Studies on the idea of 'sacred' received a renewed interest in the academic
domain especially after the postcolonial interrogation of the Western gaze on the
Eastern cultures and religions. This has resulted in the focus on the native point of
view in anthropological and ethnographical studies on the one hand, and on the
cultural thrust in the study of religion, on the other. But the textual mediations of the
sacred has, hitherto, remained least explored as it demands a turn towards literary,
media and other representations, which seem to only entertain and engage with the
reader/audience. It is in this context, that this thesis attempts a study of the
representational aspects involved in the experience of the sacred. After a detailed
discussion of scholarly studies on the idea of the 'sacred', this chapter will juxtapose
the canonical views of the sacred with the experience of the 'sacred' among the
marginalised communities with a view to locating the role and function of culture in
the experience of the 'sacred'.
