Hinduism

[Lynken Ghose]

Dear Indology List:

I am still puzzled about the origins of the term "Hindu". In G. Flood's
book, he mentions that the term is first used as a Persian geographical
term. Does anyone know the name of the Persian text which is referred to,
and the exact date? Also, Flood mentions that the word "al-hind" in Arabic
refers to the people of India. Does anyone know the first Arabic text which
uses this term, and the exact date(s)? Are there any good articles on the
origins of this term?

As for the discussion that has been going on with the list, I am against
excluding people in any way just on the grounds of formal "Indological"
training. The experience of being a Hindu and/or Buddhist etc. is worth
considering, whether one is a scholar of these religions or just an
interested outsider. People who have grown up in these traditions may know
things that we, as scholars (at least those scholars who are not Hindu
etc.), may not. I do not see any problem with them attempting to communicate
their knowledge to us. It might help us in our search to understand a
concept or a ritual etc. It is true that some of the postings (on all sides)
have been quite vociferous. Because of this, I feel that the goal of all
postings should be to either to advance someone else's knowledge or present
more or less factual queries, rather than the launching of personal attacks.


Lynken Ghose
Iowa State University
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