Amanda Lucia

Amanda Lucia YouTube Interview & Discussion

Amanda Lucia Audio Interview & Discussion

Amanda Lucia is Professor of Religious Studies at the University of California-Riverside. Her research engages the global exportation, appropriation, and circulation of Hinduism, with designated attention to global guru movements. On her previous visit to Spirit Matters we discussed her book about Mata Amritanandamayi, Reflections of Amma: Devotees in a Global Embrace. In this conversation we focused on her new book, White Utopias: The Religious Exoticism of Transformational Festivals, which analyzes yoga practice and the intersections of whiteness and religious exoticism among the “spiritual, but not religious” (SBNR) at global transformational festivals such as such as Bhakti Fest, Wanderlust, Lightning in a Bottle, and Burning Man. The author of numerous scholarly articles, she is currently crafting a body of research on media representations of gurus, with particular attention to scandal. Learn more about Amanda Lucia here.