Semantic and Conceptual Appraisals of Dharma and their Implications for a Glocal Understanding of Religion: A Hermeneutical and Postcolonial Analysis

This research focuses on the textual, contextual and historical significance of dharma and its relation to global modernity. As is well known, dharma in India and in Western scholarship is often interpreted and translated as 'religion' and 'Hinduism' because it has been largely constructed around colonial and Indian and Hindu nationalist interpretations of dharma. Such translations and interpretations have also somewhat limited the plural idea of dharma by framing it within the characteristics of the colonial construction of Hinduism. Moreover, the association of dharma and religion in the contemporary Indian context has more or less narrowed its meaning and ignored its global presence. This thesis therefore contributes to a richer understanding of dharma by exploring its semantic, conceptual and local manifestations in a glocal context, while acknowledging the mixture and hybridisation of local traditions. It provides a framework for engaging with the postcolonial, glocal and intercultural dimensions of dharma, revealing its diverse characteristics across histories and contexts. By challenging the limitations of the Western and colonial category of 'religion', this thesis paves the way for a more nuanced understanding of dharma in the contemporary global world.