News

Friends Event: Free will and Destiny in the Bhagavad-gita

Leicester Friends Event
Saturday, 26 November 2011 - 7:00pm to 9:00pm

A talk by Anuradha Dooney of the Oxford Centre For Hindu Studies

 
In this talk Anuradha will explore questions about free will and destiny as she finds them discussed in the Bhagavad-gita. How much choice do we really have in life, and how much is dependent on our birth, gender, status etc. Are we ruled by karma, Krishna, or our own desires.
 
These questions of free will and fate are universal, arising from a need to know how our lives are shaped and the value of our decisions. Krishna and Arjuna's dialogue in the Bhagavad-gita comes to surprising conclusions.

Nehru Centre Event: How to Understand the Bhagavad-gita

Nehru Centre Event
Monday, 21 November 2011 - 6:30pm to 7:30pm

A talk by Dr Nicholas Sutton of the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies.

 
The Bhagavad-gita is widely known as one the main sacred texts of the Hindu tradition but precise understanding of the message it conveys remains elusive, as is demonstrated by the widely differing interpretations of its meaning.  In this talk, we will consider the ways in which the Gita seeks to offer a reconciliation of differing concepts, including Yoga, Samkhya, devotion and dharma and is able to emerge with a coherent revelation that is central to the contemporary Hindu tradition.

Amitabh Bachchan and Karan Singh become OCHS Patrons

1 November 2011

Renowned actor, Mr Amitabh Bachchan is taking a leading role in support of the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies.

Mr Bachchan was invited to the OCHS Patrons Council following his highly successful visit in May 2011 where he delivered the Distinguished Ford Lecture, with Prof. Rachel Dwyer. On inviting Mr Bachchan, OCHS Governor Lord Dholakia said that his presence on the Patron Council, ‘would underline the contribution of the arts to the development of Indian culture and thought through the centuries.’

Mr Bachchan said the OCHS is ‘a sure means of enhancing the study and propagation of

Friends Event: Human Rights and Right Humans

Birmingham Friends Event
Saturday, 5 November 2011 - 7:00pm to 9:00pm

A talk by Anuradha Dooney of the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies.

 
Human rights discourse is increasingly at the heart of all moral debate. In this talk we will draw from selected Hindu narratives and philosophical ideas and consider what their perspectives on morality and human rights contribute to the global debate.

Nehru Centre Event: Literalism, Steam Engines and the Vedas: On the Interpretation of Hindu Sacred Texts

Nehru Centre Event
Thursday, 20 October 2011 - 6:30pm to 7:30pm

Dr Rembert Lutjeharms

 
How do we understand and apply the teachings of centuries-old texts today? How do we make their teachings, grounded in a social structure that no longer exists, relevant in our modern world? How do we interpret these ideas in the light of contemporary science? In recent decades, the interpretation of sacred texts has become not just the pursuit of a few scholars and theologians in the academies and religious institutions but have become the focus of public debate. How do Hindu sacred texts relate to this discussion?

Friends Event: One-Day Course

Leicester Friends Event
Saturday, 15 October 2011 - 9:30am to 5:30pm

Cost: £50 including lunch

 
For more information and bookings contact Ramila Chauhan on 07801 241296 or lf@ochs.org.uk
 
Session One: The Origins and History of the Hindu Religion
In this session we will first look at different views on the origins of the Hindu religion, noting the importance of the Vedas and the significance of the ancient culture of the Indus Valley. We will then explore the way in which the history of India has had an influence on its religious culture, noting in particular the impact of foreign invasions and foreign rule.
 
Session Two: The Hindu Scriptures
In

OCHS alumnus awarded

1 October 2011

In January, Exploring the Bhagavad gita: Philosophy, Structure and Meaning a new book by OCHS alumnus, Dr Ithamar Theodor, was named a Choice Outstanding Academic Title for 2011.

Every year in their January issue, Choice a magazine representing the 35,000 libraries who are part of the American Academic Libraries Association, publishes a list of Outstanding Academic Titles that they reviewed during the previous year.

‘Theodor writes with a fine mind and a great heart, both of which are essential for delving into this ancient work’s profound teachings,’ Choice magazine commented in its

OCHS Conference 2011: The Shakta Traditions

12 September 2011

We now have a third conference to add to our list of achievements. The Sakta conference which took place on 10–11 September 2011 was highly successful with over fifty participants and twelve specialist scholars.

The conference was held in collaboration with the section for the Study of Religion, Aarhus University and the project leaders were Professor Gavin Flood (OCHS) and Bjarne Wernicke Olesen (Aarhus University). The Nehru Centre very kindly provided funding for the conference.

Friends Event: Yoga and Hinduism

Leicester Friends Event
Saturday, 24 September 2011 - 7:00pm to 9:00pm

Today many millions of people in the Western world and in India practice some form of Yoga. It is well known that Yoga originates in India but the relationship with Hindu religious teachings is frequently misunderstood. In this talk Nick Sutton will consider the relationship between Yoga and Hindu teachings and show how Yoga should properly be understood as an expression of Hindu spirituality.

Friends Event: What is progress? What is the goal? Indian insights on the world’s oldest questions

Nehru Centre Event
Monday, 19 September 2011 - 6:30pm to 7:30pm

A talk by Dr Nicholas Sutton of the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies.

One of the notable features of modernity is the conflict that emerges between ‘extreme religion’ and ‘extreme materialism.’ A careful study of Indian thought, however, reveals a different approach to life based on the need to strike a balance and to develop a mood of tolerance towards other religious views.

Friends Event: Quantum Physics and Hinduism

Leicester Friends Event
Saturday, 27 August 2011 - 7:00pm to 9:00pm

A talk by by Sachin Nandha of The WeComeOne Group

 
Hinduism has always explored and identified with the subtlety of the universe, and ultimately our own nature. Hindu thinkers have never been convinced of a clock-like mechanical universe, and therefore all that is in it, including human beings. Western science through the “enlightenment” has always looked to mechanise the universe, and human beings with it. Only recently, in the last century have physicists begun to explore Quantum levels of our existence to discover the beauty and subtlety of everything around us.