524:, North East England stated that Willis had provided a "meticulous analysis" of the available evidence in producing his study, ultimately describing it as "inspiring reading". Believing that Willis had followed a "line of reasoning with determination", he noted that his study still left room for the reader to come to their own decisions on certain issues. Concluding his review, Magnano recommended it to anyone with either an interest in Hindu ritual or interdisciplinary research.
433:
313:
496:. Describing it as "extraordinarily ambitious and exciting", she did however take issue with some of Willis' statements, believing them to be erroneous. In particular, she argues that Willis has painted an incorrect picture with regards to the relationship between Hinduism and the heterodox Jain and Buddhist faiths, neglecting to refer to the many similarities between them. She also takes issue with Willis' trend to pick fights with "
399:
387:", goes into depth regarding the archaeological site at the Udayagiri Caves and highlights the fact that it served as a centre for "imperial ritual" during the Gupta period. The author begins by describing the central ridge and passage at the site, before offering a synopsis of astronomical phenomenon and how it pertained to the Udayagiri site. Next discussed are various sculptures at the site, such as that of
554:
223:
542:" by a journalist T. Satyamurthy. Satyamurthy remarked that Willis' scholarship "stands out brilliantly" throughout the text, arguing that on the whole the book represents a "very erudite work". Believing works of this quality were rare, Satyamurthy praised the use of references and footnotes and the "new treatment" of the textual and epigraphic records.
379:
is highlighted before moving on to a discussion of his methodology. The author mentions an interdisciplinary approach was used that combines archaeological and historical evidence and critiques earlier text-based historical approaches to studying the development of early
Hinduism. The discussion then
513:. Describing the "densely argued" book, Cort noted that in ignoring Jain and Buddhist iconography and temples, Willis had failed to encompass the same scope which he professes. Ultimately, Cort considered it to be an "essential" study for all of those interested in "medieval Indic temple religion."
475:"The success of his book ā inspiring, important, challenging, and at times maddening ā lies in its undoubted ability to stimulate discussion, to make us revisit received ideas and to review the primary sources for ourselves. And for this we are indeed indebted to Michael Willis."
353:. This approach – eclectic but not, I hope, eccentric – led me to breach disciplinary protocols and to create what I have termed the "archaeology of ritual." Whatever theoretical bells these words might ring, this is not a project in the tradition of
202:. Critics described it as a groundbreaking study and praised its use of a variety of different forms of evidence, but some argued that it neglected to properly discuss the relationship between Hindu rituals and the religious practices of
164:
takes an interdisciplinary approach to the subject, making use of epigraphy, iconology and ethnography. The first chapter, "The
Archaeology and Politics of Time at Udayagiri", pays particular attention to the ritual site at the
361:. Rather, it represents my own effort to inject a measure of dynamism into the static, desk-bound forms of analysis that have so far governed the study of Indian inscriptions, sculpture, built environment, and landscape."
380:
returns to
Udayagiri. Willis closes the introduction by reiterating his belief that in Indian history, it was religion that drove economic and political relationships rather than the other way round.
371:
The book begins with a discussion of the early Hindu ritual site at the
Udayagiri Caves, a place that had ancient origins but which was reworked under the administration of the Gupta Emperor
27:
345:"I was obliged to draw on a number of fields: epigraphy, iconology, historical astronomy, ethnography, landscape archaeology. I combined these with text-based
296:
on the subject of early Hindu ritual and the
Udayagiri Caves, including a paper entitled "The Archaeology and Politics of Time" in an anthology entitled
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281:. At the time of the book's publication, Willis was the curator of the early South Asian and Himalayan collections at the
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500:", opining that these criticisms of his "seem out of place in a book of such grand scope and reach."
