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Published by Mandala Publishing
Distributed by Simon & Schuster
Table of Contents
About The Book
In a tightly woven narrative, historian of modern India Amiya P. Sen traces the shifting self-understanding of Hindus in the light of the many challenges posed by the British colonial encounter, offering an accessible yet analytically rich book on the birth and development of modern Hinduism, which will be of interest to students and the interested general reader alike.
Change has been endemic to Hindu cultural life from its inception. It was nevertheless in the modern era, with the advent of British colonial rule in India, that this change had its most far-reaching consequences, profoundly shaping the landscape of Hinduism as we encounter it today. In Colonial Hinduism: An Introduction, Amiya P. Sen charts this many-layered historical process in a refreshingly accessible narrative.
Over seven chapters, this book traces the shifting self-understanding of the Hindus in the light of new challenges posed by the West. This encounter brought forth a new Hindu consciousness that was prepared to critique India’s perceived past irrationalities and superstitions but also reject what it took to be the excesses of the materialistic West. Over the years, a surging Hindu nationalism and anti-colonial sentiment sought to counter the material advances of the West with the self-acclaimed spiritual excellence of India in order to to secure for India a rightful place within global civilisation. In time, however, Hindu nationalism produced its own excesses, the ramifications of which India is still contending.
Colonial Hinduism: An Introduction fulfils the long standing need for an accessible yet analytically rich book on the birth and development of modern Hinduism, which will be of interest to students and the interested general reader alike.
OXFORD CENTRE SERIES: The Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies Publishing Series offers authoritative yet accessible introductions to a wide range of subjects in Hindu Studies. Each book in the series aims to present its subject matter in a form that is engaging and readily comprehensible to persons of all backgrounds – academic or otherwise – without compromising scholarly rigour. The series thus bridges the divide between academic and popular writing by preserving and utilising the best elements of both. Other books in the series include The Bhagavad Gita: A New Translation and Study Guide; The Hindu Temple and Its Sacred Landscape; and Women in the Hindu World.
EXPERT AUTHOR: Amiya P. Sen, PhD, is a historian with an interest in the intellectual and cultural history of modern India. Sen has been Agatha Harrison Fellow at the University of Oxford, Shivdasani Fellow at the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies, Heinrich Zimmer Chair at the University of Heidelberg, and Fellow at the Indian Institute of Advanced Study, Shimla, and the Nehru Memorial Museum & Library, New Delhi, He has served the Universities of Delhi, Visva Bharati, Santiniketan, and Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi.
EDUCATION AID: With the integration of discussion questions, suggested further reading, glossary of terms, and images throughout, this book serves as a comprehensive resource for both classwork and independent study of modern Hinduism.
Change has been endemic to Hindu cultural life from its inception. It was nevertheless in the modern era, with the advent of British colonial rule in India, that this change had its most far-reaching consequences, profoundly shaping the landscape of Hinduism as we encounter it today. In Colonial Hinduism: An Introduction, Amiya P. Sen charts this many-layered historical process in a refreshingly accessible narrative.
Over seven chapters, this book traces the shifting self-understanding of the Hindus in the light of new challenges posed by the West. This encounter brought forth a new Hindu consciousness that was prepared to critique India’s perceived past irrationalities and superstitions but also reject what it took to be the excesses of the materialistic West. Over the years, a surging Hindu nationalism and anti-colonial sentiment sought to counter the material advances of the West with the self-acclaimed spiritual excellence of India in order to to secure for India a rightful place within global civilisation. In time, however, Hindu nationalism produced its own excesses, the ramifications of which India is still contending.
Colonial Hinduism: An Introduction fulfils the long standing need for an accessible yet analytically rich book on the birth and development of modern Hinduism, which will be of interest to students and the interested general reader alike.
OXFORD CENTRE SERIES: The Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies Publishing Series offers authoritative yet accessible introductions to a wide range of subjects in Hindu Studies. Each book in the series aims to present its subject matter in a form that is engaging and readily comprehensible to persons of all backgrounds – academic or otherwise – without compromising scholarly rigour. The series thus bridges the divide between academic and popular writing by preserving and utilising the best elements of both. Other books in the series include The Bhagavad Gita: A New Translation and Study Guide; The Hindu Temple and Its Sacred Landscape; and Women in the Hindu World.
EXPERT AUTHOR: Amiya P. Sen, PhD, is a historian with an interest in the intellectual and cultural history of modern India. Sen has been Agatha Harrison Fellow at the University of Oxford, Shivdasani Fellow at the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies, Heinrich Zimmer Chair at the University of Heidelberg, and Fellow at the Indian Institute of Advanced Study, Shimla, and the Nehru Memorial Museum & Library, New Delhi, He has served the Universities of Delhi, Visva Bharati, Santiniketan, and Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi.
EDUCATION AID: With the integration of discussion questions, suggested further reading, glossary of terms, and images throughout, this book serves as a comprehensive resource for both classwork and independent study of modern Hinduism.
Product Details
- Publisher: Mandala Publishing (January 21, 2025)
- Length: 320 pages
- ISBN13: 9798887620763
Raves and Reviews
“This is an insightful, informative, and carefully-worded book that will be a resource for a long time to come for describing and defining a historical period that led to the making of the modern political entity that is India. I cannot praise it highly enough.”
– Julius Lipner, professor emeritus of Hinduism and the comparative study of religion, University of Cambridge
“Colonial Hinduism is an important contribution to our better understanding of a fervent period of change and challenge that decisively shaped the face of contemporary Hinduism. The style is accessible and the material admirably organised, with helpful summaries and discussion questions. Ideal for courses on Hindu traditions.”
– Anantanand Rambachan, professor emeritus of religion, Saint Olaf College
“This is an excellent introductory book narrating the story of Hinduism as it evolved in response to the intellectual challenges thrown at it by colonial modernity … Informed by recent research, it provides a comprehensive and lucid overview of an important aspect of India’s religious history.”
– Sekhar Bandyopadhyay, FRSNZ, emeritus professor of history, Victoria University of Wellington
“It would be difficult to find a scholar better qualified than Professor Amiya P. Sen to undertake the challenging task of creating an accessible introduction to the beliefs of Hindus in British India. Colonial Hinduism weaves together an overview of the period with examples from different regions of India, suggested supplementary reading, questions to stimulate reflection, and a fascinating concluding chapter on the legacy of colonial Hinduism. The book should prove invaluable to students and teachers alike.”
– Gwilym Beckerlegge, professor emeritus, department of religious studies, the Open University, UK
“To understand contemporary Hindu religious worldviews and their intersections with political movements, it is vital to understand how diverse notions of Hinduism were projected or recalibrated during British colonial rule. Amiya Sen’s Colonial Hinduism is a magisterial survey of these conceptual imaginations and social processes. Across seven lucidly written chapters, Sen skillfully takes the beginner on an intellectual exploration of the emergence of multiple Hindu modernities at dynamic confluences between Indic and European idioms.”
– Ankur Barua, university senior lecturer in Hindu studies, faculty of divinity, University of Cambridge
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