Johanna Ahonen: The Construction of Womanhood and Embodiment in Indian-originated Bhakti Movements in Finland
In project: Disturbing Differences. Feminist Readings of Identity, Location and Power
In the context of Indian-derived religious minorities in the Finnish cultural environment, I am interested in how religion, gender and also race and nationality are connected with power, body, and identity. I focus on four specific Indian-derived groups, which are led by a spiritual master or guru: ISKCON (International Society for Krishna Consciousness), Amma Center, Sri Sathya Sai Baba Center, and Sahaja Yoga.
The research will be based on following questions: First, I study how categories of difference are manifested in the religious symbols, representations, norms, and structures as well as in the subjective identities of the members. Second, I ask with which kind discources and embodied practices are certain kind of religious, gendered, racialized, and sexualised subjects produced by, and how the appropriate female body is constructed. Third, I am interested in the ralation between Finnishness and Indianness, and the meanings that are given to them in the personal narration of the female adherents. I ask what interpretations can be made about the current Finnish dominant culture on the basis of the interest that Finnish women show towards the Indian-derived religious movements.
The primary research material consists of interviews of committed Finnish female members and participant-observation which will take place in the centers of the movements both in Finland and India. The study responds to the lack of feminist research on Indian-originated religiousness in Finland.