摘要
With the rise of Hindu Nationalist-populist forces in India, much academic research has been generated on both the ideological contours within which the Hindu right operates (Anderson and Longkumer, 2019; Basu, 2017; Jafferlot, 1999; Nussbaum, 2009), and similarly, much commentary has been written on the organizational formidability and workings of the Hindu right-wing networks in India in one form or another (Pal, 2022; Minni, 2018; Thachil, 2014). This paper sets itself apart from these two types of literature in its attempt to understand the theoretical nature of the kind of idea it promotes in the form of metaphorical ‘goods’ that provide a sense of ontological security or security to the sense of self. The context in which this paper deals with the concept of ontological security is through the idea of Akhand Bharat (undivided or greater India) that Hindu Nationalist organizations sell as goods. ‘Goods’ here broadly can be considered as a commodity packed in the form of an idea that is promoted through various means.