Historical Dictionary of Hinduism (Historical Dictionaries of Religions, Philosophies, and Movements Series) - Hardcover

Long, Jeffery D.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0810867648 ISBN 13: 9780810867642

Publisher: Scarecrow Press, 2011

Synopsis

Hinduism is the world's third largest religion and still growing. It is the oldest major religion with a tradition reaching back millennia and having many notable peaks and periods of glory. It has influenced and been affected by other world religions, including Islam and Buddhism, as well as Christianity. Despite repeated attempts to contain it, it has maintained an exceptional vigor and boasts a rich spiritual culture with celebrated thinkers and teachers and an extensive literature.

The Historical Dictionary of Hinduism relates the history of Hinduism through a chronology, an introductory essay, photos, an extensive bibliography, and over 1,000 cross referenced dictionary entries on Hindu terminology, names of major historical figures and movements, gods and goddesses, prominent temples, terms for items used in Hindu practice, major texts, philosophical concepts, and more. This book is an excellent access point for students, researchers, and anyone wanting to know more about Hinduism.

About this title

About the Author:

Jeffery D. Long teaches in the Department of Religious Studies at Elizabethtown College. He is the author of A Vision for Hinduism: Beyond Hindu Nationalism and Jainism: An Introduction, as well as a variety of articles and essays.

Review:

Before delving into the dictionary’s entries, Long (religious studies, Elizabethtown Coll.; A Vision for Hinduism: Beyond Hindu Nationalism) provides a detailed introduction to Hinduism’s origins, various periods, culture connections, and other topics. Preliminary material also includes a pronunciation guide, a useful source when attempting to decipher the various vowel sounds and certain nuances concerning consonants contained in the dictionary’s approximately 1000 terms; a short list of acronyms and abbreviations used throughout; and a chronology running from 50,000 B.C.E. to the present. Each entry in the main body of the dictionary is a paragraph or two in length, and important terms within the definition are bolded, drawing attention to the concepts associated with the primary definition. This feature is helpful for users seeking to locate quickly a person or concept that is tied to other principles of Hinduism. Occasional black-and-white photos or sketches appear throughout the text. Though not particularly detailed, they provide some visual enhancement to the associated entries. A comprehensive bibliography, divided into primary and secondary sources and then subdivided by format, appears after the entries. BOTTOM LINE This impressive collection of terms and concepts essential to understanding Hinduism will be useful to researchers, students, and those interested in learning more about the many facets of this ancient practice. The dictionary does a great job of comprehensively presenting the facts essential for an introduction to the topic as well as providing enough source material for further study and exploration. (Library Journal)

Hinduism is one of the world’s oldest religious traditions—though the term itself is of more recent origin—and is generally understood to refer “to the subset of indigenous Indic traditions that observed the sanctity of the Vedas.” Presenting these ancient beliefs and practices and their development over millennia, all in a single volume, is a tall order, indeed. Yet the Historical Dictionary of Hinduism succeeds quite well in doing just that.
The introductory essay, which precedes the more than 1,000 alphabetically arranged entries, provides a nice historical overview of Hinduism. The entry for Veda, Vedas presents the four basic collections of sacred texts, though separate entries exist for each (e.g., Rg Veda). Hinduism’s two great epic poems, the Mahabharata and Ramaya?a, have their own articles, with additional entries for many of the characters mentioned in them. The main sectarian groups within Hinduism are described in the entries for Vai??avism, Saivism, Saktism, and Smarta. Most of the remaining entries discuss important historical figures, rituals, deities, sacred places, and philosophical concepts and systems. Coverage extends to topics drawn from Sikhism and Jainism, two related religious traditions, as well as the issues and groups associated with the Hindu nationalism movement....
The shorter entries of the Historical Dictionary of Hinduism allow specific mention and a brief description of more minor characters, shrines, festivals, and the like. Recommended for theological libraries, research collections, and large public libraries. (Booklist)

Hinduism is the oldest major living religion in the world, dating back to India's Iron Age. At present Hinduism has more than 900,000,000 followers worldwide. This new edition by Long (Elizabethtown College) updates Bruce Sullivan's The A to Z of Hinduism (2001) and his The Historical Dictionary of Hinduism (CH, Jan'98, 35-2467). It is a comprehensive dictionary of all aspects of Hinduism, including the religion, culture, customs, festivals, scriptures, and traditions. Short biographies of many religious leaders, saints, and Hindu gods and goddesses are featured. Divided into 26 chapters, it features alphabetically arranged entries ranging from one sentence to one page, along with many see and see also references. The well-written introduction traces Hinduism's history and growth from its birth to Vedic and Classical periods of Indian civilization to global Hinduism. An up-to-date chronology emphasizing the last 100 years, an extensive bibliography with primary, secondary, and Internet sources, and a list of abbreviations/acronyms add quality to this well-prepared dictionary. It will be an excellent addition to all collections on Hinduism in academic libraries; all types of readers will find the information presented useful. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Lower-level undergraduates through researchers/faculty. (CHOICE)

About this edition

• Publisher: Scarecrow Press
• Publication date: 2011
• ISBN 10: 0810867648
• ISBN 13: 9780810867642
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 390