Objectives

The EH will present a comprehensive overview of the total life experience of Hinduism, covering not only textual material and oral traditions, but also the wide spectrum of regional and global variations. It will cover village, tribal, regional and other non-Sanskritic expressions of Hinduism as well as women's perspectives. The encyclopedia will seek to explain the sects, schools and movements of Hinduism as they are understood by their respective constituents, as well as provide scholarly interpretations of them. It will treat the subject matter with sensitivity while maintaining intellectual objectivity.

It will address the spiritual and cultural significance of rites, ceremonies, festivals, sacraments and customs as expressions of a living religion, and will bring out the unifying principles underlying the seeming diversity of various spiritual disciplines, schools of thought and religious sects.

The purpose of the EH is to provide accurate and well researched information for the academic as well as the general reader. It will be valuable to scholars, families, teachers and students of the Humanities.