Hindus: Their Religious Beliefs and Practices (Library of Religious Beliefs and Practices)

332 Pages·1998·2.42 MB·English

by  Julius Lipner

Hindus
‘In this major study of Hindu beliefs and practices, Julius Lipner
deliberately adopts an informal style, in order to engage in an
exploratory conversation with the reader, and his own fascination
with the subject does indeed come over in an infectious manner.’
Dr J.L.Brockington, University of Edinburgh
‘Hindus provides interesting and unusual information as well as
illuminating insights to experts on India. The work is literate and
humorous, informed and respectful, well-documented and reliable – in
short it makes fascinating reading and admirably covers all the important
bases.’
Professor Klaus Klostermaier, University of Manitoba
‘The book is a remarkably sophisticated survey of Hindu beliefs and
practices…Hindus succeeds admirably in its task, in conveying the
richness, complexity, fluidity and struggles of a vast and vibrant tradition.
The author must be congratulated for writing a book of sustained erudition
and empathy.’
Professor Arvind Sharma, Religion
‘Hindus is the fruit of personal reflection and extensive study on many
aspects of the tradition, and on the ways in which it has been represented in
the modern world, both in India and in the West. It is particularly
concerned to show the exuberant Hindu love of life.’
Dr Dermot Killingley, The Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society
‘This is quite simply the best book I have read on Hinduism in a long time.
I say this conscious of the weight of all the books on the subject I have
gone through…he last four decades…. topic …is treated lucidly, incisively,
often wittily…. So many facts, concepts, theories are thus brought in to
illuminate the main arguments that the book is virtually a small
encyclopedia of Hinduism.’
ii
Girish Karnad, The Book Review
‘Lipner weaves together various themes, ideas and stories so as to lead the
reader into an understanding of Hindus in a radial and spiral rather than
linear fashion. The result is a fresh and most engaging presentaton of the
tradition that communicates well to those of other traditions while it brings
new insights to Hindus about their own religion. This book has a permanent
place on my shelf.’
Professor Harold Coward, The Hindu-Christian Studies Bulletin
‘Hindus is lucidly written and as readable as it is informative….
Throughout the book, the emphasis is on understanding the true spirit of
this ancient religion and Lipner succeeds admirably in his endeavour to
acquaint the reader with the positive force he calls the “dynamic, living
reality” of Hinduism.’
Veena Seshadri, The Indian Review of Books
Julius Lipner was born and raised in India, where he experienced and learned
about Hinduism first hand. He lectures in Religious Studies in the Faculty of
Divinity at the University of Cambridge and is the author of a number of books
including The Face of Truth: A Study of Meaning and Metaphysics in the
Vedāntic Theology of Rāmānuja and Hindu Ethics: Purity, Abortion and
Euthanasia (co-authored with H. Coward and K.Young).
The Library of Religious Beliefs and Practices
Series editors:
John Hinnells University of Manchester and
Ninian Smart University of California at Santa Barbara
This series provides pioneering and scholarly introductions to different religions
in a readable form. It is concerned with the beliefs and practices of religions in
their social, cultural and historical setting. Authors come from a variety of
backgrounds and approach the study of religious beliefs and practices from their
different points of view. Some focus mainly on questions of history, teachings,
customs and ritual practices. Others consider, within the context of a specific
region or geographical region, the interrelationships between religions; the
interaction of religion and the arts; religion and social organisation; the
involvement of religion in political affairs; and, for ancient cultures, the
interpretation of archaeological evidence. In this way the series brings out the
multi-disciplinary nature of the study of religion. It is intended for students of
religion, ideas, social sciences and history, and for the interested lay person.
Other titles in the series include:
Religions of Oceania
Tony Swain and Garry Trompf
Theravāda Buddhism
A Social History from AncientBenares to Modern
Colombo
Richard Gombrich
Mahāyāna Buddhism
Paul Williams
Muslims
Their Religious Beliefs and PracticesVol. 1: The Formative PeriodVol.
2: The Contemporary Period
Andrew Rippin
Religions of South Africa
David Chidester
Hindus
Their religious beliefs and practices
Julius Lipner
