiles, mixed-media sculpture, photography, mixed-media installation, video), Indo-Caribbean artist Kelly Sinnapah Mary deploys a range of visual references that represent a fuller breadth of processes of creolisation than is sometimes recognisable in contemporary Caribbean art. Hans Christian Andersen fairy tales, Walt Disney characters, and Hindu gods and goddesses reside in each other and together on Sinnapah Mary’s canvases. This article argues that in her latest series, Quarantine (2020), these figures are not simply interlocutors in the artist’s explorations, but signifiers of interlocution as a mode of analysis and expression. Assembled over Covid-19 lockdown in her native Guadeloupe, Sinnipah Mary’s Quarantine artworks are tasked with storying her present and advancing analysis of her self.

The Seeking Heavenly Mother Project: Understanding and Claiming Our Power to Connect with Her

The Seeking Heavenly Mother Project: Understanding and Claiming Our Power to Connect with Her

Hrishikesh: A Poem on Corrupted Landscape

This poem on the pilgrimage center of Hrishikesh set in a humid subtropical niche of the scenic Uttarakhand state, aims to capture the corruption of its cultural, religious and natural landscapes. Here, modernity — with its concomitant technologism — jostles for space with Hindu leitmotifs and traditions, causing pollution, ecological damage and environmental degradation. These are outcomes not just of distorted economic policies and skewed technological and developmental paradigms, but also the residuum of religious rituals, pollutants and garbage dumped into the holy Ganges. Named after a form of the Hindu deity Vishnu, Hrishikesh, in Sanskrit, means “Lord of the Senses”. Nowadays, the town is more popularly known as Rishikesh (which means “the hair of a sage or ascetic”). This name, though etymologically erroneous, is not grammatically incorrect; it is, however, yet another pointer to the degeneration of the region’s pristinity. Here, not only is the natural environment under threat, but the rich traditions of Hinduism, too, are under assault from popular culture and mass consumerism. Such corruption is partly caused by the global yoga movement and the draw of international tourists who smoke cannabis on sacred riverbanks.

Holistic Flexibility for Critical Systems Thinking Inspired by the Nataraja

The Nataraja is perhaps the most well-recognized anthropomorphic form of the Hindu god, Shiva. This paper articulates a set of principles for a recently developed conceptual lens in systems thinking called Holistic Flexibility for flexible and responsible management practice. The five most important function of the Nataraja, or the panchakritya, have been drawn on to articulate these principles; these principles are – "system as becoming", drawing from srishti or creation, "transformative flexibility", drawing from samhara or transformation, "responsible practice" drawing from tirobhava or (freedom from) ignorance, "spiral of learning" drawing from samhara or liberation, and "pragmatic artistry" drawing from sthithi or assurance. An argument is presented to establish the importance of management consciousness drawing from the Shiva philosophy. Behaviors associated with the principles are enlisted along with the challenges for managers to display these behaviors. The discussions presented argue that Holistic Flexibility and its principles can lend a new character to systems thinking as a state of mind to supersede a rational-analytical approach.

Japan’s Ancient Indic Heritage: A Review of “Hindu Deities Worshipped in Japan” by Benoy K. Behl

Article: Japan’s Ancient Indic Heritage: A Review of “<i>Hindu Deities Worshipped in Japan</i>” by Benoy K. Behl: Text and photographs by Benoy K. Behl, with an essay on ‘The Japanese Perspective’ by Dr. Mihoko Hiraoka, co-researched by Sujata Chatterji, The Hindu Group Publishing Private Limited, 2019, ISBN 978-9387791312.

