What is wrong with the intercultural exchange of categories? Throughout one gets the impression that there is something “fundamentally wrong” with categories shifting in meaning over time or with the introduction of categories…
Read moreColonial Consciousness: M.N. Srinivas and Sanskritization
1. M. N. Srinivas (MNS) claims that “a caste was able, in a generation or two, to rise to a higher position in the hierarchy by adopting vegetarianism and teetotalism…
Read moreThe Secular State and Religious Conflict: Liberal Neutrality and the Indian Case of Pluralism
Editor’s Note: This article appeared in the Journal of Political Philosophy. Authored by SN Balagangadhara and Jakob De Roover. For an alternative paradigm for studying India, Indian culture and Indian…
Read moreHow to speak for the Indian traditions: an agenda for the future–SN Balagangadhara
Editor’s note: This article appeared in the Journal of American Academy of Religion Abstract The paper attempts a contrast between the process and the structure of the Christian and the…
Read moreHow do we understand the concept of Communal Violence?
We all agree that events like the Gujarat riots are tragic and terrible. But what is the role of intellectuals in avoiding similar tragedies in the future? Why can’t religion…
Read moreNeurobiological Theory of Religion
You ask whether ‘in principle’ a neurobiological theory on religion could ”account” for the experience of the believers. The answer depends on what kind of an account you are asking for and…
Read moreProfound criticism 1: the logic is different
Many come up with criticisms like ‘Buddhist logics are different’ or ‘one has to follow Indian logics’. These criticisms sound profound! They are damn shallow, unless they answer the following…
Read moreReconceptualizing India Studies by Balagangadhara–a new book
Note: if you are in the states or UK, try biblio.com: http://www.biblio.com/details.php?dcx=535069950 What does it mean to be an Indian in this time and age? What does India have to…
Read moreDocumentary on Indian Traditions: Beware of God
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lzo4zPOYWvM
To all those retired or semi-retired NRI Hindus, watch the series.
Read moreDawkin’s Delusion or The God Delusion?
While re-reading certain passages from Richard Dawkins’ The God Delusion (2006), I was so shocked by his combination of ignorance and arrogance. Forgive me for some Dawkins- bashing: 1. In…
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