Diaspora Consciousness, Nationalism, And ‘Religion’: The Case Of Hindu Nationalism

This chapter explores the relationship between diaspora consciousness, nationalism and religion. It focuses on the relationship between developing diaspora identities and exclusionary, extremist political projects grounded in a combination of nationalist and religious ideology. Hindu nationalism is a phenomenon which has had a high profile both in India and amongst Indian migrant communities in recent years. The chapter examines the role of organisations in the development of diaspora consciousness. It shows that Hindu nationalism is strongly associated with a set of organisations which have been extremely active in propagating their brand of this ideology, both in Indian and in transnational contexts. The chapter outlines the way in which Hindu nationalism has developed in India, before moving on to an examination of its growth in diasporic contexts. Keywords: diaspora consciousness; Hindu nationalism; religion