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Hinduism Research Guide: Home

A guide for beginning research in Hinduism

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This guide was created by Rebecca Stover GA for HPNL Fall 2021

Hinduism: An Introduction

Hinduism is a term that denotes the religion of the about 75% of people on the Indian subcontinent. It is used to define "a group of traditions united by certain common features, such as shared ritual patterns, a shared revelation, a belief in reincarnation (samsara), liberation (moksa), and a particular form of endogamous social organization or caste." (Flood 3) The term Hinduism or Hindu is notoriously ambiguous and can be defined as a religion, a way of life, or a construction of colonialism. Hinduism is not a self designated term and has provoked much scholarly debate, however, this being said it is a part of the lexicon and thus is used in this bibliography with these qualifications. 

Flood, G. (2003). Introduction: Establishing the Boundaries. In The Blackwell Companion to Hinduism, G. Flood (Ed.). https://doi.org/10.1002/9780470998694.ch1

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