Author: user

Bloomsbury Companion to Hindu Studies released today

Posted on January 15, 2014September 23, 2020 by user

Bloomsbury Companion to Hindu Studies released today

Wednesday, 15 January 2014

In a field as varied as Hindu Studies the need for a comprehensive guide has become urgent. OCHS Fellow, Dr. Jessica Frazier, has risen to the occasion as Editor of the Bloomsbury Companion to Hindu Studies.

This research guide, contains a foreword by Professor Gavin Flood, OCHS Academic Director, as well as sections that cover topics of historical and contemporary interest.

Part I, the introduction, discusses new perspectives on Hinduism. Parts II and III, on reading paths and the history of Hindu studies, respectively. Part IV contains essays specially commissioned for this volume focussing on areas of current research work, and intersections between topics.

The remaining sections cover local traditions, research methods, and the direction that Hindu Studies will take in the coming years.

The Companion also contains a detailed list of resources, as well as charts and diagrams that help to summarize content.

Reviewed by the Midwest Book Review, Dr. Frazier’s guide was deemed an ‘excellent resource and enhancement to religious studies shelves.’

The Bloomsbury Companion to Hindu Studies is available at amazon.com

Ayurveda and the Hindu Philosophical Systems

Posted on January 11, 2014September 23, 2020 by user

Ayurveda and the Hindu Philosophical Systems

Leicester Friends Event

Saturday, 11 January 2014 – 6:30pm to 9:00pm

Belgrave Neighbourhood Centre,
Rothley Street Leicester LE4 6LF

A talk by Ramesh Pattni of the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies

Ayurveda is perhaps the oldest system of human medicine and looks at the human being in a holistic manner. What are the core principles of this system and how do they relate to the philosophical systems of thought in Hinduism? We look at Ayurveda and consider its place in these systems of thought.

Organiser:

Friends of the OCHS – Leicester

Friends Event: Speaking of Shiva: eko hi rudro na dvitiyaya tashtuh

Posted on December 7, 2013September 23, 2020 by user

Friends Event: Speaking of Shiva: eko hi rudro na dvitiyaya tashtuh

Birmingham Friends Event

Saturday, 7 December 2013 – 3:00pm to 5:00pm

Balaji Temple
Dudley Road
East Tividale
West Midlands, B69 3DU

A talk by Dr Nick Sutton of the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies

Most Hindus will at various times in the year offer their devotion to Shiva but there is also a rich tradition, stretching back to the Vedas and Upanishads, which regards Shiva as the one Supreme Deity standing above all others, including even Vishnu and Krishna. Over the centuries Shaivism has taken on a number of different forms and in this talk Nick Sutton will consider the nature of the Shaiva tradition, past and present, and the significance of Shiva for Hinduism today.

Organiser:

Friends of the OCHS – Birmingham

bf@ochs.org.uk

Friends Event: Mythology and Meaning in Hinduism

Posted on November 30, 2013September 23, 2020 by user

Friends Event: Mythology and Meaning in Hinduism

Leicester Friends Event

Saturday, 30 November 2013 – 6:30pm to 9:00pm

Belgrave Neighbourhood Centre
Rothley Street,
Leicester LE4 6LF

A talk by Anuradha Dooney of the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies

Hindu traditions are full of fabulous stories of monsters, milk oceans, magic, and heroism that defy all reason. Are these tales true or false? How do Hindu texts and teachers view these accounts and do they have any relevance today? This talk draws from the Upanishads, Puranas, Mahabharata, and Ramayana to weave together a discussion on the meaning of myth in Hindu tradition.

Organiser:

Friends of the OCHS – Leicester

OCHS Publications – The Truth Within

Posted on November 14, 2013September 23, 2020 by user

OCHS Publications – The Truth Within

Thursday, 14 November 2013

What is truth? How does it relate to our understanding of the inner self? What role does religion play in this intersection between the two? Professor Gavin Flood, Academic Director of OCHS, explores these questions in his book The Truth Within: A History of Inwardness in Christianity, Hinduism, and Buddhism.

Part I focuses on the history and texts pertaining to inwardness, and the role of religion in shaping one’s inner reality. In Part II, he analyses the theory and phenomenology of inwardness, and engages in a comparison of three world religions. Integral to the volume is the idea of an inner self, an interiority unique to the individual.

Comparing three religions, Flood discusses the various ways in which religion helps in developing this inner awareness, such as prayer, or meditation. He also contrasts the theistic approach with the non-theistic, and highlights the ways in which some traditions (including Christianity and certain forms of Hinduism) relate the truth of the inner self to that of God, or the universe. By answering age-old questions of truth and self-identity, Professor Flood offers valuable insight into the connection between God, reality, and inwardness, while at the same time providing an excellent comparison of three major religions.

