Gender & Vedic Tradition

Thu Apr 20 20:59:31 UTC 1995

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contact event organizers directly for any further information.
David Magier

-----------------------------------
Dharam Hinduja Indic Research Center
at Columbia University

is sponsoring:

"Gender and the Vedic Tradition"
Second Annual Meeting of the
Working Group on Gender and the Vedic Tradition

Thursday, April 27, 1995, 7:30 pm
1134 International Affairs Building
420 West 118th Street 
Columbia University, New York City, NY, USA

Friday, April 28, 1995, 9:00 am - 9:00 pm
North and South Towers
Sulzberger Hall, 17th floor
Barnard College, New York City, NY, USA

Detailed Schedule

THURSDAY, APRIL 27, 1995,  7:30 pm

Prof. Laurie L. Patton, Bard College
Reading Canon, Reading Women: Issues in Gender and Vedic Authority

FRIDAY, APRIL 28, 1995, 9:00 am - 9:00 pm 

PRESENTATIONS 
9:00 am - 12:30 pm

Prof. Stephanie Jamison, Harvard University
Autonomy, Gift-Giving, and WomenUs Religious Roles in Ancient India

Prof. Ellison B. Findly, Trinity College
Women and the Practice of Giving: The House Mistress at the Door 
as a Vedic and Buddhist Paradigm

BREAK 11:00-11:30 am

Prof. Mary McGee, Vassar College
Ritual Rights: The Gender Implications of Adhikara in Hindu Traditions

LUNCH 12:45 - 1:45 pm

SHORTER PAPERS  
2:00-5:30 pm

Prof. Vasudha Narayanan, University of Florida
Casting Light on the Sounds of the Tamil Veda:  Tirukkoneri DasyaiUs
"Garland of Words" 

Prof. Katherine Young, McGill University
Can Women Recite Mantras?: 
Tracing the Debate in the Sri Vaisnava Tradition

BREAK 3:30 - 4:00 pm

Prof. Nancy A. Falk, Western Michigan Univ.
Men, Women and the Problem of Authority  in 19th Century Hindu Movements

Prof. Ann Gold, Syracuse University
The "Subtle Veda" and  Other Celebrations of WomenUs Counterpoint Authority:
A Preliminary View from the Village

DINNER AND EVENING PROGRAM 
6:00-9:00 pm 

Mallika Sarabhai, Battery Dance Company
A Performance of Indian Dance 

SPACE PERMITTING, YOU ARE WELCOME TO ATTEND.
PLEASE CALL NANCY BRAXTON, COORDINATOR, DHIRC, FOR AVAILABILITY. 

=======================

DHIRC Working Group 
on 
Gender and the Vedic Tradition

The perspective of this working group is that close, textual or
ethnographic analyses of women in the Hindu tradition are not incompatible
with theoretical sophistication in gender studies.  In a series of annual
meetings, these emphases are joined. 

Our focus is fourfold: gender and ritual in Vedic tradition; gender and
mythology in Vedic tradition; gender and Vedic authority in the era of
Hindu reform; and gender and Vedic authority in postcolonial India. 
Research topics include gender issues in: the Vedic tradition itself;
texts and practices influenced by that tradition; and questions of Vedic
authority in recent history and politics, in both colonial and
contemporary India. 

The first annual meeting was held in April 1994.  This year we will
develop themes which were identified during these initial presentations
and discussions.  Following this yearUs meeting, we will collect selected
papers into an edited volume, te ntatively titled Gender and Vedic
Authority. 

The Working Group 
on
Gender and the Vedic Tradition
consists of:

Laurie L. Patton
Chair
Bard College

Ellison Banks Findly          Julia Leslie
Trinity College               University of London

Stephanie Jamison             Mary McGee
Harvard University            Vassar College

1995 Participants

Nancy A. Falk                 Vasudha Narayanan
Western Michigan Univ.        University of Florida

Ann Gold                      Katherine Young
Syracuse University           McGill University

=======================

About DHIRC

The Dharam Hinduja Indic Research Center (DHIRC) was established within
the Department of Religion at Columbia University in May 1994 with three
primary goals: 

(a) promoting research on Indic traditions; 

(b) addressing practical problems of the modern world, including science,
medicine, and gender issues; and

(c) advancing the causes of tolerance and interreligious understanding. 

Much of DHIRCUs research work is undertaken by its five working groups,
which draw together scholars with shared concerns in: 

     *Gender and the Vedic Tradition
     *Science and the Vedic Tradition
     *Research in Ayurveda
     *Vedanta and Conflict Resolution
     *The Relevance of the Veda

For further information regarding the working group on Gender and the
Vedic Tradition, please contact Prof. Laurie Patton, (914) 758-6822, ext.
384, fax (914) 758-9654, patton at bard.edu. 

For further information on DHIRC, please contact:

     Nancy E. Braxton, Coordinator:
     Dharam Hinduja Indic Research Center
     Columbia University
     1102 International Affairs Building
     New York  NY  10027
     tel. 212-854-5300   fax. 212-854-2802
     dhirc at columbia.edu