Lecture Number and Title |
Description of lecture, as summarized by Professor Bharati |
Date |
1. Religion, Philosophy, Anthropology |
Introduction. The scope of this course- Religion, philosophy, anthropology- "talking religion" vs "taking about religion"- rejected and accepted methodologies. |
June 30th |
2. Survey of pan-Indian Religious Themes and Principles |
Longitudinal survey of pan-Indian religious themes and principles. |
July 1st |
3. Elements of “Pure” Buddism-Dukkha and Khanika |
Elements of "pure" (=middle class urban and western ) Buddhism -- its contrast with real, i.e., 'village' religion; so what is pure? -- the central doctorines of dukka (pain, agony, misery, affliction etc.) and khanika (momentariness,
impermanence) and what they do, or don't do, to village laity and the Buddhist clergy. |
July 2nd |
4. Dumont’s “Purity” and Pollution; The Erotic Elements in Hinduism
|
Louis Dumont's "purity" and "pollution" - axiom of Indian polarization - etic and emic heuristic devices - the question of ethics -- deontological vs teleological -- medias in res on the Hindu side: Shiva, the erotic ascetic (O'Flaherty and
long before) - the erotic element in Hinduism in general. |
July 3rd |
5. Saivite Complex |
Aghoris of Nepal and Varanasi - Lingayats of the Karnatak - the Shaivite complex - the retention of semen as the key to magic, charisma, power, and the holy - a pan-indian syndrome -- the renouncer's power-trip. |
July 7th |
6. “Purity,” Pollution, and Westernization |
"Purity and pollution" once more: their "hygienic" interpretation as mark of modern Indian cultural alienation (westernization) - alienation and cognitive dissonance through language modification, the invasion of English into the vernacular
- the "pizza-effect" - consecration and initiation -Wendy O'Flaherty's "shazzam" effect -- the holographic model - darshana - prasad - transation and transformation of 'essences'. |
July 8th |
7. Assam’s Reformed Religion and Sankaradeva; Modern Srilankan and Buddhism; Math, Ashram, and Sacred Space |
Assam's reformed religion and Shankaradeva - "monotheism" vs "monism" - bhakti and puritanism - the popular prevalence of bhakti - bhakti and modern Sri Lankan Buddhism - Math, ashram, and sacred space - the numinous
- sacred geography, a parallel to sacred history. |
July 9th |
8. “Lords” Stratification and Rulership; The Three Gunas |
"Lords" - lords for everything - total stratification and no-nonsense rulership - the three gunas, their assignations to rulers and ruled, to people, and to everything else as well - plus an excursus into food, the Ayurvedic humors. |
July 10th |
9. Piatigorski’s Phenomology or Indian Religious Consciousness |
Piatigorski's phenomenology or Indian religious consciousness - the intrusion of Judaeo-Christian and Muslim 'lineal' categories - giving bodies to the gods - bodies as carriers and loci of occult powes (siddhi). |
July 11th |
10. Not Available |
First thematic summary of Hinduism - ascetics, rulers, "renouncers" - the 'five sheaths' (pancakosha) of existence, the pentads of cosmic constants - classification as explanation - the monistic - theistic continuum - a brief introduction
to Jainism |
|
11. Durkheim’s Sacred and Profane; Islam |
Durkheim's sacred and profane dichotomy: not of much use in India - laukika and lokottara are not equivalents to sacred and profane - the meanings of dharma - Islam: the basics and the five pillars. |
July 29th |
12. Islam in South Asia |
Islam and the 'ulema - Islam in South Asia - shari'a, haditha, adat - Islam vs Indian social structure - is there caste in Indian Muslim society? The Indianization of Islam - the sufi orders - baraka and the tarigas -- the inapplicability
of the Great Tradition - Little Traditions model to Indian Islam - and to Hinduism as well, by today's knowledge.
