REVIEW OF "THE HINDUS: An Alternative History" By Wendy Doniger

Another Incarnation by Pankaj Mishra (New York Times)

"During a lecture in London in 2003, Doniger escaped being hit by an egg thrown by a Hindu nationalist apparently angry at the 'sexual thrust' of her interpretation of the 'sacred' 'Ramayana.' This book will no doubt further expose her to the fury of the modern-day Indian heirs of the British imperialists who invented 'Hinduism.' Happily, it will also serve as a salutary antidote to the fanatics who perceive — correctly — the fluid existential identities and commodious metaphysic of practiced Indian religions as a threat to their project of a culturally homogenous and militant nation-state."