Secularism is one of the important and contentious public debates in India today. It is seen to be in greater crisis now than ever before, making a case for the continuing presence of this book. The debate also furnishes the making of Indian polity and society, given the inter-related development of culture, society and politics in India. It is thus a debate about religious nationalism and fundamentalism as well. Modern Myths, Locked Minds examines the ideologies of secularism and fundamentalism in the setting of the religious traditions of India--Hinduism, Sikhism, and Islam. Further insightful comparison of the traditions is offered, each seen over a long period of time, revealing markedly distinctive historical experiences.
This book reflects contemporary concerns about the inadequacies of secularism in the context of religious assertiveness in recent decades. It examines the ideologies of secularism and fundamentalism in the setting of the Hindu, Muslim, and Sikh religious traditions. In a new preface and two appendices, the author recapitulates earlier formulations on the subject and revisits the current debates. The book has been described as `an invitation to an enticing intellectual journey that reveals new landscapes' (Louis Dumont), acclaimed as a `tour de force' (Rajni Kothari), `a landmark intervention from the social sciences in public affairs' (Satish Saberwal), and a `major contribution to scholarship and the delineation of the interrelationship of religion and politics' (Harold Gould).
It will interest students and scholars of sociology, political science, history, religious studies and philosophy, and informed general readers.
Secularism is one of the important and contentious public debates in India today. It is seen to be in greater crisis now than ever before, making a case for the continuing presence of this book. The debate also furnishes the making of Indian polity and society, given the inter-related development of culture, society and politics in India. It is thus a debate about religious nationalism and fundamentalism as well. Modern Myths, Locked Minds examines the ideologies of secularism and fundamentalism in the setting of the religious traditions of India--Hinduism, Sikhism, and Islam. Further insightful comparison of the traditions is offered, each seen over a long period of time, revealing markedly distinctive historical experiences.
This second, paperback edition comes with a new preface where the author revisits this debate and contemporarizes it for the reader. Also included are two new appendices on secularism.
