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Invading the Sacred

January 01, 1970

Invading the Sacred: An Analysis of Hinduism Studies in America is a book published in 2007 by Rupa & Co. which argues that there are factual inaccuracies in Hindu studies.[1][2][3] The editors of the book are Krishnan Ramaswamy, Antonio T. de Nicolás, and Aditi Banerjee.[4] The book has contributions from Arvind Sharma of McGill University, S. N. Balagangadhara of Ghent University, psychoanalyst Alan Roland, Yvette Rosser, Ramesh N. Rao, Pandita Indrani Rampersad, Yuvraj Krishnan, and others. Rajiv Malhotra played a large role in drafting most of the book's content. He stated that through this book, he intended to bring attention to, and provide a counter-argument to, the prevalent Freudian psychoanalytical critiques of Hinduism in the American Academy of Religion's RISA group.[5][6] After the controversy surrounding Wendy Doniger's book The Hindus: An Alternative History erupted in India, the authors decided to make it freely available online as it critiques a major part of her work.[7]

Invading the Sacred: An Analysis of Hinduism Studies in America
AuthorKrishnan Ramaswamy
Antonio de Nicolas
Aditi BanerjeeF
CountryIndia
LanguageEnglish
PublisherRupa & Co.
Publication date
2007
Pages545
ISBN978-81-291-1182-1
OCLC162522146

Documenting protests and disputed studies edit

The book documents essays, critiques and surveys of western scholarship on religions and traditions in India.[8] The book also contains critiques of European ideas as applied to Indian culture. The last sections chronicles how key academic establishments in United States have responded.[9] The book documents protests that are not only of cognitive or factual basis but also often about interpretations. Critics of academics claim bias or gross errors in some aspects.[10] The book also disputes the studies by Wendy Doniger, Jeffery Kripal and Paul Courtright. It also critiques the efficacy of the excessive use of Freudian psychoanalysis in hermeneutics which some of these studies rely on.[1]

Reception and reviews edit

Invading the Sacred was positively received by Daily News and Analysis,[11] as well as the Hindustan Times.[12] According to Balakrishna, writing for FirstPost.com India, the book "is perhaps one of the most definitive works that aid our understanding of the exact state of affairs in Indology in the US academia in general and the scholarship of the likes of Wendy Doniger in particular," in addition to Rajiv Malhotra's pioneering criticisms.[13]

Anantanand Rambachan - International Journal of Hindu Studies edit

Anantanand Rambachan reviewed the book for the International Journal of Hindu Studies.[14] Rambachan notes the concerns of American Hindus with perceived negative portrayals of Hinduism and the consequent fear of disregard for Hindu practitioners. A major concern is the Freudianization of the parlance of Indology. Rambachan acknowledges the need to take care of these concerns, but also notes that Hinduism should not be overly idealized:

Rambachan also notes that most scholars are deeply committed to an honest study of Hinduism, and that their work "sustains an interest in the academic study of Hinduism that is unmatched elsewhere in the world." According to Rambachan, there is a tension "between those who study religion in this way and the needs of [the] faithful," but the task of the academia is not "the formation and nurturing of the Hindu faith in a new generation of Hindus." According to Rambachan, "Hindus in the United States must work vigorously to build institutions and offer opportunities to young Hindus where Hindu identity is meaningfully cultivated and encouraged."

Rahul Peter Das - Orientalistische Literaturzeitung edit

Rahul Peter Das wrote an extensive review in the Orientalistische Literaturzeitung.[15] Das also notes that the main concern is with "Freudian, often vividly sexual, interpretations."[16] According to Das, "particular attention is paid to Doniger's sexualisation of mythology, Kripal's portrayal of Ramakrishna (Rām'kṛṣṇa) as homoerotic, and Courtright's sexual interpretation of Gaṇeśa."[16] According to Das, criticism of "Freudian psychoanalysis as a surrogate religion" are as old as psycho-analysis itself, and the criticism of Invading the Sacred is therefore not surprising.[17] In critique of the book, Das notes a "failure to distinguish properly between academia and public life outside this."[17] Das further notes that

... there are clearly many Hindus, in the USA or South Asia, who do not condemn the methods and findings of those criticised in this book, which means that either the claim of Invading the Sacred to be speaking for Hindus as such has to be retracted, or else such Hindus have to be denied their authenticity, maybe even their Hinduness.[18]

Das also notes a lack of academic qualifications, and a lack of scholarly rigor, by the authors of Invading the Sacred. He raises concerns with the author's inability to use primary materials:

we find recourse not to the evaluation of the original primary reference material, but only to translations, and even these sparingly. The main discussion takes place on a secondary or even tertiary plane and even that on the basis of a rather limited referential basis.[19]

