RT Article
T1 Thaipusam Kavadī - a festival helping Hindus in Mauritius cope with fear
JF International quarterly for Asian studies
VO 49
IS 3/4
SP 123
OP 140
A1 Qvortrup Fibiger, Marianne
LA English
PP Heidelberg Berlin
PB Heidelberg Asian Studies Publishing
YR 2018
UL https://www.ixtheo.de/Record/1679434187
AB With Hindus in Mauritius as a case study, this article will show how Thaipusam Kavadī, a festival of piercing and procession of ancient Tamil origin, has become not only a modern expression of religious affiliation in diaspora, but also a way of coping with fear by trying to gain dispensation for possible religious or ethical misconduct in a time and a place where religion has become compartmentalised. To understand this development, the article gives a short introduction to the overall theme of fear, including theoretical considerations as a prism to understand the factors at play. This is followed by an introduction to Hinduism in Mauritius from a general point of view. Then, using a particular case study and participant observations as a point of departure, the article will explore how Thaipusam Kavadī is conducted and what kind of meaning the participants attribute to their participation.
K1 Fear
K1 Hinduism
K1 Mauritius
K1 piercing rituals
K1 Thaipusam Kavadī
DO 10.11588/iqas.2018.3-4.9344