Abstract
The All World Gayatri Pariwar is a modern Hindu movement that utilizes scientific rhetoric a great deal in its discourse. Based on ethnographic research undertaken at the main āśram of the movement in Haridwar, this article provides an overview of the Gayatri Pariwar before shifting to a more sustained discussion of the āśram’s middle-class residents. Noting that younger āśram residents narrate their decisions to move to Shantikunj rather differently than senior residents, I identify an upwardly mobile but disillusioned middle class as a significant subset of the community and situate their experience of being middle class in the larger academic discourse. I conclude with some brief thoughts about the special role that the movement’s scientific rhetoric plays in appealing to this predominately STEM-educated group.
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Heifetz, D. Religion, Science, and the Middle Class in the All World Gayatri Pariwar. Hindu Studies 23, 27–42 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11407-019-09249-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11407-019-09249-0