Mencermati Kepemimpianan Komprehensif dalam Asthabrata

&lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;The concept of leadership is found in many Javanese old texts, such as Serat Asthabrata, Serat Wulangreh, and Serat Tripama. Among these old texts, the concept of leadership written in Asthabrata is regarded as the most popular one in the life of Javanese or Indonesian people. It is because the development of the leadership concept in Asthabrata was unique and interesting. Asthabrata’s teachings were born in the Hinduism era and derived from Serat Ramayana. Following the Javanese society’s belief that changed from Hinduism to Islam, the leadership concept of Asthabrata shifted. The Hinduism concept symbolized in Hindu Gods’ roles turned symbolically into natural objects. It occurred because Islamic beliefs did not adhere to Hindu Gods; therefore, the concept was realized symbolically in natural objects, such as the sun, earth, moon, fire, ocean, star, wind, and cloud. One of the intriguing things to understand is that any of those objects provide no leadership. However, leadership is comprehensive - an ideal leader is the one who meets the characteristics of those objects, known as woluning atunggal (eight as unity). This article aims to describe the characteristics of comprehensive leadership in Asthabrata teachings as a reference to develop the ideal leadership concept in Indonesia.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

The transformation of the wrathful deity Mahākāla into the god of happiness and good luck Daikokuten in Japanese Buddhism.

The transformation of the wrathful deity Mahākāla into the god of happiness and fortune Daikokuten in Japanese Buddhism. This study is devoted to the process of the transformation of the wrathful Hindu deity Mahākāla into the god of happiness and fortune Daikokuten in Japanese Buddhism. While in Hinduism and Vajrayāna Buddhism, Mahākāla was a wrathful deity, performing the functions of the Dharma protector, then as a result of the transference of this deity to the Japanese culture, his functions changed. The earliest examples of this process have been already marked in China, from where they later went to Japan. In the paper are traced the description of Mahākāla in the Japanese Buddhist textual tradition in the most notable Japanese text “Daikokutenjin-ho 大黒天神法” (“The Law of the Great Black God”), his iconography and the transformation in local folklore. The formation of Mahākāla iconography in Japan was influenced by a process of the Shintō-Buddhist syncretism, which combined the esoteric doctrines of the Tendai school, traditional Japanese Shintō mythology, Buddhist cosmology and related elements of Hinduism. All these trends are also well traced in Japanese folklore. As a sequence, we could come to conclusion that the process of transformation of the wrathful Hindu deity Mahākāla into one of the Japanese gods of happiness Daikokuten was influenced by the desire to rid Mahākāla of his original destructive deadly attributes, since they were not combined with the original Japanese Shintō tradition, referring to death and its manifestations as an impurity.

Cornerstones: Shaligrams as Kin

Shaligrams are the sacred fossil ammonites of the Himalayas. Viewed primarily as manifestations of Hindu gods, these aniconic deities are obtained by pilgrimage to Himalayan Nepal and are then brought home, to families and communities all over South Asia and the diaspora, to become both deity and kin. Shaligrams also act as conversants, if inanimate ones, during the course of ritual and everyday talk. Therefore, the semiotic separation of bodies and persons in Shaligram religious practice, discussed here in relation to Tulsi Vivah (the marriage of Tulsi and Shaligram) festivals and in daily puja and darshan rituals, reimagines individuals as represented by but distinct from their physical forms. This practice then links language and ritual objects with broader understandings of human and divine personhood in South Asia as it is conceptualized both within and between physical bodies.

Scientific Study of Amish Tripathi's Novels

Amish Tripathi is a rising contempory writer. His passion towards Indian mythology inspired him to write about Hindu Mythology upon Hindu God and Goddesses. He is one of the best selling author in English literature, written about mythological stories. All the novels of Amish Tripathi are modernized in such a way that it can match with the interest of today's generation. His novels are about society, women, oppressed classed etc. Apart from these his novels are full in scientific techniques. There are so many scientific concepts in the novel 'Shiva Triology'. There are three parts in Shiva triology. The first part is the immortals of Melutra, the second part is the secret of the Nagas and the third part is the oath of vayuputras. The concept like Radiowaves, manufacture of somras, Divizian of cell etc. are scientifically explained in the novel Shiva triology.

