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ID: 075611

Divine enterprise: Hindu priests and ritual change in neighbourhood hindu temples in Bangalore / Srinivas, Tulasi

Srinivas, Tulasi	Journal Article
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2006.

Summary/Abstract

This paper examines the changing nature of Hindu ritual performed in neighbourhood temples in the Malleswaram 'locality' of Bangalore city against a background of sweeping socio-economic change driven by globalisation. The investigation points to several 'accretions of change' in the embedded and experiential world of popular urban Hinduism. I argue that in the changing, competitive and multi-sectarian field of urban sacred landscapes in India, Hindu Brahmin priests act as 'religious entrepreneurs' and agents of change to create 'dynamic' adapted rituals that enable innovative approaches in order to expand their devotee base. The restructured and revitalised rituals lead to the invention of a 'new cultural grammar' that allows a reinterpretation and contextualisation of the language of traditional Hindu ritual to suit the needs of 'modern' devotees. The paper focuses on the nature, performance and experience of 'dynamic' ritual in an era of 'mass customisation', including three exemplar 'strategies of engagement' brought about by the Hindu priests in Bangalore: the incorporation of technology; the language of international imagery; and modern conceptions of hygiene.This paper is dedicated to my father Prof. M.N. Srinivas who was unstinting in his support of my study of the sacred landscapes and Hindu priests of Bangalore, and whose enjoyment of my fieldwork stories kept me going back for more.

Key Words

Religions ; Socio-Economic ; Neighbourhood ; Hindu Priests

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ID: 153098

Doubtful illusions: magic, wonder and the politics of virtue in the sathya sai movement / Srinivas, Tulasi

Srinivas, Tulasi	Journal Article
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Summary/Abstract

This article examines the embattled intersection of magic and rationality in the transnational Sathya Sai movement and positions the magical materializations of the charismatic “godman” Sathya Sai Baba, and the sacred objects thus produced, within the neo-liberal economy. It then explores the tensions between the twin processes of magical production and rational debunking set against the framework of the discourse of nation building in contemporary India as it seeks to be and sustain a global power. The article illuminates the two conflicting discourses of materiality and rationality. It demonstrates that both are ethical subjectivities situated with regard to virtue—a “virtuous materiality” and a “virtuous rationality” —that together create a “critical politics of virtue”. The article concludes by tentatively suggesting that the critical politics of virtue can liberate current theory from a unitary understanding of ethical subjectivity in a neo-liberal world.

Key Words

Globalization ; Religion ; Science ; South Asia ; Magic

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