India's Upanisads in a Theological Perspective
Lecturer: Prof. Francis X Clooney
SJ
Day & Time: Wednesdays, 17.00 - 18.00, Commencing 16th January
Place: Oxford University, Examination Schools Building, High Street, Oxford
A series of eight weekly lectures focusing on the Upanisads.
(No background in Indian studies or theology required.)
Week 1: 16th January
Introduction: the study of the Upanishads as a theological project
Week 2: 23rd January
Teachers and students: the Upanishads as pedagogical experiments
Week 3: 30th January
Questions, debate, and the limits of language
Week 4: 6th February
Knowledge's body
Week 5: 13th February
Renouncing the world in the Upanisads
Week 6: 20th February
Affirming the world in the Upanishads
Week 7: 27th Febraury
The Upanishads and nondualist Vedanta
Week 8: 6th March
God in the Upanishads, theistic Vedanta, and Christian appropriations
of the Upanishads
Aims:
The Upanishads, religious and philosophical texts of ancient India
record the speculations of seers and sages about the ultimate meaning
of life and the path to liberation. Rooted in older traditions,
still they test bold new ideas about the world, the self and the
highest truth. These lectures examine major thematic and stylistic
issues in key Upanishads, with reference to their interpretation
by great Hindu thinkers, and their relevance as well for comparative
and Christian theologies. These lectures are intended primarily
for students in theology and religious studies. No background in
Indian studies or theology required, although such background in
either would be useful, as would some knowledge of Sanskrit.
Objectives:
Students will be introduced to key Upanishads as teachings, oral
and written texts, and stylistically complex source materials.
Key themes will be examined, in particular Upanishads and in their
development over time.
The interpretation and use of the Upanishads, particularly in the
Nondualist Vedanta tradition, will be examined and assessed.
The possibilities and challenges facing theologians - especially
Hindu and Christian - who wish to make use of the Upanishads today
will be discussed throughout the lectures.
Methods:
Eight lectures will be delivered in a central location. Handouts
will accompany each lecture where appropriate. Bibliographical recommendations
will be made in relation to each week's topic. Each week's lecture
will allow ample time for discussion.
Recommended translations of the Upanisads:
Patrick Olivelle, The Upanishads (OUP); Robert Hume, The Thirteen
Principal Upanishads (OUP); the translations of the commentaries
of the 8th century Hindu theologian Sankara, Advaita Ashrama, Calcutta:
Eight Upanisads with the Commentary of Sankaracarya, tr. by Swami
Gambhirananda; the Chandogya Upanishad with the Commentary of Sankaracarya,
tr. by Swami Gambhirananda; the Brhadaranyaka Upanishad with the
Commentary of Sankaracarya, tr. by Swami Gambhirananda.