Was Hinduism Invented? Britons, Indians, and the Colonial Construction of Religion.

Brian K. Pennington

ISBN 10: 0195326008 / ISBN 13: 9780195326000

Published by Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2007

About this Item

8vo pp.249.

Seller Inventory # 361998

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Was Hinduism Invented? Britons, Indians, and the Colonial Construction of Religion.
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, Oxford
• Publication Date: 2007
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0195326008
• ISBN 13: 9780195326000
• Binding: Soft cover
• Condition: very good
• Dust Jacket Condition: no dustjacket
• Book Type: book
• Seller catalogs:
  • Religion

About this title

Synopsis

Drawing on a large body of previously untapped literature, including documents from the Church Missionary Society and Bengali newspapers, Brian Pennington offers a fascinating portrait of the process by which "Hinduism" came into being. He argues against the common idea that the modern construction of religion in colonial India was simply a fabrication of Western Orientalists and missionaries. Rather, he says, it involved the active agency and engagement of Indian authors as well, who interacted, argued, and responded to British authors over key religious issues such as image-worship, sati, tolerance, and conversion.

About the Author

Brian K. Pennington is Associate Professor of Religion at Maryville College in Tennessee.