|
July 30th |
13. The Ahmediya (Qadiani)- Tolerance or Inclusivism |
The Ahmediya (Qadiani) - the Shi'as: Bohra, Ithna' Asari, Khoja Ismailis, the Aga Khan and his firmans - tolerance or 'inclusivism?' - a model for the perception of tolerance in different levels of Inidan religious discourse. |
July 31st |
14. Dualistic Trends and their Samkhya Mooring |
Dualistic trends and their samkhya moorings - Shakti and Vajrayana - some clarifications of mistaken notions about shakti, tantra (Hindu and Buddhist) ethics and the spiritual problem on the grassroots level. |
August 1st |
15. A Sikh Religious Preform |
??Sikhism - its tenets - Sikhs and Sikhism before and after "Blue Star" - the Guru Granth, the ten gurus - Guru Gobind Singh and militant Sikhism //A Sikh religious performance - and an emic account of Sikhism by Khushwant Singh. |
July 21st |
16. An Emic Account of Sikhism by Khushwant Singh; Schism in Sikhism
|
Schism in Sikhism - the Swaminarayan religion: the religious leader as god - God and the guru are one : a pervasive Indian syndrome. |
july 22nd |
17. Swaminarayan Concluded; Philosophy and Darshan Once Again; Darshan as Rhetoric |
Swaminarayan concluded - philosophy and darshan once again - darshan as rhetoric -- the modern "way of life" parlance - the four purusarthas (ideal stages and objects of human life) ethics and morality take a second place below religion as
vita contemplativa. |
August 6th |
18. The Problem in ‘Proof’ in Indian Thought; Indian Epistemology; Puja |
The problems of 'proof' in Indian thought - a short foray into Indian epistemology - degrees of canonicity in the Hindu lore: shruti and smriti - minimal and maximal ritualist observances - puja as a generic term for all
non-Vedic ritual. |
July 24th |
19. A Final Survey of Theravada Doctrine |
A final survey of Theravada doctrine - "dependent origination" (patticca-samuppada) - the sangha and monastic training - degrees of instruction among clergy and laity. |
July 25th |
20. Basic Concepts in Yoga |
Basic concepts of yoga - parakrti - vritti (waves, motions, disturbances?) - the types and words for 'mind' - the underlying parvritti-nivritti categories (extraversion and introversion if you wish, but don't). |
July 28th |
21. Popular Indian Charismatics; Hindu “Psychology,” Eightfold Yoga
|
The minimal textual knowledge of popular Indian religious leaders and charismatics - Hindu "psychology" and the four states of mind (jagrat, svapna, susupti, turiya) - the eightfold yoga - the meanings of samadhi. |
July 15th |
22. Occult Power and Yoga, Nyaya Vaisesika; Gurus, Swamis, and Pandits
|
The occult power (siddhi) and yoga link - siddhi and stage magic - the case of Sathya Sai Bab (preliminary) - Nyaya Vaisesika categories - the basic technical vocabulary of the popular religious teacher (gurus, swamis, pandits).
|
July 16th |
23. The Bhagavadgita; Bhakti and Theism; “Man of Firm Resolve” |
The Bhagavadgita -ayes and nays- the ideal type Hindu - bhakti and theism - the argument of "easier, therefore better" - the concept of sthitaprajna "man of firm resolve" (but much more and less) - the dangers of Gita like peptalk ( Hitler,
etc.).
|
July 17th |
24. All India Festivals |
Festivals stationery and festivals in motion (pilgrimage) - the tamasha-darshana continuum - gods as guests (festivals: stationery) - gods stationery (pilgrimage) - all India festivals: a sample -- Dassehra, Durga Puja, Holi, Diwali, Mahashivaratri
etc.
|
July 18th |
25. Puja: The All India Code for Formalized Worship and Reforms |
Puja, once more - the all-India code for formalized worship - Hinduization-Sanskritization-modernization-westernization - revivals and reforms: an overview - Arya Samaj. |
August 14th |
26. The Bengal Impact on the Hindu Renaissance |
The Brahmo Samaj, Raja Rammohun Roy - the Bengal impact on the Hindu Renaissance - Keshab Sen and the young Vivekananda and Ramakrishna for starters. |
August 5th |
27. The Ramakrishna Mission Vivekananda and After |
The Ramakrishna Mission - a non-Hindu organization? - Vivekanandaand after -- Sri Aurobindu-Bengali nationalism, mother-worship Durga, Kali, Bengal, Mother India, Subhas Bose etc. |
July 23rd |
28. The Scienctific Paradigm in Modern Emic Indian Religious Talk
|
Theosophy - Vivekananda's immediate imitators (Swami Ramtirtha and "In Woods of God-realization") - the 'scientific' paradigm in modern emic Indian religious talk - tradition and ecleticism in neo-Hindu lifestyles - Sai Baba, Muktananda, assorted
gurus.
|
August 7th |
29. Neo-Hinduism and Buddhism in the Diaspora. The Future of Religion on the Subcontinent |
Neo-Hinduism and Buddhism in the diaspora - recruitment - Rajneesh, Guru Maharaj and Divine Light - T.M., 3 HO and neo-Sikhism of Yogi Bhajan - ISKCON (vulgo Hare Krishna - the only tribe permanently settled on airports) -- political and militant
Hinduism - the future of religion on the subcontinent (well, the immediate future). |
August 8th |