Department Activities


Academic Year 2019-20

 

International Workshop on "Religious Studies in India" - July 26th & 27th 2019

 

The Department of Philosophy, Ramnarain Ruia Autonomous College, Mumbai, in collaboration with Bhaktivedanta Vidyapitha Research Centre organised a two-day workshop on “Religious Studies in India” on 26-27 July, 2019. This two-day interactive workshop – conducted by Dr. David L. Haberman, Professor and Former Chair of the Department of Religious Studies at Indiana University, USA – provided an opportunity to think more deeply about the possibilities of developing the academic study of religion in the colleges and universities of India beyond what currently exists. The history and challenges to the establishment of the contemporary academic study of religions in the United States, better known as “religious studies,” was examined for the lessons to be learned as well as important differences for religious studies in India. Through the course of the workshop, consideration was given to the value and benefits of religious studies for society and individuals, obstacles and opportunities in advancing the academic study of religion in India, as well as the history and limitations of the comparative study of religion as it developed over the last few centuries within a European (and colonial) context, with an eye toward identifying the unique contributions an Indian approach would bring to the present and increasingly international field. A variety of perspectives, definitions, theories, and methods in the study of religion were reviewed while examining possibilities for moving forward with a more robust presence of religious studies in the Indian academy. The workshop concluded with a positive approach to developing a curriculum for the same.

Alongside this workshop, Dr. Abhishek Ghosh, Visiting Fellow at the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies, conducted a guest lecture for students of Philosophy faculty at Ruia College on the topic “Philosophy of Religion” on 26 July, 2019.

 

Click here for Report in Marathi

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International Workshop "Religious Studies in India"

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