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Considered to be the first major archaeological study to deal with the origins of
Hinduism,
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and Pramod
Chandra. He received his doctoral degree in 1988 after periods in India and
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between the 4th and 6th centuries CE. It was written by the
British archaeologist
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The
Archaeology of Hindu Ritual: Temples and the Establishment of the Gods
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The Archaeology of Hindu Ritual: Temples and the Establishment of the Gods
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827:. Vol. 18, no. 1. Durham: Durham University. pp. 219ā221.
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who was the curator of the South Asian and Himalayan collection at the
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Willis, Michael (2004). "The Archaeology and Politics of Time".
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The second chapter, entitled "The Establishment of the Gods",
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The cover of the book, depicting a Vaisnava head from Bhitrī,
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The VÄkÄį¹aka Heritage: Indian Culture at the Crossroads
298:
The VÄkÄį¹aka Heritage: Indian Culture at the Crossroads
907:. Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press.
383:
Chapter one, "The Archaeology and Politics of Time at
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375:. The relationship that Candragupta II had with the
420:Chapter three, "Ritual Action and Ritual Actors",
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182:Willis' book was positively reviewed in various
888:. Groningen: Egbert Forsten. pp. 33ā58.
488:was positively reviewed by Leslie C. Orr of
270:before joining the British Museum in 1994.
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153:at the time of the book being published by
137:study focusing on the early development of
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402:Cave 5 at Udayagiri, depicting the god
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799:(3). Hoboken: Wiley-Blackwell: 243.
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871:"Epigraphical study on Hindu rites"
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277:and an Honorary Research Fellow at
242:. He obtained a B.A. degree at the
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300:(2004), edited by Hans T. Bakker.
14:
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787:Cort, John E. (2010). "Review of
540:Epigraphical study on Hindu rites
507:, Ohio reviewed the book for the
948:Cambridge University Press books
869:Satyamurthy, T. (9 March 2010).
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162:The Archaeology of Hindu Ritual
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793:Religious Studies Review
579:Coconut: use for worship
538:in an article entitled "
510:Religious Studies Review
395:, two avatars of Viį¹£į¹u.
234:, Canada, and raised in
218:Background of the author
193:Religious Studies Review
832:Orr, Leslie C. (2010).
619:List of Hindu festivals
933:2009 non-fiction books
594:Guru-shishya tradition
520:, Vittorio Magnano of
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246:where he studied with
244:University of Victoria
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574:Buddhist prayer beads
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366:Michael Willis, 2009.
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275:Royal Asiatic Society
260:J. A. B. van Buitenen
256:University of Chicago
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635:Panchalinga Darshana
490:Concordia University
480:Leslie C. Orr, 2010.
258:and he studied with
842:South Asian Studies
494:South Asian Studies
230:Willis was born in
188:South Asian Studies
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722:. pp. 10–78.
599:Hindu prayer beads
505:Denison University
443:. You can help by
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323:. You can help by
279:Cardiff University
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64:Indian archaeology
62:Hindu archaeology,
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943:Archaeology books
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660:Satyanarayan Puja
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266:. He taught at
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708:Willis 2009
696:Willis 2009
684:Willis 2004
252:Alan Gowans
212:Gupta India
141:within the
927:Categories
667:References
452:April 2012
359:Ian Hodder
332:April 2012
179:in India.
876:The Hindu
862:193885302
747:Cort 2010
672:Footnotes
535:The Hindu
498:straw men
464:Reception
424:Arguments
389:Narasiį¹ha
385:Udayagiri
199:The Hindu
157:in 2009.
100:Hardcover
69:Publisher
735:Orr 2010
655:PÄdodaka
546:See also
347:Indology
304:Synopsis
204:Buddhist
190:and the
139:Hinduism
51:Language
698:. p. 3.
640:PranÄma
630:Namaste
391:and of
208:Jainist
98:Print (
59:Subject
54:English
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411:Avatar
408:Varaha
404:Vishnu
393:VarÄha
264:Cyprus
236:Kuwait
133:is an
41:Author
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821:(PDF)
589:Dhupa
107:Pages
909:ISBN
890:ISBN
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