Articles, Chapters, Papers
samaj, 2018
Religious shrines in Goa (India), both Hindu and Catholic, are marked by notable differences. Shr... more Religious shrines in Goa (India), both Hindu and Catholic, are marked by notable differences. Shrines in temples and churches are distinguished from wayside shrines by their formalized iconography and elite patronization. Shrines are further differentiated by modalities of their representation and iconography. Formalized shrines fulfill particular representational (symbolic) functions that reflect local social hierarchies. Emergent Hindu and iconic Catholic shrines stand out through peculiar material and embodied characteristics of their iconography and enjoy wide demotic appeal. Although decisive for the role the shrines play in society, their inherent representational, semiotic, and practical distinctions and differentiations are usually not reflected in the concept of the “shrine.” Eventually, the article, therefore, takes issue with this concept itself arguing that it is rather elusive and obscures more than it brings to light.
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In the 16th and 17th centuries, Jesuit missionaries began to translate Christian doctrine and myt... more In the 16th and 17th centuries, Jesuit missionaries began to translate Christian doctrine and mythology into Indian languages. Most critical became the question how the very name(s) of God and gods can be translated. Artfully composed texts known as Christian Purāṇas borrowed from the religious terminology and literary styles of Indian devotional literature and are praised today for mediating between the cultures of Christians and Hindus (the latter called ‘gentiles’ in the contemporary sources). At the same time, the Portuguese-Catholic regime in India launched a ruthless iconoclastic campaign against the culture of the Indian gentiles, destroying their temples and images and denigrating their allegedly ‘false gods’. Against this background, the article addresses the questions of what the relation was between translation and violence; how hermeneutics and de-struction coexisted; and how the idea that the translations facilitated the modern emer-gence of religious pluralism is to be qualified.
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This case study deals with the evolution of a local god, Bodgeshvar, from a minor tutelary being... more This case study deals with the evolution of a local god, Bodgeshvar, from a minor tutelary being to a powerful urban deity in the provincial town of Mapusa in the Indian state of Goa. Noteworthy, the metamorphosis of the Jāgeveiḷo or local guardian to the Ishvar or high god implies also the reference to a Baba or mendicant monk. Becoming visible in the emergence of a sumptuous tem-ple and the steadily increase of worshippers, the rise of the local god is above all the result of Goa's liberation from Portuguese rule and reflects especially the development of Mapusa from a small market town into a metropolitan city. This being so, the success of the Lord of Mapusa owes itself, however, not only to the vibrant community of Vani and Bhandāri, basically small mer-chants, small farmers and fishermen, who benefited the most from the postcolonial democratisa-tion and economic boom and who constitute the group of temple trustees of the urban god today . A good deal of the popularity of Bodgeshvar is also owed to the large group of migrant workers from the neighbouring states of Karnataka and Kerala who are living and working in the city and who are especially attracted by the gods embodiment of a wonder working mendicant monk.
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International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, 2008
AbstractWayside shrines — representing Hindu and Catholic divinities and saints — show an astonis... more AbstractWayside shrines — representing Hindu and Catholic divinities and saints — show an astonishing dynamic in the cities of Goa and India. Not only do they persist in a milieu of drastic modern change that often seems to be at odds with their traditional locations, aesthetics and purposes, but also some of them surpass temples, churches and mosques in popularity. The popularity of these seemingly marginal religious monuments is a response to three forms of mobility characterizing modern Indian urban environments: cultural mobility — the diversification and fluctuation of religious ideas and practices; social mobility — the diversification and fluctuation of people from different castes, social classes and geographical regions, as well as the change of caste and class status due to socio-economic change; and physical mobility — the movement of and movement around increasingly dense and complex flows of motorized traffic. The shrines modify and transform the centuries-old spatio-religious system of Hindus and Catholics to fit the conditions of late-modern city life. They allow a culturally diversifying, socially changing and geographically fluctuating population to engage with a variety of personalized deities and saints whose charismatic authority is not only quite independent from formalized local social hierarchies, but often also cuts across orthodox divisions between religious traditions.Wayside shrines — representing Hindu and Catholic divinities and saints — show an astonishing dynamic in the cities of Goa and India. Not only do they persist in