ODISHAN SCULPTURAL ARTS OF THIRTEEN GANESHA IMAGES OF THE PURI DISTRICT: A RECENT STUDY

The fascinating facet of the Saiva art of Odisha is the analysis of the Ganesha images found in the Puri district. Ganesha is considered to be among the first Hindu deities in India. Ganesha is a popular deity in the Hindu pantheon and is worshipped extensively throughout the entirety of India. In the eastern Indian state of Odisha, Saivism was a prevalent religion. It also affected Lord Jagannatha's kshetra. In Odisha, Saivism reached its height of prominence in the tenth and eleventh century C.E. The Ganesha figures seen in the Hindu temples of the Puri district typically have a kuthara (hatchet), a pot of sweet balls (ladus), a broken tusk, and a rosary in hands. The locations of thirteen Ganesha images of the Puri district are viz; the Lokanatha temple in Puri, the Yameshvara temple in Puri, the Markandeshvara temple in Puri, the Kapala Mochana temple in Puri, the Nilakantheshvara temple of Matiapara, the Baikuntheshvara temple of Puri town, the Bata-Lokanatha temple in Puri, the Nilakantheshvara temple at Gopinathpur, the Siddha Mahavir temple in Puri, the Ganesha temple at the Jagannatha temple complex, the Kanchi Ganesha temple in Puri, the Gatesvara temple in Algum, and the Ganesha image of Ganesvari temple of Bayalishbati. In the Puri district, there is a worship of a variety of Ganesha images of different periods. These statues/images are primarily kept in the parsvadevata niches of Saiva temples. A thorough examination is necessary due to the intricate iconographic details found in the Ganesha images found in the temples of Puri district. The objective of article is to focus on the iconographic elements of the thirteen Ganesha statues found in the Hindu temples of the Puri district in Odisha.

Opening Kailasanatha: The Temple in Kanchipuram Revealed in Time and Space

Opening Kailasanatha: The Temple in Kanchipuram Revealed in Time and Space

Blessed by the Lord: A Visual Portrait of a Jumli Pentecostal Congregation

Many Christian converts in the Sinja Valley of Jumla, northwest Nepal, reveal that they have been struck by the Bible because it referenced real events, especially miraculous cases of healing. These miraculous events provide tangible ‘evidence’ of God’s power that somewhat replicate the expectations that people nurture with respect to the Hindu deities. In such way, miracles play an especially crucial role in supporting the conversion of women and youngsters living in large families, who, partaking as veritable protagonists in Biblical events, are turned into the as quintessentially Christian subjects of a conversion narrative that helps substantiating their radical decision vis-à-vis the rest of their family.

Tara in Vajrayana Buddhism: A Critical Content Analysis

Tara is both a Buddhist and Hindu deity. She is widely worshipped in the esoteric branch of Buddhism: Vajrayana. Even in the exile, Tibetan refugees follow the practice and rituals associated with Tara. Lamentably, she has been given an auxiliary and secondary role in comparison to male deities. Various feminist scholars have begun to look at aspects of society through the lens of gender. They have been at the forefront of studying gender roles and its psychological consequences for those who try to abide by them. In religious studies, especially in Asian context, many of these discourses are difficult to perceive because they were unconsciously appropriated as truth by the people of the society in which they circulated as an inviolable aspect of the worlds or as nature. This study is an attempt to examine the representation of Goddess in various ancient texts as essential to the study of the divine feminine. This hybrid study merges traditional Indology with feminist studies, and is intended for specialists in the field, for readers with interest in Buddhist, and for scholars of Gender studies, cultural historians, and sociologists.

‘I am not an animal’: Vikram Balagopal’s psychologisation of Hanuman in Simian

ABSTRACT This article discusses Vikram Balagopal’s mythological Indian graphic narrative Simian (2014), which is a retelling of particular episodes from the Ramayana from Hanuman’s point of view. The essay claims that Balagopal’s portrayal of Hanuman as a gelada baboon strips him of devotional/religious signifiers and allows readers to see him as a secular figure. The graphic narrative portrays this popular Hindu god as a heavily psychologised figure grappling with the ramifications of his special abilities, and questioning his liminal identity in the face of derogatory classifications by human beings. This representation is in opposition to the co-optation of Hanuman as a hyper-masculine warrior by an aggressive, resurgent Hindu nationalist movement. Simian also uses a reflective Hanuman to critique Ramayana’s anthropocentricism and gender and caste biases. It thus places itself into a long tradition of interrogative and subversive retellings of the Ramayana.