The Truth Within is available in both hardcopy and e-book formats at Amazon

IK Foundation Lecture: Am I a Hindu? Questions Young People Ask

Posted on November 8, 2013September 23, 2020 by user

IK Foundation Lecture: Am I a Hindu? Questions Young People Ask

Nehru Centre Event

Friday, 8 November 2013 – 6:30pm to 8:30pm

Nehru Centre
8 South Audley Street
London, W1K 1HF

A talk by Dr Nick Sutton of the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies

In this talk Nick Sutton will consider the position of young people of Indian descent who were born and have grown up in Britain. The inspiration for this talk comes from actual encounters with young British Hindus who have raised the question of what it actually means to be a Hindu and how the religion and its adherents can be defined. As the conclusion to this discussion we will also consider the position of Hinduism as a world religion and how it differs from other faiths in several significant ways.

Organiser:

Nehru Centre – London

Sitting at the Guru’s feet: Teachers, students and education in the Upanisads

Posted on November 2, 2013September 23, 2020 by user

Sitting at the Guru's feet: Teachers, students and education in the Upanisads

Birmingham Friends Event

Saturday, 2 November 2013 – 3:00pm to 5:00pm

Balaji Temple
Dudley Road
East Tividale
West Midlands, B69 3DU

A talk by Dr Rembert Lutjeharms of the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies

The Upanisads are among the most influential Hindu sacred texts. Though often cryptic, they form the foundation of Vedantic discourse, and still influence the religious imagination of countless spiritual seekers, both traditional and modern. Its ‘secret’ teachings are often presented through the voices of Vedic teachers, and the roles these teachers play is central to these teachings.

Focusing on the stories found in these religious texts, this talk will explore the character of the Upanisadic gurus, the roles they played, the way they taught, and their relationship with their disciples, and thereby reflect on the vale and ways of education in the modern world.

Organiser:

Friends of the OCHS – Birmingham

How to be God: A Tour through the many Vedantas

Posted on October 26, 2013September 23, 2020 by user

How to be God: A Tour through the many Vedantas

Leicester Friends Event

Saturday, 26 October 2013 – 6:30pm to 9:00pm

Belgrave Neighbourhood Centre
Rothley Street
Leicester LE4 6LF

A talk by Dr Jessica Frazier of the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies.

Just how close are we to the divine, and just what role do we play for God?

Are we part of the divine ocean? God’s body? Movements in God’s dance, or notes in a divine song? Or just isolated mirrors of the divine light?

Thinkers from Sankara to Caitanya, Vivekananda and Gandhi have debated these issues – and our relations to other people, our relationship with the divine, and our hopes for Moksha all depend on the answer. In this session we visit the Gallery of Vedantas, and see which one wins your vote.

Organiser:

Friends of the OCHS – Leicester

lf@ochs.org.uk

Friends Event: South India: The Heartland of Hinduism?

Posted on October 5, 2013September 23, 2020 by user

Friends Event: South India: The Heartland of Hinduism?

Birmingham Friends Event

Saturday, 5 October 2013 – 3:00pm to 5:00pm

Balaji Temple
Dudley Road
East Tividale
West Midlands, B69 3DU

A talk by Dr Nick Sutton of the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies

Most Hindus are aware of the major contribution to the tradition that has come from the South of India in terms of both religious belief and practice. In this talk, Nick Sutton will explore the history of South India along with its distinctive religious culture, and attempt to show how Dravidian Hinduism has had a major influence over all regions of the subcontinent

Organiser:

Friends of the OCHS – Birmingham

bf@ochs.org.uk

Nehru Centre talk: What the Mahabharata and Bhagavad-gita Reveal about the History and Religious Culture of India

Posted on September 20, 2013September 23, 2020 by user

Nehru Centre talk: What the Mahabharata and Bhagavad-gita Reveal about the History and Religious Culture of India

Nehru Centre Event

Friday, 20 September 2013 – 6:30pm to 8:30pm

Nehru Centre

8 South Audley Street

London, W1K 1HF

A talk by Dr Nick Sutton of the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies

In this talk Dr Sutton will discuss the interaction between religion, philosophy and politics in ancient India and focus in particular on the rise of the Buddhist and Jain traditions in the subcontinent. These and other newer forms of religion represented a direct challenge to the hegemony of the Vedic elite and received extensive patronage from the rulers of India, but it would be a mistake to simplistically represent this as being a confrontation between Buddhism and Jainism on the one hand and Hinduism on the other. Rather what we can detect is a much broader social and cultural movement that can observed in the Mahabharata and Bhagavad-gita as well. In this talk we will consider the nature of these changes that have had a profound effect on Indian society and history, observable down to the present day.

Organiser:

Nehru Centre – London