Book Description

This 2-volume study examines the reality of Hindu worship in northern India from the perspective of its popular manifestation. In rural areas, practical Hinduism differed dramatically from organized Vedic Hinduism and included cult worship of a multitude of local deities which were not formally recognized by the Vedas but exerted a greater influence on the rhythms, meanings and decisions of day-to-day life. Crooke's study may have been the first to look at the religion through eyes other than those of missionaries or the Hindu elite, seeking to fill a gap in European intellectual knowledge of India by documenting living traditions in a serious and accessible manner._x000D_ Volume 1:_x000D_ The Godlings of Nature_x000D_ The Heroic and Village Godlings_x000D_ The Godlings of Disease_x000D_ The Worship of the Sainted Dead_x000D_ Worship of the Malevolent Dead_x000D_ Volume 2:_x000D_ The Evil Eye and the Scaring of Ghosts_x000D_ Tree and Serpent Worship_x000D_ Totemism and Fetishism_x000D_ Animal-Worship_x000D_ The Black Art_x000D_ Some Rural Festivals and Ceremonies