Modern Hinduism in Text and Context

Book excerpt: Modern Hinduism in Text and Context brings together textual and contextual approaches to provide a holistic understanding of modern Hinduism. It examines new sources - including regional Saiva texts, Odissi dance and biographies of Nationalists - and discusses topics such as yoga, dance, visual art and festivals in tandem with questions of spirituality and ritual. The book addresses themes and issues yet to receive in-depth attention in the study of Hinduism. It shows that Hinduism endures not only in texts, but also in the context of festivals and devotion, and that contemporary practice, devotional literature, creative traditions and ethics inform the intricacies of a religion in context. Lavanya Vemsani draws on social scientific methodologies as well as history, ethnography and textual analysis, demonstrating that they are all part of the toolkit for understanding the larger framework of religion in the context of emerging nationhood, transnational and transcultural interactions.