ABSTRACT
The twentieth-century Hindu community, no longer confined to India and its near neighbours, had taken full advantage of rapid, electronic communication. In studies of Hinduism by those outside it, the use of sacred images is no longer generally presented as something of a problem to be explained, or dismissed as an expression of lower' Hinduism and so unworthy of serious study. Hindu images are as diverse as the deities and supernatural beings they represent. The ancient traditions contained in the Veda hint that the relationship between the different deities of Hinduism is both subtle and complex. The makers of Hindu temples and sacred images trace their lineage back through a succession of master-craftsmen to Vishvakarman, the 'All-maker'. The transformation of Indian art in cities like Bombay and Calcutta mirrored in some important respects changes that had been introduced by some Hindu religious groups during the nineteenth century.
