History 223 - Relig & Polit in Modern India

The history of India has been singled out for its complex intermingling of religion and politics. This course will explore the constitution of religious identities in two of India's largest religious communities: Hindu and Muslim. Focusing primarily on the colonial period, we will discuss religious reform movements, communal violence, mass politics, and the partition of the subcontinent into the independent states of India and Pakistan. Throughout we will be interested in the ways that the colonial experience affected the religious thought and practice of Indians. Finally, we will explore the meanings of this history for the postcolonial workings of democracy and secularism in modern India.