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Adhikāra

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Hinduism and Tribal Religions

Part of the book series: Encyclopedia of Indian Religions ((EIR))

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Definition

“Competence” or “jurisdiction” or even “authority” to accomplish a certain ritual act, to study a specific subject matter, to exercise a particular activity, to enjoy the fruits of moral acts.

Adhikāra

The Sanskrit term adhikāra derives from the root kṛ “to make” with the preverb adhi “over, above, concerning.” The general meaning of the root modified by the preverb is “to superintend, be at the head of,” “to be entitled to.” Terms connected with adhikāra from the semantic point of view are adhikaraṇa (originally and from the grammatical point of view, “location,” subsequently and from the juridical point of view, “court of justice”), meaning a topic in a treatise; adhikārin “possessing competence or authority, entitled to, fit for,” and in the juridical acceptation “superintendent.” The term adhikārahas different fields of use: in the ritual sphere it indicates the competence to accomplish a certain ritual or sacrificial act; in the domain of law it denotes the...

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Dipartimento di Studi umanistici StudiUm, Università degli studi di Torino, Torino, Italy

    Alberto Pelissero

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  1. Alberto Pelissero
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Correspondence to Alberto Pelissero .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Dept of Anthropology, The University of North Texas Dept of Anthropology, Denton, Texas, USA

    Pankaj Jain

  2. The Graduate Theological Union , Berkeley, California, USA

    Rita Sherma

  3. Jamia Millia Islamia, Centre for the Study of Comparative Reli Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, India

    Madhu Khanna

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Pelissero, A. (2018). Adhikāra. In: Jain, P., Sherma, R., Khanna, M. (eds) Hinduism and Tribal Religions. Encyclopedia of Indian Religions. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-024-1036-5_96-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-024-1036-5_96-1

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  • Print ISBN: 978-94-024-1036-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-94-024-1036-5

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