My research has focused on living religious traditions of North India, particularly goddess worship. My first book is called Living Banaras: Hindu Religion in Cultural Contexts (SUNY Press: 1993). I co-edited and contributed chapters to this compilation of essays on the city long considered the most sacred pilgrimage site of Hinduism. This work attempts to provide greater insight into Hindu religion by interrogating and broadening the category of what we have traditionally classified as "religious," as well as by examining phenomena through a multidisciplinary lens, especially through recent fieldwork rather than mere texts.
I have nearly completed my book, Goddess of Blood, Goddess of Love, which focuses on the cult of Vindhyavasini and contemporary recitation of the goddess text known as the Devi Mahatmya. I am also interested in ritual and sacrifice, and Transcendental Meditation in the United States.

 
 
 
 
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