program Soma-Haoma workshop, 3-4 July, Leiden

[Jan E.M. Houben]

Program of the workshop

The Soma-Haoma Cult in Early Vedism and Zoroastrism: Archeology, Text, and
Ritual

to be held at Leiden University, 3-4 July.

Saturday 3 July
10.00 - 10.15 Opening by Prof. Dr. J.C. Heesterman
10.15 - 11.00 Dr. W. Vogelsang (Leiden Univ., Research school CNWS): "The
Advent of the Indo-Iranians: the Minefield of Archeological Interpretation"

11.15 - 12.00 Dr. A.F. de Jong (Leiden Univ., Fac. of Theology): "Triple Haoma
in the Development of Zoroastrian Traditions."
12.00 - 13.00 Prof. Dr. V.I. Sarianidi (Moscow, Institute of Archeology) on
archeological findings in Margiana and the Haoma-Soma cult.

14.30 - 15.30 Prof. Dr. H. Falk (Berlin, Freie Universitaet): "Decent drugs
for decent societies: Some candidates for Soma in the light of Avestan and
Vedic literature."

15.45 - 16.15 Dr. J. Houben (Leiden Univ., Kern Institute): "The anjahsava:
simplified or more original soma-pressing? On the structure and development of
the Soma-Haoma ritual."

16.15 - 17.00 Drs Friso Smit (Utrecht University, Dep. of Medicinal
Chemistry): "The Soma-Haoma problem from Ethnofarmacognostical perspective."

***

Sunday 4 July

10.30 - 11.30 The Zoroastrian Yasna ceremony: a recent performance (video-tape)
11.30 - 13.30 General discussion on:
- facts, ethics and romantics in research on ancient sacred drinks;
- designing experiments to test Soma/Haoma candidates;
- implications of recent archeological findings for our understanding of
people, cultures and languages in Central and South Asia, ca. 2000 - 1000 B.C.

***

For more information and registration please contact
(0)71-5272951 / email: jhouben at rullet.leidenuniv.nl