"This Is Religious Environment": Sacred Space, Environmental Discourses, and Environmental Behavior at a Hindu Pilgrimage Site in India

This article examines discourses about environmental change and their impact on environmental behavior of different social groups at the Hindu pilgrimage site of Vrindavan in India, which receives more than 6 million visitors annually. Using concepts from social spatialization, religious socializati...

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Détails bibliographiques
Auteur principal: Shinde, Kiran A. (Auteur)
Type de support: Électronique Article
Langue:Anglais
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Publié: Sage Publications 2011
Dans: Space and Culture
Année: 2011, Volume: 14, Numéro: 4, Pages: 448-463
Sujets non-standardisés:B Vrindavan
B Religious Socialization
B Hindu pilgrimage sites
B environmental discourse
B social spatialization
Accès en ligne: Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
Description
Résumé:This article examines discourses about environmental change and their impact on environmental behavior of different social groups at the Hindu pilgrimage site of Vrindavan in India, which receives more than 6 million visitors annually. Using concepts from social spatialization, religious socialization, and cultural theory, it explains how religious culture shapes the attitudes and worldviews of these groups, which are then used in articulating environmental problems and contesting environmental responsibility. Interviews with social groups, including religious gurus, priests, visitors, government officials, local residents, and community leaders, reveal the recurrence of four dominant themes: denial, indifference, helplessness, and stewardship. ?Denial? and ?indifference? are common with those engaged in the cultural economy of pilgrimage rituals as they use the language of transcendence framed through myths, religious ideologies, and ritual practices. Others operating outside religious domain readily recognize environmental impacts but feel ?helpless? and only a few demonstrate environmental stewardship.
ISSN:1552-8308
Contient:Enthalten in: Space and Culture
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1177/1206331211412280