Llopiiuuhgjhgfygt
Asia Journal of Global Studies Vol 4, No 2 (2010-11), 93-102
Asia Association for Global Studies
Globalization, Hinduism, and Cultural Change in India
Anita Bhela
University of Delhi, India
ABSTRACT
This paper analyzes the impact of globalization on the religion, culture, and identity of Hindus in India. It describes how Hinduism, over epochs, adapted to outside influences and retained its unique character, but the sudden onslaught of globalization in our era is threatening its core values, traditions, and beliefs. As a consequence, religion in India is being disestablished and cultural identities are being dissolved. One major sign of decline is that Hindus, rather than actively expressing their traditional customs and beliefs, are now experiencing religion passively and vicariously through the virtual world of television and the Internet. What this recent development means for the cultural future of India is unclear, but it is to be hoped that Hinduism will rejuvenate itself through returning to its historic roots and counteracting the globalizing forces associated with cultural disintegration and homogenization.
RELIGION, CULTURE, AND TECHNOLOGY
Considering the span of human existence, man 's contact with machines has been brief. The first ancestors of humans probably lived about two to three million years ago, and the evolution from Homo erectus to Homo sapiens sapiens took hundreds of thousands of years. Agriculture emerged only around 9,000 BCE and writing about 5,500 years ago. The modern technological age began in Western Europe only about 500 years ago. Great advances in technology and science led to the Industrial Revolution in Britain in the eighteenth century. Continued advancements in science and technology produced more and more inventions; the light bulb, the first major electric innovation, was invented in 1879; the first generation of electronic computers appeared in 1947, and in 1969 the ARPANET, the forerunner of the Internet,
Asia Association for Global Studies
Globalization, Hinduism, and Cultural Change in India
Anita Bhela
University of Delhi, India
ABSTRACT
This paper analyzes the impact of globalization on the religion, culture, and identity of Hindus in India. It describes how Hinduism, over epochs, adapted to outside influences and retained its unique character, but the sudden onslaught of globalization in our era is threatening its core values, traditions, and beliefs. As a consequence, religion in India is being disestablished and cultural identities are being dissolved. One major sign of decline is that Hindus, rather than actively expressing their traditional customs and beliefs, are now experiencing religion passively and vicariously through the virtual world of television and the Internet. What this recent development means for the cultural future of India is unclear, but it is to be hoped that Hinduism will rejuvenate itself through returning to its historic roots and counteracting the globalizing forces associated with cultural disintegration and homogenization.
RELIGION, CULTURE, AND TECHNOLOGY
Considering the span of human existence, man 's contact with machines has been brief. The first ancestors of humans probably lived about two to three million years ago, and the evolution from Homo erectus to Homo sapiens sapiens took hundreds of thousands of years. Agriculture emerged only around 9,000 BCE and writing about 5,500 years ago. The modern technological age began in Western Europe only about 500 years ago. Great advances in technology and science led to the Industrial Revolution in Britain in the eighteenth century. Continued advancements in science and technology produced more and more inventions; the light bulb, the first major electric innovation, was invented in 1879; the first generation of electronic computers appeared in 1947, and in 1969 the ARPANET, the forerunner of the Internet,
References: Abbi, A. (2007, Sept.-Oct.). In Conversation with . . . JNU News Retrieved February 3, 2011, from www.jnu.ac.in/JNUNewsArchives/JNUNews_Sep_Oct2007/conversation.htm Arnold, M. (1971). Culture and anarchy. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Doniger, W. (2009). The Hindus: An alternative history. New Delhi: Penguin. Eliot, T. S. (1948). Notes towards the definition of culture. London: Faber and Faber Ltd. Eliot, T. S. (1954). The idea of a Christian society. London: Faber and Faber Ltd. Forster E. M. (1915, April 30). The mission of Hinduism. Daily News and Lender. In G. K. Das (Ed.) (1977). E. M. Forster 's India (p. 7). London: The Macmillan Press, Ltd. Ganguli, K. M. (Trans./Ed.). (1970). The Mahabarata of Krishna - Dwaipayana Vyasa (12 vols). (3rd ed.). New Delhi: Munshiram Manohar Lal Publishing House Pvt. Ltd. Gillespie, M. (1989). Technology and tradition - audio-visual culture among South Asian families in West London. In A. Gray & J. McGuigan (Eds.). (1993). Studying culture: An introductory reader. London: Edward Arnold. Vol 4, No 2 (2010-11) 101 Anita Bhela Lipner, J. (1994). Hindus: Their religious beliefs and practices (reprinted 1999). London & New York: Routledge. Lutgendorf, P. (2006). A Ramayana on air: All in the (Raghu) family: A video epic in cultural context. In J. S. Hawley & V. Narayanan. The life of Hinduism. The life of religion (pp. 140-157). Berkeley: University of California Press. Merton, R. K. (1936). The unanticipated consequences of purposive social action. American Sociological Review, 1(6), pp. 894-904. Oxford English Dictionary (OED). Retrieved March 23, 2007 from http://dictionary.oed.com Radhakrishnan, S. R. (1974). The Bhagavadagita: With an introductory essay, Sanskrit text, English translation and notes. New Delhi: Blackie and Son (India) Ltd. Sawian, B. (2009, November). The importance of a cultural identity in multicultural society. (Unpublished panel discussion). National conference on conflict, belonging, and multiculturalism. Sri Venkateswara College, University of Delhi, Delhi. Shastri, H. P. (Trans.). (1985). The Ramayana of Valmiki (3 vols.) (3rd ed.). London: Shantisadan. Tylor, E. B. (1871). Primitive culture (2 vols.) (7th ed.) New York: Brentano 's Publishers. United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). (2000). (Revised version September 2004). UNESCO and the issue of cultural diversity: Review and strategy, 1946-2004. Stenou Katérina (Ed.). Paris: UNESCO. Van Buitenen, J. A. B. (Ed. & Trans.). (1973). The Mahabharata (incomplete). Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Younger, P. (1972). Introduction to Indian religious thought. London: Darton, Longman Todd Limited. 102 Asia Journal of Global Studies