Authenticating Religion: Religious Images and the Construction of Transnational Hinduism Nkoyo Edoho-Eket
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Florida State University Libraries Electronic Theses, Treatises and Dissertations The Graduate School 2012 Authenticating Religion: Religious Images and the Construction of Transnational Hinduism Nkoyo Edoho-Eket Follow this and additional works at the FSU Digital Library. For more information, please contact [email protected] THE FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES AUTHENTICATING RELIGION: RELIGIOUS IMAGES AND THE CONSTRUCTION OF TRANSNATIONAL HINDUISM By NKOYO EDOHO-EKET A Thesis submitted to the Department of Religion in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Degree Awarded: Summer Semester, 2012 Nkoyo Edoho-Eket defended this thesis on June 22, 2012. The members of the supervisory committee were: Kathleen Erndl Professor Directing Thesis Bryan Cuevas Committee Member Patricia Villeneuve Committee Member The Graduate School has verified and approved the above-named committee members, and certifies that the thesis has been approved in accordance with university requirements. ii For Robert and Evelyn. And, of course, Nina. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The list of people I have to thank is varied and plenty, but I must begin foremost with the institution that has made this thesis possible. The support and wisdom from the faculty and staff at Florida State University has been remarkably encouraging and inspiring. I am especially grateful to Dr. Kathleen Erndl for her unfailing guidance and expertise that has steered me toward a subject that I love. I would also like to express my thanks to my committee members, Dr. Bryan Cuevas and Dr. Patricia Villeneuve, for their supervision on this project. Outside of the university, I wish to express my gratitude to Kathryn Delmez from the Frist Center for the Visual Arts for providing me with valuable information about the construction of the Vishnu exhibition in Nashville. Additionally, I must acknowledge my friends and colleagues from the department who have endured my hyperbolic complaints and thesis-induced panic attacks over the course of my MA work. Finally, I owe my deepest gratitude to my family and friends for their lifelong encouragement and love. To Hayley Forester, for arriving in the nick of time. To my grandfather, Robert Lovelace, who sacrificed his own dreams a lifetime ago so that I might one day arrive here. To my mother, Nina Lovelace, who has literally and figuratively cheered me on with unbridled enthusiasm and who is always eager to share her valuable insights and weird, nature-related non-sequiturs. Lastly, I must attempt to thank my grandmother, Evelyn Lovelace, who has inspired me to go forth in life with the same sincerity and courage that she embodied everyday. Her unwavering confidence and unconditional pride in me will only propel me forward. Thank you. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Figures .............................................................................................................................. vi Note on Transliteration and Style............................................................................................vii Abstract ......................................................................................................................................viii I. INTRODUCTION......................................................................................................................1 II. THE POLITICS OF LEGITIMACY: SOLIDIFYING HINDU IDENTITY IN AMERICAN MUSEUMS .........................................................................................................5 Vishnu: Hinduism’s Blue Skinned Savior ...............................................................5 The Place of the Museum/The Museum as a Place...............................................6 The Politics of Inclusion.............................................................................................7 The Process of Legitimation ....................................................................................10 The Museum and the Making of an Indian Icon..................................................16 Challenging the Museum ........................................................................................21 III. TRANSFORMATIONS: RELIGIOUS ART, MULTICULTURALISM, AND COMMODIFICATION IN THE DIASPORA .....................................................................23 Visual Culture and the Religious Image................................................................23 Ritual Images Among Immigrant Communities..................................................24 Art, Religion, and the Multicultural Ideal.............................................................30 Identity and Commodity .........................................................................................40 IV. SECULAR HINDUISM: POST-INDEPENDENCE CONSTRUCTIONS OF HINDU IDENTITY IN INDIA .............................................................................................................45 Empire, Kingdom, and State-sponsored Museums in India ..............................45 The National Museum and Religious Identity .....................................................47 The Museo-Temple and Hindu Religious Identity..............................................53 Cultural Property in India: M. F. Husain ........................................................56 V. CONCLUSION ...................................................................................................................61 END NOTES........................................................................................................................64 BIBLIOGRAPHY.................................................................................................................72 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH...............................................................................................76 v LIST OF FIGURES 2.1 Matsya Saves Manu and the Sages ......................................................................................11 2.2 Sudarshana Purusha .............................................................................................................12 2.3 Image from the pamphlet Hindu Home Shrines ..............................................................13 2.4 Parashurama .........................................................................................................................14 2.5 12th Century Shiva Nataraja donated to the Museum Reitberg ....................................17 2.6 Uday Shankar Poster ...........................................................................................................19 3.1 Sipari Mai ............................................................................................................................26 3.2 Image of Bathing Ganesh ..................................................................................................28 3.3 Lakshmi statue ...................................................................................................................29 3.4 Obama as Nataraja ............................................................................................................31 3.5 Gaynesh ...............................................................................................................................34 3.6 Ganesh with Adolf Hitler..................................................................................................37 3.7 Ganesh with Adolf Hitler II .............................................................................................37 3.8 Ganesh Battling Nazi Soldiers .........................................................................................38 3.9 Kali Toilet Seat.....................................................................................................................43 4.1 Venugopal: Krishna with the Flute.......................................................................................48 4.2 Standing Krishna .................................................................................................................50 4.3 Saraswati ..............................................................................................................................52 4.4 Swaminarayan Murti .........................................................................................................53 4.5 Image from the Sahajanand Darshan ..............................................................................54 4.6 50 Years of Independence.......................................................................................................57 4.7 Untitled..................................................................................................................................59 vi NOTES ON TRANSLITERATION AND STYLE This thesis contains references to words in both Hindi and Sanskrit. I have provided translations of such terms in either the body of the essay or in the endnotes as needed. All terms of South Asian origin follow simplified transliteration conventions that represent, as near as possible, the way the word sound. In keeping with the majority of my sources, I have opted not to use diacritical marks and have instead used them when quoting directly an author who has used them. I have italicized all terms specific to South Asia with the exception of terms that might be more familiar to the reader (as in the case of the deity Krishna) or anglicized terms that are South Asian in origin (such as the term “advaitic”). All images that have been given specific titles, either