Das further notes that "[n]ot only sound analysis of primary sources, but adequate consideration of secondary sources too is essential. Here too the publication has serious deficiencies."[20] Das also notes that "no real epistemological and categorical discussion takes place at all," and that there is a " lack of categorical rigour."[21] And he notes that the authors seem to be unknown with the broader field of Indological studies:

... the very academics in North America who would a priori be expected to be regarded as the principal authorities on textbased studies on Hinduism ... and their works are passed over in silence, which is truly amazing considering the wealth of philological South Asia related competence in North American universities. This shows a serious lack of knowledge and comprehension about academic text based studies related to Hinduism in this region of the world, and is a major flaw in this book. To me, it demonstrates a lack of serious study of the academic structures being criticised, invalidating many of the pronouncements on Hinduism Studies in America as such.[22]

A further critique is the homogenisation of "Hinduism", which "some see as typical for diasporic communities."[23]

Das concludes with the notion that "this publication ushers in a new era, that the forces it unleashes will remain active and gain strength ... it will probably lead to a long-term process impacting the study of Hinduism in the USA," and notes that the real debate should not be a political debate, but a debate on the one-sidedness of text-based Indological studies.[24]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b Banerjee, Aditi (June 29, 2007). "Invading The Sacred". Outlook. M/s Outlook Publishing (India) Private Limited. Retrieved 2015-04-09.
  2. ^ Ramaswamy, Krishnan (August 17, 2007). "Invading the Sacred". Little India. Retrieved 2015-04-09.
  3. ^ Singleton, Mark; Byrne, Jean (2008). Yoga in the Modern World: Contemporary Perspectives. Routledge Hindu Studies Series. Routledge. p. 13. ISBN 978-0-415-45258-8.
  4. ^ Clooney, Francis X. (2010). Comparative Theology: Deep Learning Across Religious Borders. Wiley-Blackwell. p. 172. ISBN 978-1-4051-7973-7.
  5. ^ Malhotra, Rajiv. "Invading the sacred". Retrieved 26 July 2015.
  6. ^ "Invading the sacred: Book launch event". www.youtuve.com. Archived from the original on 2021-12-21.
  7. ^ "Invading the Sacred: An Analysis of Hinduism Studies in America" (PDF).
  8. ^ Arnal, William; McCutcheon, Russell T. (2012). The Sacred Is the Profane: The Political Nature of Religion. Oxford University Press. p. 9. ISBN 978-0-19-975711-4.
  9. ^ Balagangadhara, S. N. (2007). "Foreword". Invading The Sacred: An Analysis of Hinduism Studies in America. Rupa & Co. ISBN 978-81-291-1182-1.
  10. ^ Sharma, Arvind (2007). "Preface". Invading The Sacred: An Analysis of Hinduism Studies in America. Rupa & Co. ISBN 978-81-291-1182-1.
  11. ^ Deshmukh, Smita (30 June 2007). "East fights back 'sacrilege' by West". Daily News and Analysis.
  12. ^ "Book review: Hinduism pundits or Hindu baiters?". Hindustan Times. 7 July 2014.[dead link]
  13. ^ Balakrishna, Sandeep (February 13, 2014). "Why the Wendy Doniger episode is not a free speech issue". Firstpost. Retrieved 2015-04-09.
  14. ^ Rambachan, Anantanand (April 2008), "Review. Reviewed Work: Invading the Sacred: An Analysis of Hinduism Studies in America by Krishnan Ramaswamy, Antonio de Nicolas, Aditi Banerjee", International Journal of Hindu Studies, 16 (1): 96–98, JSTOR 40343852
  15. ^ Das, Rahul Peter (2011). On the Study of Hinduism in the USA, and the Issue of adhikāra (Orientalistische Literaturzeitung) 106.3. pp. 151–168.
  16. ^ a b Das 2011, p.152
  17. ^ a b Das 2011, p.153
  18. ^ Das 2011, p.155
  19. ^ Das 2011, p.160
  20. ^ Das 2011, p.162
  21. ^ Das 2011, p.164
  22. ^ Das 2011, p.165
  23. ^ Das 2011, p.166
  24. ^ Das 2011, p.168

Further reading edit

  • Das, Krishna Kirti; Das, Gaura Keshava (December 9, 2008). "A Review of Invading the Sacred: Understanding and Misunderstanding Hindu Tradition". Samprajna.org. The Samprajña Institute. Retrieved 2015-04-09.
  • Das, Rahul Peter (2011). "On the Study of Hinduism in the USA, and the Issue of adhikāra-". Orientalistische Literaturzeitung. 106 (3): 151–168. doi:10.1524/olzg.2011.0023. ISSN 0030-5383.
  • Iyengar, Bhasyam G. (August 7, 2007). "Launch of Invading the Sacred - A book that matters". Narthaki.com. Retrieved 2015-04-09.
  • Raman, Varadaraja V. (March 6, 2010). "Invading the sacred: An analysis of Hinduism Studies in America Edited by Krishnan Ramaswamy, Antonio de Nicolas, Aditi Banerjee". V.V. Raman's Spurts of Thoughts. Retrieved 2015-04-09.