a milieu of drastic modern change that often seems to be at odds with their traditional locations, aesthetics and purposes, but also some of them surpass temples, churches and mosques in popularity. The popularity of these seemingly marginal religious monuments is a response to three forms of mobility characterizing modern Indian urban environments: cultural mobility — the diversification and fluctuation of religious ideas and practices; social mobility — the diversification and fluctuation of people from different castes, social classes and geographical regions, as well as the change of caste and class status due to socio-economic change; and physical mobility — the movement of and movement around increasingly dense and complex flows of motorized traffic. The shrines modify and transform the centuries-old spatio-religious system of Hindus and Catholics to fit the conditions of late-modern city life. They allow a culturally diversifying, socially changing and geographically fluctuating population to engage with a variety of personalized deities and saints whose charismatic authority is not only quite independent from formalized local social hierarchies, but often also cuts across orthodox divisions between religious traditions.RésuméLes sanctuaires installés le long des voies de circulation — représentations de divinités et saints hindous et catholiques — présentent une dynamique étonnante dans les villes de Goa et d’Inde. D’une part, ils persistent dans un milieu qui connaît une modernisation radicale souvent en contradiction, semble-t-il, avec leur finalité, leur esthétique et leur emplacement traditionnels ; d’autre part, certains dépassent en popularité temples, églises ou mosquées. La fréquentation de ces monuments religieux apparemment marginaux tient à trois formes de mobilité propres aux environnements urbains indiens modernes : la mobilité culturelle (diversification et fluctuation des idées et pratiques religieuses), la mobilité sociale (diversification et fluctuation des individus venus de castes, classes sociales et régions géographiques diverses, et changement de statut de caste et de classe à cause de l’évolution socio-économique), et la mobilité physique (mouvement et circulation autour de flux toujours plus denses et complexes de trafic motorisé). Ces sanctuaires modifient et transforment le système spatio-religieux séculaire des hindous et des catholiques qui doit s’adapter aux conditions de la vie urbaine postmoderne. Ils permettent à une population qui se diversifie au plan culturel, évolue au plan social et fluctue au plan géographique de s’engager à l’égard de divinités ou de saints personnalisés plus variés dont l’autorité charismatique est totalement indépendante des hiérarchies sociales locales formalisées et transcende les divisions orthodoxes entre traditions religieuses.Les sanctuaires installés le long des voies de circulation — représentations de divinités et saints hindous et catholiques — présentent une dynamique étonnante dans les villes de Goa et d’Inde. D’une part, ils persistent dans un milieu qui connaît une modernisation radicale souvent en contradiction, semble-t-il, avec leur finalité, leur esthétique et leur emplacement traditionnels ; d’autre part, certains dépassent en popularité temples, églises ou mosquées. La fréquentation de ces monuments religieux apparemment marginaux tient à trois formes de mobilité propres aux environnements urbains indiens modernes : la mobilité culturelle (diversification et fluctuation des idées et pratiques religieuses), la mobilité sociale (diversification et fluctuation des individus venus de castes, classes sociales et régions géographiques diverses, et changement de statut de caste et de classe à cause de l’évolution socio-économique), et la mobilité physique (mouvement et circulation autour de flux toujours plus denses et complexes de trafic motorisé). Ces sanctuaires modifient et transforment le système spatio-religieux séculaire des hindous et des catholiques qui doit s’adapter aux conditions de la vie urbaine postmoderne. Ils permettent à une population qui se diversifie au plan culturel, évolue au plan social et fluctue au plan géographique de s’engager à l’égard de divinités ou de saints personnalisés plus variés dont l’autorité charismatique est totalement indépendante des hiérarchies sociales locales formalisées et transcende les divisions orthodoxes entre traditions religieuses.
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Most ritual participants claim that their rituals have been the same since time immemorial. Citin... more Most ritual participants claim that their rituals have been the same since time immemorial. Citing recent research in ritual studies, this book illustrates how, on the contrary, rituals are often subject to dynamic changes. When do rituals change? When is the change accidental and when is it on purpose? Are certain kinds of rituals more stable or unstable than others? Which elements of rituals are liable to change and which are relatively stable? Who has the power to change rituals? Who decides to accept a change or not? The Dynamics of Changing Rituals attempts to address these questions within this new field of ritual studies.
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Rites hindous
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South Asia Multidisciplinary Academic Journal, 2015
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