Caste Discrimination and Social Change In India

India has a great history of cultural diversities. It is the land where people of different castes and culture live together but it has been seen that along with unity there exists caste discrimination also. It is commonly noticed that higher caste people always dominated lower caste people with discriminated behaviour. As we all knows that change is the law of nature and change is a natural phenomenon. All things, including ideas, culture, civilization and human activities, are changeable. The circumstances that existed 30 years ago, does not exist today and it will not remain so after ten or twenty years. Many philosophers, educationists and sociologists have given different views regarding caste and the changes which has come with development and technology. The caste system divides Hindus into four main categories- Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and the Shudras. Many believe that the groups originated from Brahma, the Hindu God of creation. Because of this distinction the caste which was placed at top dominated other caste which was placed at down. According to this distinction each caste has performed their duties and the type of occupation. The main castes were further divided into about 3,000 castes and 25,000 sub-castes, each based on their specific occupation. It has been seen that caste discrimination is mostly prevalent in rural areas as compared to urban areas. In rural areas the upper caste people and lower caste people lived in different colonies, even the people of higher caste does not share their commodities with them. They did not allow them to sit equally and they would not like to take food or drink from the lower caste people. But it has also seen that social changes in India has boost their conditions to much extent and the problems which lower caste people had faced since last centuries has been improved now. In this paper researcher shall discuss the caste discrimination and social change in India.

The Breathing Body, Whistling Flute, and Sonic Divine: Oneness and Distinction in Bengal Vaishnavism’s Devotional Aesthetics

This paper studies complex narratives connecting the Hindu deity Krishna, his melodious flute, and the porous, sonic human body in the popular devotional sect, Bengal Vaishnavism. From the devotee–lover responding to Krishna’s flute call outside, envying the flute’s privileged position on Krishna’s lips, to becoming the deity’s flute through yogic breath–sound fusions—texts abound with nuanced relations of equivalence and differentiation among the devotee–flute–god. Based primarily on readings of Hindu religious texts, and fieldwork in Bengal among makers/players of the bamboo flute, the paper analyses theological constructions correlating body–flute–divinity. Lying at the confluence of yogic, tantric, and devotional thought, the striking conceptual problem about the flute in Bengal Vaishnavism is: are the body, flute and divinity distinct or the same? I argue that the flute’s descriptions in both classical Sanskrit texts and popular oral lore and performances draw together ostensibly opposed religious paradigms of Yoga (oneness with divinity) and passionate devotion/bhakti (difference): its fine, airy feeling fusing with the body’s inner breathing self, and sweet melody producing a subservient temperament towards the lover–god outside. Flute sounds embody the peculiar dialectic of difference-and-identity among devotee–flute–god, much like the flute–lip-lock itself, bringing to affective life the Bengal Vaishnava philosophical foundation of achintya-bhed-abhed (inconceivability between principles of separation and indistinction).

Consequences of Covid- 19 in Hindu Pilgrimage Tourism Places in Tamil Nadu, India

This paper explores the COVID-19 pandemic impacts and overview of related literature on pilgrimage tourism and it also aims to give suggestions for future rejuvenation of Hindu pilgrimage tourism. Tamil Nadu is a southern Indian state noted for its temples dedicated to numerous Hindu gods and goddesses. The state has towering temples with magnificent architecture, paintings, sculptures, different cultures, fairs and festivals which attract millions of tourists every year. Pilgrimage tourism is one of the most profitable and positive economic outcomes for the state, especially it helps to increase in Gross Domestic Product, to earn foreign exchange earnings, to create direct and indirect employment for the people and to create a market for local handicrafts. The COVID-19 pandemic impacts every sector in the world; especially the tourism industry in developed and developing countries are badly affected because of universal speared. It has enforced the worldwide curfew which is highly impacted on tourism-related services like transportation, accommodations, hotels and restaurants, tour operators and travel agents, tourists guide, small and medium businesses and petty shops in and around the pilgrimage sites. The religious sites have closed their doors for devotees and many religious leaders appealed to their followers not to perform their spiritual spreading of the virus is high due to overcrowding as well as religious mass gathering and pilgrims come to take bath in the holy water in reveres which was stopped for the precautionary measure when the people come back from mass gathering to their home town to control the spread of the pandemic. The pandemic impact on religious tourism has been immeasurable and many religious places are also changing their rituals and have altered the thinking and beliefs of religious leaders and pilgrimage visitors worldwide.