"Real Sadhus Sing to God": The Religious Capital of Devotion and Domesticity in the Leadership of Female Renouncers in Rajasthan
This article examines the ways in which two female Hindu gurus in Rajasthan perform a gendered model of religious leadership and, by extension, explores the guru tradition as an alternative to the more official male model through their practices of devotion, which the author characterizes as their &...
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Indiana University Press
2013
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| In: |
Journal of feminist studies in religion
Year: 2013, Volume: 29, Issue: 1, Pages: 117-133 |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (JSTOR) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Parallel Edition: | Non-electronic
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| Summary: | This article examines the ways in which two female Hindu gurus in Rajasthan perform a gendered model of religious leadership and, by extension, explores the guru tradition as an alternative to the more official male model through their practices of devotion, which the author characterizes as their "rhetoric of renunciation." The essay argues that the female gurus' performances represent the "symbolic labor" by which they "earn" symbolic capital in the public religious arena of satsang. Moreover, through their devotional practices, the gurus performatively "domesticate" renunciation and guru leadership by foregrounding the feminine [End Page 117] values of connection, community, and care. By emphasizing the gendered concerns already elucidated, the gurus distinguish their traditions and leadership from the dominant Brahmanical model of renunciation and traditions of leadership. |
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| ISSN: | 1553-3913 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Journal of feminist studies in religion
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