Contained lots of factual errors, erroneous mapsthey have withdrawn the book knowing the tide is now against the missionaries with support from their masters aka u. This book is a collection of essays on hinduism by the author wendy doniger. By arvind sharma birks professor of comparative religion at faculty of religious studies at mcgill university in canada. Assuming that hinduism means sanatan dharma for you, because the term hindu has very controversial meaning and origin. Penguin to withdraw wendy donigers controversial book. Wendy is known for her controversial position about hinduism. The next year, the hindu right government in the state of maharashtra banned james laines book shivaji.
Wendy donigers book is a tribute to hinduisms complexity, not an insult vijay prashad. Vigilant hindu groups have stopped penguin from publishing a derogatory book insulting and offending hindus. Controversial book, the hindus, by religious scholar wendy doniger withdrawn by penguin over lawsuit penguin books india has agreed to withdraw a controversial book on hinduism as settlement for a lawsuit filed in 2011, the new york times reported. An alternative history, as part of a court settlement. She claims to have translated several sanskrit texts. Seventythreeyearold doniger is an american jewish indologist and has been a professor at the university of chicago since 1978. The court case in india against wendy donigers book the hindus was in a way initiated in atlanta, georgia, by a group of indianamerican. The hindus an alternative history is an utterly wonderful book. Penguin recalls controversial book from india bookstores wendy donigers the hindu. A controversial book on hinduism is back in print in indiawith a tweak wendy donigers book was booted from india after conservative hindu activists cried foul. Wendy donigers book is a tribute to hinduisms complexity, not an. An alternative history penguin, 2009 has outraged hindus around the world like never before for allegedly insulting and offending hindus and indians.
Although she made a career out of hinduism, she has little respect for it. Yet another controversial book has been suppressed thanks to indias tough libel laws. Penguin books india pulls controversial book on hinduism penguin books india agreed to withdraw the book from circulation in india as well as destroy every copy of the book. Penguin recalls controversial book from india bookstores. An alternative history, by university of chicago divinity school professor wendy doniger, was published in. Consequently, her antagonism towards the hindutva forces which includes modi, rss, and the bjp is understandable. An alternative history following a courtbacked settlement with a. You need to know about the hindu textbook controversy.
An alternative history has been pulled by its publisher, penguin books india, for offending hindus. Penguin books india has reportedly agreed to recall and destroy all copies in india of a book about hinduism by a u. And although the official decision to withdraw the book tilted the hindus. Penguin to axe wendy donigers controversial book the. Indian publishers nervous about taking books that might. An alternative history has been pulled by its publisher. Hinduism is an umbrella under which different school. According to the book, the hindu, an alternate history, wendy doniger holds two doctorates in sanskrit and india studies, from harvard and oxford. Wendy doniger, a professor of history of religion at university of chicago, is a prizewinning author of book, the hindus. I think i should respond to the piece by wendy doniger in the chronicle of higher education entitled the repression of religious studies, as i am the hindu whose piece on hinduism was substituted for her own.
This book was considered an important piece and a was considered authoritative work on hinduism. A response to wendy donigers the repression of religious. An alternative history has outraged hindus around the world, insulting indians and offending hindus. No stranger to controversy, batra had earlier taken on indian. Wendy donigers book the hindus withdrawn by penguin. Penguin books india has decided to withdraw copies of us indologist wendy donigers book the hindus. Recently, i chanced to read an article authored by wendy doniger, distinguished professor at the university of chicago, usa, about hinduism and its cow history. Wendy donigers derogatory hinduism studies introduction i do not believe in burning books, but wendy donigers 779page tome titled, the hindus. Why the outrage on wendy donigers controversial book. In this magisterial volume of essays, wendy doniger enhances our understanding of the ancient and complex religion to which she has devoted herself for half a century.
American professor wendy donigers controversial book the hindus. Wendy donigers book is a tribute to hinduisms complexity. Wendy donigers the hindus recalled by penguin india time. The real reason wendy donigers book on hindus was banned in india. I had written this for facebook, reproducing it here. For those who already know and admire wendy donigers work, this is a handy if hefty compendium of. An alternative history is a book by american indologist, wendy doniger which the author describes as an alternative to the narrative of hindu history that they tell. Publishers weekly clear and direct this will stand as a reliable resource to return to frequently. Hinduism, in her view, is an intricate weave of the diverse localities and communities of indian culture. Wendy donigers enthralling and encyclopaedic book reveals her vision of a hindu culture that is plural, varied, generous, and inclusive. An alternative history penguin, 2009 has outraged hindus around the world for allegedly insulting and offending hindus and indians. Controversial book on hindus wendy donigers book the hindus.
