White Utopias: The Religious Exoticism of Transformational Festivals
Transformational festivals, from Burning Man to Lightning in a Bottle, Bhakti Fest, and Wanderlust, are massive events that attract thousands of participants to sites around the world. In this groundbreaking book, Amanda J. Lucia shows how these festivals operate as religious institutions for "...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Book |
| Language: | English |
| Subito Delivery Service: | Order now. |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Berkeley
University of Californiarnia Press
2020
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| In: | Year: 2020 |
| Further subjects: | B
Spirituality
Social aspects
B Electronic books |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Parallel Edition: | Erscheint auch als: 9780520376946 |
| Summary: | Transformational festivals, from Burning Man to Lightning in a Bottle, Bhakti Fest, and Wanderlust, are massive events that attract thousands of participants to sites around the world. In this groundbreaking book, Amanda J. Lucia shows how these festivals operate as religious institutions for "spiritual, but not religious" (SBNR) communities. Whereas previous research into SBNR practices and New Age religion has not addressed the predominantly white makeup of these communities, White Utopias examines the complicated, often contradictory relationships with race at these events, presenting an engrossing ethnography of SBNR practices. Lucia contends that participants create temporary utopias through their shared commitments to spiritual growth and human connection. But they also participate in religious exoticism by adopting Indigenous and Indic spiritualities, a practice that ultimately renders them exclusive, white utopias. Focusing on yoga's role in disseminating SBNR values, Lucia offers new ways of comprehending transformational festivals as significant cultural phenomena. Cover -- White Utopias -- Title -- Copyright -- Dedication -- Contents -- List of Illustrations -- Acknowledgments -- Author Note -- Introduction -- 1. Romanticizing the Premodern: The Confluence of Indic and Indigenous Spiritualities -- Interlude: Cultural Possession and Whiteness -- 2. Anxieties over Authenticity: American Yoga and the Problem of Whiteness -- Interlude: "White People Are on the Journey of Evolution" -- 3. Deconstructing the Self: At the Limits of Asceticism -- Interlude: Sculpting Bodies and Minds -- 4. Wonder, Awe, and Peak Experiences: Approaching Mystical Territories -- Interlude: Producing Wonder / Branding Freedom -- 5. The Cathartic Freedom of Transformational Festivals: Neoliberal Escapes and Entrapments -- Conclusion -- Appendix 1: @Instagram Data for Public Figures Cited -- Appendix 2: Methodology -- Notes -- References -- Index. |
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| Item Description: | Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources |
| ISBN: | 0520976339 |