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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... tree site, a development that now includes a Kali shrine created, in effect, by the Munnesvaram deities and by the dynamic of religious practice, both Tamil Saivite and Sinhala Buddhist. For, while the sponsor of the Kali shrine is ...
... tree is one small vignette, and I stress the role of the broad body of worshippers as members of a public that is actively constitutive of this dynamism of both design and rite. To do this I begin with the social composition of the body ...
... trees are growing from the earthworks of their bunkers, and the roadblocks are adorned with advertising signs. For the most part, the area around Munnesvaram has been spared from the excesses of the civil war, and many people involved ...
... tree at the temple entrance. The Munnesvaram Temple and Tank (courtesy of Nihal Fernando, Studio Times) The Munnesvaram Temple Inner Sanctum showing the Sivalinga, and to. – 21 – Fluidity and Ambiguity in the History of Munnesvaram.
... tree at the temple entrance. Pusparamaya was built in the latter part of the nineteenth century. It contains a monks' residence, a small dagaba, and some deity shrines. Its grounds also contain the Sinhala-medium school. Residing there ...
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 |