Encyclopedia of Hinduism


Encyclopedia of Hinduism, 1st ed., 2012, is a comprehensive, multi-volume, English language encyclopedia of Hinduism, comprising , a Sanskrit phrase, meaning "the eternal law", or the "eternal way", that is used to refer to Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism. It is a 7,184 page, 11-volume publication with full-color illustrations of temples, places, thinkers, rituals and festivals. Encyclopedia of Hinduism is an inspiration and dream project of Swami Chidanand Saraswati, President of Parmarth Niketan and India Heritage Research Foundation. Under preparation for 25 years, it has been edited by Dr. Kapil Kapoor with contribution from over 2000 scholars.
The encyclopaedia provides conceptual perspective and a general understanding of the different facets of Hinduism. It does not confine itself to religion alone, and has in it entries on art, history, language, literature, philosophy, polity, sciences, and women's studies. The editorial introduction records:
On 3–4 April 2010, a preview and blessings ceremony for the Encyclopedia of Hinduism was held at Parmarth Niketan, attended by the Dalai Lama, M.M. Swami Gurusharananand, Swami Avdheshanand Giri, Sant Shri Rameshbhai Oza, Swami Ramdev, Sant Shri Morari Bapu and other religious leaders as well as top political leaders, including Shri L.K. Advani and then-Chief Minister of Uttarakhand Shri Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank, and IHRF board members and trustees.
The International Edition of the Encyclopedia of Hinduism was launched at the University of South Carolina on 26 September 2013.
The Encyclopedia of Hinduism was presented to the President of India Shri Pranab Mukherjee on 23 June 2014.

Inception

The idea was conceived by Swami Chidanand Saraswati, president of Parmarth Niketan Ashram, at a Hindu-Jain Temple in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1987. Subsequently, in November of the same year, the India Heritage Research Foundation was formed to execute the idea of preparing an authoritative, comprehensive and up-to-date Encyclopedia of Hinduism. Dr. K. L. Seshagiri Rao, Professor Emeritus in Religious Studies at University of Virginia was appointed the Chief Editor.

Development

Over the next five years, Swami Chidanand Saraswati and Dr. K. L. Seshagiri Rao assembled an international team of scholars. In 1998, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Prime Minister of India at the time, spoke effusively in praise of the project:
In early 2006, Dr. Kapil Kapoor, Professor of English and Concurrent Professor of Sanskrit Studies who had retired as rector for Jawaharlal Nehru University, Delhi the previous year, was appointed chief editor of the project. Physicist Varadaraja V. Raman served one of four executive editors, for which Raman wrote on Hinduism and Science, and otherwise "served diligently, reviewing, editing, and even rewriting articles where necessary."

Foreword

The first volume of the encyclopedia contains a 44-page foreword by Dr. Karan Singh. In the opening paragraph, he writes:
The closing comments of Dr. Singh's forward begin with the following note:

Reviews

Indrajit Hazra, writing for Hindustan Times, said its "entries are crisp, provide background and foreground, and come with a bibliography." The review goes on to add:
Hazra concludes his review by calling the encyclopedia "a startlingly good treasure trunk for anyone interested in the history of ideas to dip into." Former Home Minister of India L.K. Advani called the work "a landmark publication."