A controversial book on hinduism is back in print in indiawith a. The book was initially published by viking penguin in 2009 and later in india by penguins indian subsidiary, penguin india. Wendy donigers book was booted from india after conservative hindu activists cried foul. Robert siegel recently interviewed doniger on all things considered, because penguin books india has agreed to recall and destroy all copies of her book the hindus. Seventythreeyearold doniger is an american jewish indologist who has been a professor at the university of chicago since 1978. Controversial book, the hindus, by religious scholar wendy. We alert people in india to be careful about such books. Penguin india agrees to recall and destroy all remaining copies of wendy donigers book the hindus after claims it was offensive, reports say. It concerns how india and hinduism is portrayed in social studies books.
Penguin india agrees to withdraw controversial book on. Penguin books india has said this week that it will destroy all available copies of the 2009 book by the indologist wendy doniger, the hindus. Wendy doniger after her book was banned in india and a criminal case filed against her. Yet i was horrified to find that npr did the exact opposite when interviewing university of chicago professor wendy doniger about her controversial book.
There has been much handwringing in india about wendy doniger s book, the hindus. Penguin to withdraw wendy donigers controversial book on. Penguin books india has agreed to withdraw a controversial book on hinduism as settlement for a lawsuit filed in 2011, the new york times reported. Outcry as penguin india pulps alternative history of. A protest near the us embassy in new delhi against wendy donigers the hindus. The real reason wendy doniger s book on hindus was banned in india. The real reason wendy donigers book on hindus was banned. Penguin to destroy donigers controversial book on hindus. Another book on hinduism by american indologist wendy doniger has come under attack from the same delhibased group which had compelled the. Penguin withdraws controversial hinduism book huffpost. Wendy doniger book to be recalled by penguin india bbc. It was used by encarta for reference now many of us may agree most indians feel a work is validated. Penguin books india pulls controversial book on hinduism.
Yet another controversial book has been suppressed thanks. Hindus in india dont have a problem with it because a very small minority knows about it. Its very difficult to recommend one book which will serve this purpose. Doniger, 73, is a jewish american indologist and has been a professor at the university of chicago since 1978. The release of wendy donigers recent book the hindus. It has seven sections based on the different themes. An alternative history was made on february 4, twitter has been overflowing with strong criticism, thus making the book title a trending topic on the microblogging website. New delhi when penguin india decided to withdraw a book on hinduism by the american scholar wendy doniger in february, it cast a pall over the indian publishing industry, which was already vulnerable to lawsuits because of the ambiguous language of indian defamation laws now, a young publishing house, aleph book company, is under pressure after it became the latest target of an. Penguin books india has decided to withdraw copies of united states indologist wendy donigers book the hindus. The recall of us author wendy donigers book on hinduism by publisher penguin books has been received with much outrage.
Authors and academics have taken to twitter to voice their disgust at the apparent decision of penguin to recall and destroy a book on the history of hinduism, which campaigners have called offensive. For anyone seeking a deeper and more nuanced understanding of hinduism, this book is a must read. Amid contested reports that a second book about hinduism by religion scholar wendy doniger may be withdrawn in india, a scholars group is expressing concern about a chilling effect on free inquiry. This series of interconnected essays and lectures surveys the most critically important and hotly contested issues in hinduism over 3,500 years, from the ancient time of the vedas to the present day. Which are the best books on origin and history of hinduism. I usually try to distance myself from religious debates on rindia but your question is an important one. The book features boisterous representations of krishna, a horse whose body is made. The real reason wendy donigers book on hindus was banned in.
Penguin books india has decided to withdraw all copies of a book on hinduism by us indologist wendy doniger following an outofcourt settlement with the petitioners who had claimed that it. Inside wendy donigers banned book on the hindus learn religions. An alternative history is a book by american indologist, wendy. An alternative history penguin, 2009 has outraged hindus around the world for allegedly. Controversial book, the hindus, by religious scholar wendy doniger withdrawn by penguin over lawsuit. An alternative history, which has been both revered and reviled by different sections of society, stirred up a huge controversy. The hindu tantrism tradition is one of the aspects of the religion explored by wendy donigers book. The book makes certain claims which certain segments of hindus believe portray hinduism in a bad light. A controversial book on hinduism is back in print in india. An alternative history, which was published in 2009.
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