External links edit

  • Official website

January 01, 1970
invading, sacred, analysis, hinduism, studies, america, book, published, 2007, rupa, which, argues, that, there, factual, inaccuracies, hindu, studies, editors, book, krishnan, ramaswamy, antonio, nicolás, aditi, banerjee, book, contributions, from, arvind, sh. Invading the Sacred An Analysis of Hinduism Studies in America is a book published in 2007 by Rupa amp Co which argues that there are factual inaccuracies in Hindu studies 1 2 3 The editors of the book are Krishnan Ramaswamy Antonio T de Nicolas and Aditi Banerjee 4 The book has contributions from Arvind Sharma of McGill University S N Balagangadhara of Ghent University psychoanalyst Alan Roland Yvette Rosser Ramesh N Rao Pandita Indrani Rampersad Yuvraj Krishnan and others Rajiv Malhotra played a large role in drafting most of the book s content He stated that through this book he intended to bring attention to and provide a counter argument to the prevalent Freudian psychoanalytical critiques of Hinduism in the American Academy of Religion s RISA group 5 6 After the controversy surrounding Wendy Doniger s book The Hindus An Alternative History erupted in India the authors decided to make it freely available online as it critiques a major part of her work 7 Invading the Sacred An Analysis of Hinduism Studies in AmericaAuthorKrishnan RamaswamyAntonio de NicolasAditi BanerjeeFCountryIndiaLanguageEnglishPublisherRupa amp Co Publication date2007Pages545ISBN978 81 291 1182 1OCLC162522146 Contents 1 Documenting protests and disputed studies 2 Reception and reviews 2 1 Anantanand Rambachan International Journal of Hindu Studies 2 2 Rahul Peter Das Orientalistische Literaturzeitung 3 See also 4 References 5 Further reading 6 External linksDocumenting protests and disputed studies editThe book documents essays critiques and surveys of western scholarship on religions and traditions in India 8 The book also contains critiques of European ideas as applied to Indian culture The last sections chronicles how key academic establishments in United States have responded 9 The book documents protests that are not only of cognitive or factual basis but also often about interpretations Critics of academics claim bias or gross errors in some aspects 10 The book also disputes the studies by Wendy Doniger Jeffery Kripal and Paul Courtright It also critiques the efficacy of the excessive use of Freudian psychoanalysis in hermeneutics which some of these studies rely on 1 Reception and reviews editInvading the Sacred was positively received by Daily News and Analysis 11 as well as the Hindustan Times 12 According to Balakrishna writing for FirstPost com India the book is perhaps one of the most definitive works that aid our understanding of the exact state of affairs in Indology in the US academia in general and the scholarship of the likes of Wendy Doniger in particular in addition to Rajiv Malhotra s pioneering criticisms 13 Anantanand Rambachan International Journal of Hindu Studies edit Anantanand Rambachan reviewed the book for the International Journal of Hindu Studies 14 Rambachan notes the concerns of American Hindus with perceived negative portrayals of Hinduism and the consequent fear of disregard for Hindu practitioners A major concern is the Freudianization of the parlance of Indology Rambachan acknowledges the need to take care of these concerns but also notes that Hinduism should not be overly idealized Rambachan also notes that most scholars are deeply committed to an honest study of Hinduism and that their work sustains an interest in the academic study of Hinduism that is unmatched elsewhere in the world According to Rambachan there is a tension between those who study religion in this way and the needs of the faithful but the task of the academia is not the formation and nurturing of the Hindu faith in a new generation of Hindus According to Rambachan Hindus in the United States must work vigorously to build institutions and offer opportunities to young Hindus where Hindu identity is meaningfully cultivated and encouraged Rahul Peter Das Orientalistische Literaturzeitung edit Rahul Peter Das wrote an extensive review in the Orientalistische Literaturzeitung 15 Das also notes that the main concern is with Freudian often vividly sexual interpretations 16 According to Das particular attention is paid to Doniger s sexualisation of mythology Kripal s portrayal of Ramakrishna Ram kṛṣṇa as homoerotic and Courtright s sexual interpretation of Gaṇesa 16 According to Das criticism of Freudian psychoanalysis as a surrogate religion are as old as psycho analysis itself and the criticism of Invading the Sacred is therefore not surprising 17 In critique of the book Das notes a failure to distinguish properly between academia and public life outside this 17 Das further notes that there are clearly many Hindus in the USA or South Asia who do not condemn the methods and findings of those criticised in this book which means that either the claim of Invading the Sacred to be speaking for Hindus as such has to be retracted