TY - BOOK AU - Sharabi,Asaf TI - The biography of a god: Mahasu in the Himalayas T2 - Religion and Society in Asia SN - 9048553849 AV - BL1216 .S43 2023 U1 - 294.5/211 23/eng/20230424 PY - 2023///] CY - Amsterdam PB - Amsterdam University Press KW - Hindu gods KW - India, North KW - Hinduism KW - Dieux hindous KW - Inde (Nord) KW - Hindouisme KW - Oriental religions KW - bicssc KW - Religious groups: social and cultural aspects KW - RELIGION / Hinduism / General KW - bisacsh KW - RELIGION / Religion, Politics & State KW - SOCIAL SCIENCE / Ethnic Studies / Asian Studies KW - fast KW - Social groups: religious groups and communities KW - thema KW - Anthropology KW - Religion and politics KW - Religious life and customs KW - Vie religieuse KW - North India KW - Asian Studies KW - AS KW - ANTHRO KW - Contemporary Society KW - CONTEMP SOC KW - Religion and Theology KW - REL & THEOL KW - South Asia KW - SASIA KW - Deities, agency, Western Himalaya N1 - Table of contents Notes on Transliteration Acknowledgment Meet Mahasu 1. Gods on the Road Getting into the Field The Devta Institution 2. A Stormy Biography Mahasu Appears Vs.1 Mahasu Appears Vs.2 The Gods They are a-Changin' 3. The Four Brothers Personalities and Identities The Four Kings Mahasu as Shiva Gods Between Here and Everywhere 4. Local Traditions in Times of Change Local Rituals Fade, Gods Persevere From Carnivore to Vegetarian When Gods Settle Down The Agency of Mahasu 5. Communicating with Mahasu The God's Management Mediums Talking with Mahasu Testing Mediums Agency, Doubt, Mediation Index; Frontmatter --; Table of Contents --; List of Figures --; Notes on Transliteration --; Acknowledgments --; Meet Mahasu --; 1 Gods on the Road --; 2 A Stormy Biography --; 3 The Four Brothers --; 4 Local Traditions in Times of Change --; 5 Communicating with Mahasu --; Agency, Doubt, Mediation --; Index N2 - Mahasu is the joint name of four gods whose influence is widespread throughout the Indian states of Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand. Like other deities in the Western Himalayas, they are regarded as royal gods who rule over territories and people. This book traces changes in faith and practices surrounding the Mahasu brothers, and shows how the locals understand these changes by emphasizing the dominant role of humans in the decisions of the gods. The locals are also constantly testing the authenticity of the human mediumship. Thus, the book presents the claim that the gap between local conceptions of divinity and the perceptions of anthropologists regarding gods may be narrower than we think. The Biography of a God: Mahasu in the Himalayas is based on ethnographic research, resulting in an important contribution to the study of Indian village deities, Himalayan Hinduism, lived Hinduism, and the anthropology of religion UR - https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&scope=site&db=nlebk&AN=3585551 ER -