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Historical and Civilisational Studies
Indian Philosophy for Beginners

VIF has started a new lecture series called ‘Indian Philosophy for Beginners’. Lectures will be given on the Vedas, Upanisads and the Indian schools of philosophy, that will (a) introduce and explain these subjects lucidly to non-experts (mainly ....

August 10, 2020 Historical and Civilisational Studies , Interaction , Vedas , Indian philosophy , Indian Philosophy for Beginners , Upanisads , Purvapaksha , Pramanas
Modi Heralds a New Narrative for India
Arvind Gupta, Director, VIF Commentary

Prime Minster Modi’s seminal speech on the occasion of Ram Mandir Bhumi Poojan at Ayodhya on 5 August 2020 had several messages which need to be understood and analysed. The start of the construction of the Ram temple is a watershed moment in indep....

August 07, 2020 Governance and Political Studies , Historical and Civilisational Studies , Commentary , Ram Mandir , PM Modi , Secularism , Atmanirbhar Bharat , Bhumi Poojan , Ram Rajya
Siberia and India: Historical Cultural Affinities
Prof K Warikoo

India and Eurasia have had close social and cultural linkages, as Buddhism spread from India to Central Asia, Mongolia, Buryatia, Tuva and far wide. Buddhism provides a direct link between India and the peoples of Siberia (Buryatia, Chita, Irkutsk, ....

August 06, 2020 Historical and Civilisational Studies , India , Buddhism , Siberia , Historical Cultural Affinities , Buryatia , Chita , Irkutsk , Tuva , Altai , Urals
Re-conceptualizing Religious History: Archaeological Findings from Itkhori, a Composite Sacred Space

VIF organized a talk by Professor Rupendra Kumar Chattopadhyay (Vivekananda Chair Professor of Social Science, University of Calcutta) under the VIF Lecture Series ‘Understanding Indian History & Civilization’. The talk was titled Reconceptual....

July 24, 2020 Historical and Civilisational Studies , Interaction , Buddhism , Civilization , Understanding Indian History , Itkhori , Bhadrakali temple , Brahmanism
The Shared Heritage of Yoga: Ideas and Practices from Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism

On the occasion of International Day of Yoga, VIF organized a talk by Professor Christopher Key Chapple (Loyola Marymount University, USA) under the VIF Lecture Series ‘Understanding Indian History & Civilization’. The talk was titled The Shar....

June 29, 2020 Historical and Civilisational Studies , Interaction , Buddhism , International Day of Yoga , Shared Heritage of Yoga , Hinduism , Jainism , Key Chapple , Philosophy
The Islamic Reception of Yoga
Dr Arpita Mitra Article

The history of the Muslim world’s engagement with Yoga spans at least about a millennium. The purpose of this essay is to briefly recount some high points in this history, which will help put in perspective the historical interactions between Islam....

June 20, 2020 Historical and Civilisational Studies , Article , India , Islam , Yoga , Arab World , Patanjali , Yogasutra , Hatha Yoga , Amritakunda , Alberuni , Tahqiq-i-Hind , Abul Fazl , Ain-i-Akbari , Sufism , Arabic & Persian translation , cultural translation
Book discussion on Dharma in Governance authored by Gunjan Pradhan Sinha

VIF organized an online book discussion on Dharma in Governance: Towards a Welfare State (Aditya Prakashan, 2018) authored by Gunjan Pradhan Sinha on 21 May 2020. The panel included the author, Prof. Arvind Sharma (McGill University), Col. Pra....

June 12, 2020 Historical and Civilisational Studies , Book Discussions , governance , Buddhism , dharma , Public policies , Arthasastra
Shift to Plant Based Proteins to Prevent Future Pandemics
Dr Vijay Sakhuja Article

Three consignments of African Pangolin scales have been recently seized at ports in two Southeast Asian countries. On the first day of April, port authorities in Port Kelang, Malaysia confiscated six tons of the contraband packed in a shipping contai....

May 01, 2020 Governance and Political Studies , Historical and Civilisational Studies , Article , COVID-19 , SARS-CoV-2 virus , Vegan , Vegetarian , Lab-grown meat , Kebabs , Soy , Poultry , Satvik
What the World Needs to Revise? – Lessons from Repository of Indian Civilisation’s Thought and Praxis
Gunjan Pradhan Sinha Article

As we stand amidst a crisis owing to the pandemic caused by the rapid spread of the deadly corona virus, there lie shrouded in ignorance and oversight immense learning for the world from Indian Food Ethics- a discipline where ethics and food collide<....

April 30, 2020 Historical and Civilisational Studies , Article , dharma , Food Ethics , Bhojana Dharma , COVID19 , Dharmaśa̅stras , Doṣa̅s
Samvad: Global Hindu-Buddhist Initiative for Conflict Avoidance - Inter-Religious Understanding and Interdependent Sustainability, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, September 6 and 7, 2019

The III Edition of Samvad at Ulaanbaatar was a great success in many ways. In particular it cemented the relation between India and Mongolia as Spiritual Partners. It was held in the premises of Gandan Monastery in Ulaanbaatar. The pre - inaugura....

April 17, 2020 Conference , Historical and Civilisational Studies , Conflict Avoidance , Samvad , Ulaanbaatar , Global Hindu-Buddhist Initiative , Inter-Religious Understanding , Interdependent Sustainability
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