Milestone in research on Hinduism, 25 years in the making

Dr Meera Narasimhan, vice dean of the University of South Carolina School of Medicine, with part of an 11-volume Encyclopedia of Hinduism that is to be donated to the university’s library.

COLUMBIA, UNITED STATES // Twenty-five years ago, researchers set out to come up with an extensive collection of scholarship on Hinduism.

With the unveiling this week of 11 volumes of work covering one of the world's oldest religion, it is safe to say they have achieved their goal.

"The goal was to have something pretty definitive - not just about Hinduism, but about the whole South Asian tradition," said Hal French, a University of South Carolina professor who met with a small group of scholars in 1987 to offer academic support for the project.

The encyclopaedia is written in English and includes about 7,000 articles on Hinduism and its practices. The work also deals with Indian history, languages, art, music, dance, architecture, medicine, and women's issues. The entire encyclopaedia contains more than 1,000 illustrations and photographs.

Brightly coloured images of Hinduism's deities fill entire pages, with footnoted explanations of the forms and powers God can take in the religion.

"This hadn't really been attempted before," said Mr French, 83, a distinguished professor emeritus of religious studies at the school and an associate editor. "It is a milestone of research that brought together both Eastern and Western scholarship."

Mr French, who specialises in the religions of Asia, said a primary inspiration for the work was one of India's most revered spiritual leaders, Swami Chidanand Saraswati, who is coming to the University of South Carolina conference today that will celebrate the work's launch.

Swami Chidanand founded the India Heritage Research Foundation, which became the parent organisation behind the encyclopaedia effort. He is the president of the Parmarth Niketan Ashram spiritual retreat in Rishikesh, India, and travels to visit with Hindu followers in the United States several times a year.

The encyclopaedia's volumes run from 600 to more than 700 pages. About 3,000 copies are being issued in the first printing and will be of interest to libraries, religious institutions and students of Indian culture around the world.

Hinduism is the world's third-largest religion, with 1 billion followers, according to a Pew Research Center study published this year. Christians number 2.2 billion and Muslims 1.6 billion.

Hinduism's basic teaching is that the soul never dies, but is reborn each time the body dies. The soul may be reborn in human or animal form. The cycle of death and rebirth continues until a soul reaches spiritual perfection, and is united in total enlightenment and peace with the supreme being.

Many Hindus who settled around the world have found that they need a comprehensive source of information on the religion for their children, said Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswati, the managing editor of the encyclopaedia and a secretary of the India Heritage Research Foundation.

Children may come home from schools where a teacher had discussed whether Hinduism was a belief in one god, or many gods, and need the proper background to explain it, Sadhvi Bhagawati said.

"They wanted a source to go to so they could pass the correct information to their children."

She said the encyclopaedia project took more than 20 years because "it began in pre-computer days".

"If we started today, it might just have taken a few years," said Sadhvi Bhagawati.

Dr Meera Narasimhan, the vice dean of the USC School of Medicine and chairman of the department of neuropsychiatry, said she met Swami Chidanand several years ago, learnt about his and USC's involvement in the project, and has been working to support it ever since.

"I regard this as a legacy that will be left behind for generations to come," she said.

The physician is a specialist in mind-body connections, and she spearheaded the organisation of today's conference. A native of Bangalore, India, Dr Narasimhan began her medical studies there, then attended Yale University for her residency and fellowship. She has been at USC since 2004.

"This brings together my Indian heritage, my work as a physician in America and work as a Gamecock," Narasimhan said, using the sports nickname for USC supporters.

Today's conference is attracting scholars, Hindu religious leaders and those of Indian heritage from around the globe, she said. It is free for the public.

"This encyclopaedia will have a very wide reader base because it covers such a range of subjects," Narasimhan said.

All proceeds from the encyclopaedia are going to a charitable organisation dedicated to the environmental clean-up of rivers in India, she said.

The first set of volumes will arrive at the university on Wednesday. They are to be donated to the university's library system.