Rashtrapati Bhavan to host a
World Indology conference from November 21 to 23
The
Rashtrapati Bhavan will host for the first time a World Indology Conference in
collaboration with Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) from November
21 to 23, 2015. This is a first of its kind event where around 21 eminent
Indologists from across the world will live in Rashtrapati Bhavan (including in
the prestigious Guest Wing of Rashtrapati Bhavan which normally hosts visiting
leaders from foreign countries) and along with eight senior scholars from India
deliberate on various topics related to Indian culture and philosophy.
A
‘Distinguished Indologist’ Award will be presented by President Mukherjee
toProf. Heinrich Freiherr Von Stietencron from Germany on the occasion. Such an
Award is being instituted for the first time by ICCR.
The idea of
Rashtrapati Bhavan hosting such a conference emerged during the visit of
President Pranab Mukherjee to Russia from May 7 to 11, 2015. Following a
meeting with leading Indologists in Moscow, President Mukherjee announced that
he would be happy to host an international conference on Indology in
Rashtrapati Bhavan and directed ICCR to do the needful in this regard.
The World
Indology Conference will commence with an inaugural address by President Pranab
Mukherjee on November 21, 2015. Minister for External Affairs, Smt. Sushma
Swaraj and President of ICCR, Prof. Lokesh Chandra will also participate in the
function. The five academic sessions of the conference are carefully designed,
giving equal weightage to the Eastern and Western perspectives about the
respective themes being discussed. It will witness detailed discussions on
topics such as ‘Indological Studies in Historical Perspective’, ‘Sanskrit
Literature-Past and Present’, ‘Sanskrit Drama- Theory and Practice’, Indian
Philosophical Thought’ and ‘Indian Art and Architecture’ over three days.
External Affairs Minister Smt. Sushma Swaraj and President of ICCR will chair
sessions on the opening day.
The conference
is a unique platform which will bring the best scholars from across the world
including India to discuss the present state of Indology, its relevance and
also the challenges faced by them in India and abroad. The deliberations during
the conference would open new vistas for researchers to infuse new vigour in
the younger generation to take up Indology as a subject of study.
ICCR has instituted the annual
‘ICCR Distinguished Indologist Award’ to recognize eminent Indologists working
abroad who have made outstanding contribution to the study/teaching/research in
India’s philosophy, thought, history, art, culture, Indian languages,
literature, civilization, society etc. This award includes US$ 20000 and a
Citation.
The winner of
this year’s ‘Distinguished Indologist’ award, Prof. Stietencron has served as
Director of Department of Indology and Comparative History of Religions at the
University of Tuebingen for nearly 25 years from 1973-1998. He is well known as
researcher, teacher, academician and epigrapher. He has worked on various
aspects of history of Indian religions, especially Hinduism and done research
on epics and puranas. Prof. Stietencron is also one of the founding members of
Orissa Project, which focuses on history and socio-cultural significance of
Jagannath cult in Orissa. He has published 19 books and about 90 scientific research
papers. For his significant contribution to Indology, he was awarded Padma Shri
by Government of India in 2004.
Other
international scholars who will participate in the Conference includeFernando
Tola from Argentina, Prof. Oscar Punjol Riembau from Brazil, Sergio Meliton
Carrasco Alvarez from Chile, Prof. Dr. Jaroslav Vacek from Czech Republic, Dr.
Kenneth Gregory Zysk from Denmark, Prof. I. Wayan Ardika from Indonesia, Prof.
Claus Peter Zoller from Norway, Prof. Danuta Stasik from Poland, Dr. George
Anca from Romania, Prof. Javier Ruiz Calderon from Spain, Prof. Ven. Induragare
Dhammaratna from Sri Lanka, Prof. Dr. Korhan Kaya from Turkey, Irma Piovano
from Italy, Prof. Wang Banwei, Prof. Ma Jiali and Prof. Yu from China, Prof.
Narendra K. Wagle from Canada,Prof. Anisuzzaman from Bangladesh, Prof. Marietta
Stepanyants from Russia, Prof. Rajendra Arun from Mauritius and Prof. David
Frawley from USA.
The Conference
will conclude with a special lecture by former President of ICCR, Dr. Karan
Singh on Upanishads.
Participants
will also visit Dev Sanskriti University, witness Ganga Aarti at Har ki Pauri
and visit Shanti kunj in Uttarakhand on November 24 and 25, 2015.
Some Indological Contributions by Dr. George Anca
Niciun comentariu:
Trimiteți un comentariu