Wandering with Sadhus: Ascetics in the Hindu Himalayas

270 Pages·2007·3.76 MB·English

by  Sondra L. Hausner

Wandering with Sadhus
(cid:2)
Contemporary Indian Studies
Published in association with the
American Institute of Indian Studies
Susan S. Wadley, Chair, Publications Committee/general editor
AIIS Publications Committee/series advisory board:
John Echeverri-Gent
Akhil Gupta
Brian Hatcher
David Lelyveld
Martha Selby
Books in this series are recipients of the
Edward Cameron Dimock, Jr. Prize in the Indian Humanities
and the
Joseph W. Elder Prize in the Indian Social Sciences
awarded by the American Institute of Indian Studies and are published
with the Institute’s generous support.
A list of titles in this series appears at the back of the book.
Wandering
with Sadhus
Ascetics in the
Hindu Himalayas
(cid:2)
Sondra L. Hausner
Indiana University Press
Bloomington & Indianapolis
This book is a publication of
Indiana University Press
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Bloomington, IN 47404-3797 USA
http://iupress.indiana.edu
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© 2007 by Sondra L. Hausner
All rights reserved
No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means,
electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any infor-
mation storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the pub-
lisher. The Association of American University Presses’ Resolution on Permissions
constitutes the only exception to this prohibition.
The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of Ameri-
can National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed
Library Materials, ANSI Z39.48-1984.
Manufactured in the United States of America
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Hausner, Sondra L.
Wandering with sadhus : ascetics in the Hindu Himalayas / Sondra L. Hausner.
p. cm. — (Contemporary Indian studies)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-253-34983-5 (cloth : alk. paper) — ISBN 978-0-253-21949-7 (pbk. :
alk. paper) 1. Sadhus—India—Social conditions. 2. Sadhus—Nepal—Social con-
ditions. 3. Sadhus—Social networks—India. 4. Sadhus—Social networks—Nepal.
5. Asceticism—Hinduism. I. Title.
BL1241.53.H385 2007
294.5’6570954—dc22
2007022645
1 2 3 4 5 12 11 10 09 08 07
for my parents, the yoginī-householder and the wise old man
(cid:2)

The ordinary person takes reality to be . . . everything which has come
into their consciousness as pertaining to themselves—body, etc. This
they have to unlearn.
ŚrĪ RamaN. a MahĀr. s. i
(cid:2)

Contents
Acknowledgments (cid:4) xi
Note on Transliteration (cid:4) xiii
Introduction Wandering with Renouncers (cid:4) 1
one The Body and Sādhu Society (cid:4) 35
two The Social Structures of Sādhu Life (cid:4) 61
three Hardwar: The Ground of Space (cid:4) 91
four Allahabad: The Community in Time (cid:4) 127
five Kathmandu: The Body in Place (cid:4) 149
Conclusion The Culture of Hindu Renunciation (cid:4) 183
Appendix: Literatures on Renunciation & Embodiment (cid:4) 195
Notes (cid:4) 207
Bibliography (cid:4) 219
Index (cid:4) 237