SWAMINARAYAN HINDUISM

Towards the end of the eighteenth century a lone pilgrim reached Gujarat and joined a small ashram in Loj. In time his followers not only accepted him as the leader of the ashram but also as the manifestation of deity and called him Swaminarayan. His followers increased rapidly and today Swaminarayan Hinduism is a transnational religious movement with major centers in India East Africa UK USA and Australasia. In a first multidisciplinary study of the movement this volume provides new and vital information about its history theology as well as its transnational development and brings forth current academic research from fields as diverse as the arts architecture sociology and migration studies among others. It analyses the philosophy conduct and principles that guide Swaminarayan Hindus and provides a case study of the historical and social processes of adapting religious traditions to shape new identities in response to evolving social economic and political changes.