- Title Pages
- Tables
- Figures
- Acknowledgements
- Note on Transliteration and Pronunciation
- Introduction
- Introduction to History
- 1 Situating the Swaminarayan Tradition in the Historiography of Modern Hindu Reform
- 2 Sahajanand Swami’s Language and Communication
- 3 Gujarati Socio-religious Context of Swaminarayan Devotion and Doctrine
- 4 Swaminarayan and British Contacts in Gujarat in the 1820s
- 5 The Swaminarayan Ideology and Kolis in Gujarat
- 6 Sahajanand Swami’s Approach to Caste
- Introduction to Theology and Literature
- 7 The Swaminarayan Commentarial Tradition
- 8 Akshara and Its Four Forms in Swaminarayan’s Doctrine
- 9 Swaminarayan’s <i>Brahmajnana</i> as Aksarabrahma-Parabrahma-Darsanam
- 10 Multivalent Krishna-Bhakti in Premanand’s Poetry
- 11 Brahmanand and His Innovations in the Barahmasa Genre
- Introduction to the Arts and Architecture
- 12 Early Swaminarayan Iconography and Its Relationship to Vaishnavism
- 13 Swaminarayan Temple Building
- 14 The Nagara Tradition of Temple Architecture and ‘Truth to Shastra’
- Introduction to Transnational Networks
- 15 Development of Swaminarayan Hinduism in Uganda and the Kampala Temple
- 16 Transnational Growth of BAPS in East Africa
- 17 Terrorism and Interfaith Relations at Swaminarayan Akshardham in Gandhinagar
- 18 Construction of the BAPS Swaminarayan Temple in Chino Hills, California
- 19 Thinking Through Akshardham and the Making of the Swaminarayan Self
- 20 Swaminarayan (BAPS) Identity Formation in Virtual Transnationalism
- About the Editors and Contributors
- Index
Swaminarayan (BAPS) Identity Formation in Virtual Transnationalism
Swaminarayan (BAPS) Identity Formation in Virtual Transnationalism
- Chapter:
- (p.402) 20 Swaminarayan (BAPS) Identity Formation in Virtual Transnationalism
- Source:
- Swaminarayan Hinduism
- Author(s):
Andrew Kunze
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
This chapter draws on fieldwork interviews in 2011 and 2012 to trace the ritual background, historical development, and contemporary effects of online darshan and other devotional practices enabled by digital media in the BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha. These online devotional practices have arisen as the latest iteration of a longer ritual tradition, which within BAPS has continually adapted to media innovations in order to maintain close ties between Gujarati culture and religious devotion. That project of digital devotion changes the way that twenty-first century BAPS followers connect, not only to Pramukh Swami, but also to one another. The design of the online material yields two novel impacts specific to the digital devotee: it consciously counteracts the difficulties of living in non-Gujarati Western cultures on a daily basis, and it inclines viewers to imagine themselves as part of a transnational network.
Keywords: darshan, bhakti, Internet, BAPS, digital devotion, transnational, adaptation, online, ritual, electronic, social media
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- Title Pages
- Tables
- Figures
- Acknowledgements
- Note on Transliteration and Pronunciation
- Introduction
- Introduction to History
- 1 Situating the Swaminarayan Tradition in the Historiography of Modern Hindu Reform
- 2 Sahajanand Swami’s Language and Communication
- 3 Gujarati Socio-religious Context of Swaminarayan Devotion and Doctrine
- 4 Swaminarayan and British Contacts in Gujarat in the 1820s
- 5 The Swaminarayan Ideology and Kolis in Gujarat
- 6 Sahajanand Swami’s Approach to Caste
- Introduction to Theology and Literature
- 7 The Swaminarayan Commentarial Tradition
- 8 Akshara and Its Four Forms in Swaminarayan’s Doctrine
- 9 Swaminarayan’s <i>Brahmajnana</i> as Aksarabrahma-Parabrahma-Darsanam
- 10 Multivalent Krishna-Bhakti in Premanand’s Poetry
- 11 Brahmanand and His Innovations in the Barahmasa Genre
- Introduction to the Arts and Architecture
- 12 Early Swaminarayan Iconography and Its Relationship to Vaishnavism
- 13 Swaminarayan Temple Building
- 14 The Nagara Tradition of Temple Architecture and ‘Truth to Shastra’
- Introduction to Transnational Networks
- 15 Development of Swaminarayan Hinduism in Uganda and the Kampala Temple
- 16 Transnational Growth of BAPS in East Africa
- 17 Terrorism and Interfaith Relations at Swaminarayan Akshardham in Gandhinagar
- 18 Construction of the BAPS Swaminarayan Temple in Chino Hills, California
- 19 Thinking Through Akshardham and the Making of the Swaminarayan Self
- 20 Swaminarayan (BAPS) Identity Formation in Virtual Transnationalism
- About the Editors and Contributors
- Index
