ABSTRACT
The introductory chapter of this volume asks a question now common to religious studies: How do we define “Hinduism?” This question, however, is expanded to a whole realm of discourse not typically considered in such a discussion – that is, how Hinduism is defined and encountered in digital media. There are a multitude of voices competing for this task in the digital arena, and right-wing Hindu nationalists are particularly invested in this process. Centering on “authority” and “authenticity” as focal points for these contestations, this chapter provides a brief introduction of Hindu nationalist groups, as well as Hindutva ideology and its discourse. These are presented in order to queue up the following discussions of nationalism, identity, history, insider/outsider (authority), and influences of culture/religion (authenticity).
