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Mapping Hinduism. 'Hinduism' and the study of Indian religions
Will Sweetman
 |
Halle, 2003, 187 Seiten, br. Neue Hallesche Berichte. Bd. 4 ISBN 978-3-447-06317-3 9,80 EUR |
The process by which Hinduism came to be constituted as an object
of European study is often taken to be the most egregious example of the
invention of a religion through the reification of disparate traditions
of belief and practice and the projection of theological preconceptions
or imperial ambitions. In this work Will Sweetman offers both a theoretical
reconsideration of the status of the term Hinduism and an alternative
historical account of its emergence in the eighteenth century based on
consideration of early Dutch, English, French and German sources, demonstrating
that its scope owes more to Indian ideas of religious affiliation and
the time of its emergence more to the evolving modern concept of India
as a geographical entity than either does to theological preconceptions
or imperial ambitions.
The Author:
Will Sweetman studied philosophy, religious studies and theology at the
Universities of Lancaster and Cambridge. Since 2000 he has been Lecturer
in Hindu and Buddhist Studies at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne.