Lecture series: Introduction to Hinduism for Muslim audiences

This ten-part lecture series is led by Dr Ankur Barua, Senior Lecturer in Hinduism at the University of Cambridge.

All lectures are online and co-hosted by the India-based forum Project Noon. The series is free to attend, but registration is required.

The lectures will form a coherent series, so that participants are strongly encouraged to attend all sessions. Late registration will be accepted at the organisers’ discretion.

Enhancing religious literacy

Dr Barua explains:

“[My] aim [is] to raise the level and the quality of religious literacy vis-à-vis some core theological visions, ritual practices, spiritual disciplines, and social institutions.

“These ten lectures do not presuppose any acquaintance with Hindu beliefs and practices, and are open to anyone who is interested. Each lecture – aimed at a horizon of translation – will be followed by a reflection offered by a scholar of Islam or by an activist working on Hindu-Muslim relations at the grassroots.”

Overview of lectures

Lectures 1–3: An introduction to (a) a methodology of critical sympathy in the study of religion; (b) the sociocultural and the socioreligious meanings of the word “Hindu”; (c) Vedic ritual imaginations of the world as a sacrificial order (yajña, dharma); and (d) the motif of self-knowledge (jñāna, vidyā) in the Upaniṣads.

Lecture 4: An introduction to the central themes of the Bhagavad-gītā.

Lectures 5–6: An introduction to Vedāntic notions of the human self (jīva, ātman) and its relation to the divine reality (brahman, īśvara).

Lecture 7–8: An introduction to the divine feminine (devī, śakti), and an exploration of the locations of Hindu spirituality on everyday landscapes structured by distinctions of caste (varṇa, jāti) and gender (strī-dharma).

Lectures 9–10: An introduction to the multiple styles of post-1757 Hindu modernity which have sought to rework premodern scriptural texts and practices in active engagement with the idea of the West.

Further information

A webinar introduction to this series took place on Saturday 24 June. View webinar details and register.

Missed the webinar? A recording is available on the Faculty of Divinity's YouTube channel (youtube.com) and on Dr Barua's personal YouTube channel.

NB Sessions will begin at 19:30 Indian Standard Time.

Registration

Registration will open following the 24 June webinar. (The form below will activate at that point. It is set to de-activate when registration closes.)