The Domain of Constant Excess: Plural Worship at the Munnesvaram Temples in Sri LankaThe Sri Lankan ethnic conflict that has occurred largely between Sinhala Buddhists and Tamil Hindus is marked by a degree of religious tolerance that sees both communities worshiping together. This study describes one important site of such worship, the ancient Hindu temple complex of Munnesvaram. Standing adjacent to one of Sri Lanka's historical western ports, the fortunes of the Munnesvaram temples have waxed and waned through the years of turbulence, violence and social change that have been the country's lot since the advent of European colonialism in the Indian Ocean. Bastin recounts the story of these temples and analyses how the Hindu temple is reproduced as a center of worship amidst conflict and competition. |
From inside the book
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... nature of the Hindu temple and to explore the marvellous potentiality of Hindu temples as remarkable human achievements. The Polysemy of the Hindu Sacred in the Conditions of Violence The anthropology of ritual and religion has long ...
... nature of the surface appearance of crisis as an irruption in the social field of otherwise embedded social relations whose reproduction proceeds in multiple taken-for-granted ways, including ritual contexts. 7. Tirtham refers ...
... nature of this deity is closely linked with the regional guardian god whom I discuss below. Vital to the bandara tradition is the weaving of historical figures and geo-political events with such guardian deity traditions (Kapferer 1997a ...
... nature of the deity. I was told by old people in the Munnesvaram settlement. The Munnesvaram Temple Inner Sanctum showing the Sivalinga, and to the right the Ambal statue and Meru Yantra The Bhadrakali Statue Covered in Cooling ...
... nature of the Munnesvaram deities reflect the interstitial nature of Munnesvaram. Whether Munnesvaram is a high divine form of Siva or a lower demonic form, or whether the main temple is for Siva or for his consort, or whether the ...
Contents
1 | |
15 | |
Chapter 3 Myths and Marginality | 43 |
Chapter 4 Ritual Practices and Religious Identity | 59 |
Chapter 5 The Saivite Temple as a Monumental Architecture | 89 |
Puja and Arccanai | 117 |
Chapter 7 The Presence of Sakti | 133 |
Chapter 8 Guardians Games and the Formation of Power | 145 |
Chapter 9 The World Inside Out | 163 |
Chapter 10 The Domain of Excess | 183 |
Divine Kings and Regal Gods Temples in Society and History | 195 |
References | 213 |
Index | 227 |
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The Domain of Constant Excess: Plural Worship at the Munnesvaram Temples in ... Rohan Bastin No preview available - 2002 |