or else such Hindus have to be denied their authenticity maybe even their Hinduness 18 Das also notes a lack of academic qualifications and a lack of scholarly rigor by the authors of Invading the Sacred He raises concerns with the author s inability to use primary materials we find recourse not to the evaluation of the original primary reference material but only to translations and even these sparingly The main discussion takes place on a secondary or even tertiary plane and even that on the basis of a rather limited referential basis 19 Das further notes that n ot only sound analysis of primary sources but adequate consideration of secondary sources too is essential Here too the publication has serious deficiencies 20 Das also notes that no real epistemological and categorical discussion takes place at all and that there is a lack of categorical rigour 21 And he notes that the authors seem to be unknown with the broader field of Indological studies the very academics in North America who would a priori be expected to be regarded as the principal authorities on textbased studies on Hinduism and their works are passed over in silence which is truly amazing considering the wealth of philological South Asia related competence in North American universities This shows a serious lack of knowledge and comprehension about academic text based studies related to Hinduism in this region of the world and is a major flaw in this book To me it demonstrates a lack of serious study of the academic structures being criticised invalidating many of the pronouncements on Hinduism Studies in America as such 22 A further critique is the homogenisation of Hinduism which some see as typical for diasporic communities 23 Das concludes with the notion that this publication ushers in a new era that the forces it unleashes will remain active and gain strength it will probably lead to a long term process impacting the study of Hinduism in the USA and notes that the real debate should not be a political debate but a debate on the one sidedness of text based Indological studies 24 See also editHindu American Foundation Being Different Breaking India Hinduism Invades America Indra s Net Kali s ChildReferences edit a b Banerjee Aditi June 29 2007 Invading The Sacred Outlook M s Outlook Publishing India Private Limited Retrieved 2015 04 09 Ramaswamy Krishnan August 17 2007 Invading the Sacred Little India Retrieved 2015 04 09 Singleton Mark Byrne Jean 2008 Yoga in the Modern World Contemporary Perspectives Routledge Hindu Studies Series Routledge p 13 ISBN 978 0 415 45258 8 Clooney Francis X 2010 Comparative Theology Deep Learning Across Religious Borders Wiley Blackwell p 172 ISBN 978 1 4051 7973 7 Malhotra Rajiv Invading the sacred Retrieved 26 July 2015 Invading the sacred Book launch event www youtuve com Archived from the original on 2021 12 21 Invading the Sacred An Analysis of Hinduism Studies in America PDF Arnal William McCutcheon Russell T 2012 The Sacred Is the Profane The Political Nature of Religion Oxford University Press p 9 ISBN 978 0 19 975711 4 Balagangadhara S N 2007 Foreword Invading The Sacred An Analysis of Hinduism Studies in America Rupa amp Co ISBN 978 81 291 1182 1 Sharma Arvind 2007 Preface Invading The Sacred An Analysis of Hinduism Studies in America Rupa amp Co ISBN 978 81 291 1182 1 Deshmukh Smita 30 June 2007 East fights back sacrilege by West Daily News and Analysis Book review Hinduism pundits or Hindu baiters Hindustan Times 7 July 2014 dead link Balakrishna Sandeep February 13 2014 Why the Wendy Doniger episode is not a free speech issue Firstpost Retrieved 2015 04 09 Rambachan Anantanand April 2008 Review Reviewed Work Invading the Sacred An Analysis of Hinduism Studies in America by Krishnan Ramaswamy Antonio de Nicolas Aditi Banerjee International Journal of Hindu Studies 16 1 96 98 JSTOR 40343852 Das Rahul Peter 2011 On the Study of Hinduism in the USA and the Issue of adhikara Orientalistische Literaturzeitung 106 3 pp 151 168 a b Das 2011 p 152 a b Das 2011 p 153 Das 2011 p 155 Das 2011 p 160 Das 2011 p 162 Das 2011 p 164 Das 2011 p 165 Das 2011 p 166 Das 2011 p 168Further reading editDas Krishna Kirti Das Gaura Keshava December 9 2008 A Review of Invading the Sacred Understanding and Misunderstanding Hindu Tradition Samprajna org The Samprajna Institute Retrieved 2015 04 09 Das Rahul Peter 2011 On the Study of Hinduism in the USA and the Issue of adhikara Orientalistische Literaturzeitung 106 3 151 168 doi 10 1524 olzg 2011 0023 ISSN 0030 5383 Iyengar Bhasyam G August 7 2007 Launch of Invading the Sacred A book that matters Narthaki com Retrieved 2015 04 09 Raman Varadaraja V March 6 2010 Invading the sacred An analysis of Hinduism Studies in America Edited by Krishnan Ramaswamy Antonio de Nicolas Aditi Banerjee V V Raman s Spurts of Thoughts Retrieved 2015 04 09 External links editOfficial website Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Invading the Sacred amp oldid 1164670178, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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