Shaligram Pilgrimage in the Nepal Himalayas

Shaligrams, sacred fossil ammonites venerated for over two thousand years in South Asia and the global Diaspora, are fossils, divine beings, and intimate kin with families and worshippers. Their mobility reveals religious practice, pilgrimage, and politics, but conflicts in Mustang have made them a distinct, alternative community struggling for a place in a world on the edge.

Format: Hardback
Length: 294 pages
Publication date: 05 October 2020
Publisher: Amsterdam University Press

Shaligrams, revered for over two thousand years in Hindu and Buddhist ritual practices across South Asia and the global Diaspora, are fossils, divine beings, and intimate kin with families and worshippers. Originating from a remote region of Himalayan Nepal, called Mustang, Shaligrams reveal fascinating new dimensions of religious practice, pilgrimage, and politics. However, as social, environmental, and national conflicts in Mustang escalate, the geologic, mythic, and religious movements of Shaligrams have become parallels to the mobility of people through space and time. Shaligram mobility traverses multiple social worlds, religions, and nations, highlighting Shaligram practitioners as a distinct, alternative community seeking a place in a world on the edge.

Dimension: 234 x 156 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9789463721721
Edition number: 0