The Age of K?l?: Contemporary Iterations of the Kaliyug in the Kullu Valley of the Western Himalayas

When reflecting on contemporary life, local residents of the West Himalayan Kullu Valley often associate it with the Kaliyug, the most horrible eon according to common textual descriptions of Hindu time. This enables them to explain and invest with broader meanings the far-reaching transformations u...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Halperin, Ehud (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Univ. 2014
In: Nidān
Year: 2014, Volume: 26, Issue: 1, Pages: 42-64
Further subjects:B Kaliyug
B Modernity
B Hinduism
B Goddesses
B Himalaya
Online Access: Volltext (kostenfrei)
Description
Summary:When reflecting on contemporary life, local residents of the West Himalayan Kullu Valley often associate it with the Kaliyug, the most horrible eon according to common textual descriptions of Hindu time. This enables them to explain and invest with broader meanings the far-reaching transformations unfolding in the valley in recent years. Yet, in order to carry out this task, the Kaliyug needs to undergo several significant modifications. In particular, its temporality is reworked so that it better corresponds with the events of recent decades, and it is closely associated with the local goddess Hadimb?, whose demonic origins and current identification with the goddess K?l? perfectly fit the wild and violent character of the age. This association, in turn, has important implications for villagers' self-perception and sense of place in the broader Indian cultural grid.
ISSN:2414-8636
Contains:Enthalten in: Nidān
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.58125/nidan.2014.1