"The Hindu Temple and Its Sacred Landscape illustrates how careful attention to the Hindu temple, its social history, and cultural landscape allows us to better appreciate how Hinduism has been practised and lived throughout history. The Hindu temple was not merely a place of worship or a static indicator of royal generosity but an institution that involved the active participation of the community for its establishment, maintenance, and survival. Rather than studying temples as isolated structures, The Hindu Temple and Its Sacred Landscape thus suggests that we need to examine them in the context of their social base and the sacred microcosms of which they form a part. Through a combination of textual study, archaeological evidence, and insights from contemporary anthropology, the book explores the diverse ways in which devotees, patrons, and visitors have engaged with temples, shrines, and their wider surroundings. Drawing attention to the vibrancy of the Hindu temple in different locales, The Hindu Temple and Its Sacred Landscape traces the ways in which Hindu notions of sanctity and sacredness were defined and redefined throughout history through the diversity of temple audiences, deities, and rituals. The book thus allows us to form a more accurate picture of Hindu religious life in the past and the central role the temple has played in consolidating Hindu identity."-- Provided by publisher