Volume I

Regions and Regional Traditions

Sacred Space and Time

Gods, Goddesses and Divine Powers

Volume I covers two main thematic fields. First it presents the regional traditions of Hinduism with articles on the Indian states and main regions of India and on historical regions outside of India. Here the reader will also find entries on sacred space and pilgrimage traditions, sacred time and festival traditions. The second thematic field concerns the various gods, goddesses and divine powers of Hinduism past and present.

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The five-volume Brill’s Encyclopedia of Hinduism is a thematic encyclopedia, presenting the latest research on all the main aspects of the Hindu traditions in original essays written by the world’s foremost scholars on Hinduism. The Encyclopedia explicitly adopts an interdisciplinary and pluralistic approach, and in it, the term “Hinduism” is used critically in the knowledge that most of the traditions that today make up Hinduism are much older than the term itself. The Encyclopedia aims at a balanced and even-handed view of Hinduism, recognizing the tensions inherent in the academic examination of Hinduism. It emphasizes that Hinduism is a conglomerate of regional religious traditions and at the same time a global world religion. Hinduism is also both an ancient historical tradition and a living tradition flourishing in the contemporary world. It is an oral tradition, yet one with a huge number of sacred texts at its basis. Hinduism is both a religious identity and an object of academic scholarship.

Illustrated with maps and photographs, Brill’s Encyclopedia presents the learned philosophical and theological traditions of Hinduism as well as its many folk traditions. Covering the spread of Hinduism over the last two hundred years to all the continents as well as the interaction of Hinduism with other religions, it also portrays the various responses of Hindu traditions to a number of contemporary issues of great relevance today, such as feminism, human rights, egalitarianism, bioethics, and so on.

Volume I: Regions, Pilgrimage, Deities. - ISBN 978-90-04-17641-6

Volume II: Texts, Rituals, Arts, Concepts. - iSBN 978-90-04-17893-9

Volume III: Society, Theology, Biography. - ISBN 978-90-04-17894-6

Volume IV: History, Philosophy, Knowledge Traditions, Interreligious Contact. - ISBN 978-90-04-17895-3

Volume V: Symbolism, Diaspora, Modern Issues. - ISBN 978-90-04-17896-0