Religious Traditions of India - Course 2023

In this programme, specialists in different aspects of Indian religious and philosophical traditions introduce their innovative research and insights.

  • The course deals with different traditions that originated or further developed in the South Asian region (Jainism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Sufism) and touch upon historical as well as contemporary developments.
  • Together, these nine talks provide an overview of the unique religious and cultural diversity as well as the depth of philosophical enquiry that typify the South Asian region.

Religious Traditions of India aims to highlight the diversity of the South Asian religious, spiritual, and philosophical landscape and enable participants to compare and approach different forms of cultural and religious expression over time. The nine lectures that make up this training show that this diversity goes much deeper than the variety of colors and styles that we see on the surface. In addition to a wide range of religious and cultural practices and expressions, the Indian subcontinent has produced thinkers who have developed highly sophisticated philosophical ideas and traditions. Throughout these lectures that highlight aspects of Buddhism, Jainism, Hinduism, and Indian Islam, we see how religious practices can clash as well as overlap. How different interpretations continue to exist parallel to each other, or give rise to tension and conflict (intellectual or physical) until one of them gains the upper hand. How some forms of religious expression remain almost unchanged for centuries, others only occur in a specific period, and still others turn out to be brand new.

Practical information

  • 9 Wednesdays
  • 19.30 - 21.00 
  • online or hybrid (see below for details by lecture)

Content

8/3/2023

  • Referentiality, homilies and preachers in early Buddhist narrative kāvya
  • Prof. Dr. Csaba Dezső; Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest
  • Online
  • This lecture examines the role of referentiality and realism in early Buddhist narrative kāvya (Kumāralāta’s Kalpanāmaṇḍitikā Dṛṣṭāntapaṅkti and the Jātakamālās of Āryaśūra and Haribhaṭṭa) through the figure of the preacher, dhārmakathika. Such collections of edifying tales were used in the homilies of preachers, and the tales themselves give colourful illustrations of these preachers “in action”, revealing the social context of their work and the strategies used in delivering sermons.

15/3/2023

  • Trads, Raytas, and Muscular Nationalism in Contemporary India
  • Prof. Dr. Dheepa Sundaram; University of Denver
  • Online
  • !! will start at 19.00PM

22/3/2023

29/3/2023

  • Ramayana murals in eighteenth century South India
  • Prof. Dr. Anna Dallapiccola
  • Online

19/4/2023

26/4/2023

3/5/2023

  • Finding Bliss in Paradise: Kīrtan, Meditation, and the ‘Ukulele in a Hawaiian Yoga Community 
  • Prof. Dr. Christopher Jain Miller; Arihanta Institute; University of Zürich
  • Online

10/5/2023

17/5/2023

  • Epistemology and the Problem of Certification: How Gaṅgeśa's epistemology can be used to diagnose controversies over the status of knowledge claims
  • Prof. Dr. Anand Vaidya; San Jose State University, California
  • Hybrid (@Campus Boekentoren, Blandijn, lokaal. 0.4)

How to register?

  • Click on the "toevoegen aan mijn winkelmandje" button in the blue box below.
  • Click on the shopping cart icon in the upper right corner of this page.
  • Check further instructions.

If you are a student, during checkout:

  1. select the "I am eligible for a discount" checkbox. (="ik heb recht op een uitzonderingsprijs")
  2. in the dropdown menu next to "uitzonderingsprijs", select the category "student".

Course versus Lecture series 

  • If you register for this course, it means you take part in the evaluation and you will obtain a certificate. You can't choose separate lectures in this case, you always register for the complete programme.
  • However, we also offer the lectures separately and without evaluation. In this case, you only attend the lectures and you get a certificate of attendance. If you wish to register for one or more/all lectures, go to our page Religious traditions of India - lecture series.

Schrijf je hier in

Religious Traditions of India - Course 2023

Online beschikbaar