Wandering with Sadhus: Ascetics in the Hindu Himalayas

The book introduces Hindu renunciation as an alternative social world rather than a purely individual withdrawal from society. Although sādhus leave conventional household life, they enter networks of gurus, disciples, lineages, akhāṛās, pilgrimage centres, and ritual gatherings that provide identity, authority, mutual recognition, and social continuity. Hausner emphasizes the contrast between textual prescriptions concerning the ideal renouncer and the diverse realities of contemporary ascetic life, including religious commitment, institutional discipline, mobility, material dependence, and personal eccentricity. The central analysis examines how renouncer identity is produced through movement across sacred landscapes, participation in festival cycles, and transformation of the body through initiation and discipline. Sacred places such as Hardwar and Paśupatināth, together with the Kumbh Melā gatherings at Hardwar and Allahabad, become key settings for understanding how ascetics organize space, experience time, and embody religious knowledge. The work ultimately presents Hindu renunciation as a mobile yet structured culture sustained through shared routes, myths, practices, memories, and social institutions.