Govind-19: Presence, Innovation, and Continuity among UK Gujarati Hindus during and after COVID-19 Lockdown

Wood, Martin ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9826-3452 (2025) Govind-19: Presence, Innovation, and Continuity among UK Gujarati Hindus during and after COVID-19 Lockdown. International Journal of Hindu Studies, 29. pp. 393-416. doi:10.1007/s11407-025-09425-5

Preview

Text 15439 Wood (2025) Govind 19 Presence, Innovation, and Continuity among UK Gujarati Hindis during and after COVID19 Lockdown.pdf - Accepted Version Available under License All Rights Reserved. Download (419kB) | Preview

Abstract

This article draws upon recent ethnographic research with the VishnuSahasranam Prayer Group UK (VSPG) in West London. It argues that despite thepotential negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on post-lockdown in-persongathering, devotional participation has far exceeded expectati ons of a return to face-to-face communal religious activity for the VSPG. Key to this is the experience ofthe presence of the deities Laks˙mı¯-Na¯ra¯yan˙a as they negotiate and move freelythough physical and digital realms during the recitation of the thousand names ofVis˙n˙u known as the Viṣṇusahasran ā m. The article locates its contention in recentscholarly discussions framed by Veronica della Dora, Nicole Karapanagiotis,Robert. A. Orsi, and Heinz Scheifinger. It focuses upon three key aspects: thecreation of multiple “infrasecular” spaces; innovative use of digital media; and thedirect experience of the presence of La ks˙mı¯-Na¯ra¯yan˙a before, during, and afterlockdown. These three aspects converge to illustrate how one Hindu community inthe UK has maintained a sense of identity and coherence during periods of extremesocial anxiety and, in the process, transformed itself from a localized prayer groupinto a diasporic religious phenomenon.

Item Type:	Article
Article Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	COVID-19 lockdown; Hinduism; diaspora; infrasecular space; digital religion
Subjects:	B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BL Religion
Divisions:	Schools and Research Institutes > School of Arts, Culture and Environment
Depositing User:	Anne Pengelly
Date Deposited:	14 Oct 2025 12:25
Last Modified:	12 Oct 2026 08:00
URI:	https://eprints.glos.ac.uk/id/eprint/15439

University Staff: Request a correction | Repository Editors: Update this record