CAPAS RESEARCH PROJECT - Rick Weiss Apocalyptic and Post-Apocalyptic Imaginaries in Colonial Hinduism
This project will trace the genealogies of Hindu apocalyptic narratives in colonial South Asia, and it will seek to explain the proliferation of these narratives in modern Hinduism. The content and structure of these narratives indicate links to prior Hindu expressions as well as to other, non-Hindu apocalyptic imaginaries. By focussing on a South Indian apocalyptic movement called “Ayya Vazhi,” I will strive to understand these narratives as expressions that highlight shifts in Hinduism towards globalisation and egalitarianism; as responses to a new colonial world that posed both threats and opportunities; and as products of a transcultural, global exchange of apocalyptic imaginaries.