London and New York
First published 1994
by Routledge
11 New Fetter Lane, London EC4P 4EE
Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada
by Routledge
29 West 35th Street, New York, NY 10001
First published in paperback 1998
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group
This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2005.
“To purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor & Francis or Routledge’s collection of
thousands of eBooks please go to www.eBookstore.tandf.co.uk.”
© 1994 Julius Lipner
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or
reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic,
mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter
invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any
information storage or retrieval system, without permission in
writing from the publishers.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloguing in Publication Data
Lipner, Julius.
Hindus: their religious beliefs and practices/Julius Lipner.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. Hinduism. I. Title.
BL1202.L56 1994 93–3813
ISBN 0-203-97852-8 Master e-book ISBN
ISBN 0-415-05181-9 (hbk)
ISBN 0-415-05182-7 (pbk)
This book is dedicated to the memory of my brother in
law, Pradeep Kumar Neogy (1950–93), who will be sadly
missed.
Life is the roll of a wave, youth’s beauty endures but a day,
Wealth takes fancy’s form, and pleasure’s flow is like monsoon’s
lightning-flash,
Even love’s embrace by loved ones offered does not last.
So fix your minds on Brahman, to reach life’s dreadful ocean’s
further shore.
(From the Fine Sayings of Bhart hari)
Contents
Preface ix
Preface to the paperback edition xii
List of abbreviations xiii
1 About ‘Hindu’, Hinduism and this book 1
Part I Guiding voices
2 The voice of scripture as Veda 19
3 The voice of scripture as Veda and ‘Veda’ 44
4 The voice of tradition: Varnāśrama dharma 60
5 The voice of tradition: ‘Caste’ and narrative 88
6 The voice of tradition: Folklore and the intellectual heritage 120
7 The voice of experience 136
Part II Reason and morality
8 A story with a tail 162
9 Morality and the person 184
Part III Images of time, space and eternity
10 Modes of reckoning time and ‘progress’ 206
11 The sacred and its forms 226
12 Means, ways and ends 243
Notes 269
Select glossary 302
viii
Select bibliography 304
Index 313
Preface
It was some years ago, during dinner at a conference in Canada I recall, that John
Hinnells asked me if I would ‘like to write a book on Hinduism’.
‘Perhaps,’ I replied warily. ‘But I already have a number of things on my plate,
so to speak. Anyway, tell me what you have in mind.’
He told me.
‘It’s for this series we’re editing. I want a book to cover Hinduism, but I don’t
want it to do so chronologically in the usual way. I want it to be different. I want
it to deal with essentials of Hindu religion, of course, but not only from the point
of view of belief; it’s got to tell us how Hindus practise their faith. And it must
have a scholarly foundation,’ he added, warming to his theme.
I paled at the prospect.
This book on Hinduism,’ he went on remorselessly, ‘must be rooted in the
historical tradition. It’s got to have a historical perspective. Otherwise things
hang in the air. And bring in your own experience here and there. Tell us the odd
story, anecdote, etc. That makes for interesting reading, you know. Also, try and
draw in the religion of ordinary folk in the towns and villages, and what they call
the little tradition,’ he added. Traditions,’ he corrected himself. ‘And oh! I’d like
it done in a couple of years, if possible. Well, what do you say?’
I was horrified. A book on Hinduism—a complex, multi-faceted, intractable
phenomenon spanning over three thousand years—fitting this description would
be a Herculean task. It would be madness to accept.
I accepted. And I’ve had second thoughts ever since. But it’s been an
instructive and salutory experience. I’ve had a chance to collect my thoughts on a
great and marvellous religious phenomenon in midcareer, to appreciate even
more its extraordinary richness, the way it encompasses human experience from
the sublime to the ridiculous, to realise anew how much I didn’t know.
You will have to judge how badly I’ve succeeded. I have been constrained not
only by the magnitude of my task, but inevitably by limitations of space and
time. Here I must thank John Hinnells and Heather Gibson at Routledge for
fighting valiantly on my part to win me rather more space and time than was
originally apportioned.
My approach has been mainly historical and phenomenological but also
philosophical; occasionally I’ve made other kinds of comments (sociological,