Vivekananda International Foundation | Seeking Harmony in Diversity

Discussion on Hindutva and Secularism

On 7th June 2023, Vivekananda International Foundation (VIF) organised a Vimarsh public lecture on ‘Hindutva and Religion’ by Prof. Arvind Sharma. Prof. Sharma, formerly of the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), is the Birks Professor of Comparative Religion in the School of Religious Studies at McGill University in Montreal, Canada. He has also taught at various universities in the United States (Northeastern, Boston, Temple, Harvard), Australia (Queensland, Sydney), and India (Nalanda). He has published extensively in the fields of Indian religions and comparative religion.

August 25, 2023 Event Report

Vimarsh on Hindutva and Religion

On 17th May, 2023, Vivekananda International Foundation (VIF) organised a Vimarsh public lecture on ‘Hindutva and Religion’ by Prof. Arvind Sharma. Prof. Sharma, formerly of the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), is the Birks Professor of Comparative Religion in the School of Religious Studies at McGill University in Montreal, Canada. He has also taught at various universities in the United States (Northeastern, Boston, Temple, Harvard), Australia (Queensland, Sydney), and India (Nalanda). He has published extensively in the fields of Indian religions and comparative religion.

August 25, 2023 Event Report

Ayurveda: Holistic Science of Well Being for the World

On 15th and 16th July, 2023, Vivekananda International Foundation organised a National conference on the Ayurveda: Holistic Science of Well Being for the World in collaboration with IIAS (Indian Institute of Advanced Studies), Shimla and Research and Information System for Developing Countries RIS. This was a jointly organised G20/T20 advocacy event, conducted in hybrid mode.

August 14, 2023 Event Report

Panel Discussion on ‘Significance of Vedic Mathematics’

On Thursday, 22nd June, 2023, Vivekananda International Foundation (VIF) organised a panel discussion in collaboration with Draupadi Dream Trust on “Significance of Vedic Mathematics”. The event was chaired by Dr. Arvind Gupta, Director, VIF, who also gave the welcome address. Srimati Neera Mishra, Chairperson, Draupadi D’ Trust, announced the event’s theme. She also mentioned various activities undertaken by the Trust. It was mentioned that this collaborative event was a part of the Vedic Gyan Vigyan series of the Draupadi Trust. In his address, Dr.

August 08, 2023 Event Report

Gita for Millennia - Eleventh Lecture

On 18 May 2023, Vivekananda International Foundation (VIF) organised the tenth session of ‘Gītā for the Millennia’, an online talk series based on Śrīmad Bhagavad Gītā by Swāmī Mitrānanda of Chinmaya Mission. The Chapter 4 & 5 of the ‘Gītā, was discussed during the session.

July 04, 2023 Event Report

Human Rights and the Uses of History: Expanded Second Edition | Author-Samuel Moyn, Verso; Reprint edition, 2017, 208 pp, London: ISBN-13:978-1781689004, Price-₹ 940 (paperback)

Rohith Krishna

When the history of human rights is written, there is a general tendency in scholarship to teleologically derive the concept from antiquity to the enlightenment period and its matured form today (for instance, Lynn Hunt, 2007). In such a framework of understanding, human rights as a concept was formed as an outcome of a millennium or as a culmination of a long-standing intellectual legacy that easily received a ‘universal’ status. This generates a notion that Human Rights has come as a virtue in modernity.

July 04, 2023 Books/Book Review

Foreign Universities in India: An Analysis on the Criticisms

Rohith Krishna

Is the arrival of foreign universities to India really a negative development? Of course there could be reasons both for and against. But ultimately, it wouldn’t be as harmful or alarming as it is portrayed, especially if the challenges are converted into opportunities. If handled carefully, both India and the world can benefit by making the discourse on knowledge more fruitful. At least, it could be said that it is too early to oppose the development. Nevertheless, the decision has received criticisms on different grounds, from various ideological standpoints.

May 19, 2023 Issue Brief

'Developing India as a Vibrant International Education Hub'

On 1st March 2023, Vivekananda International Foundation hosted a round-table discussion on 'Developing India as a Vibrant International Education Hub'. The event was organised and coordinated by Prof. K. K. Aggarwal, Former Chairman, National Board of Accreditation. The keynote speakers of the event were: Dr. Pankaj Mittal, Secretary General, Association of Indian Universities (AIU) Prof. C. Rajkumar, Vice-Chancellor, Jindal Global University Prof. S Vaidhyasubramaniam, Vice-Chancellor, Sastra University

March 13, 2023 Event Report

Gītā for the Millennia, Tenth Lecture

On 31 January 2023, Vivekananda International Foundation (VIF) organised the tenth session of ‘Gītā for the Millennia’, an online talk series based on Śrīmad Bhagavad Gītā by Swāmī Mitrānanda of Chinmaya Mission. The Chapter 4 of the ‘Gītā, which elucidates on Jñāna Karma Sannyāsa Yoga was discussed during the session. Swāmiji began the talk by explaining the title of the chapter, which conveys that this chapter is essentially about answering the question, how can we detach ourselves from Karma.

February 06, 2023 Event Report

VIF Interaction with the visiting delegation from Iran On Interfaith Dialogue in the Historical Perspective, especially from India and Iran Point of View

On December 15, 2022, the Vivekananda International Foundation (VIF) organized an interaction with a high level delegation from Iran. The theme of the discussion was 'Interfaith Dialogue in the Historical Perspective, especially from India and Iran Point of View'. Dr Arvind Gupta, Director VIF, delivered the introductory remarks, which were followed by a presentation by Prof. Shrinivasa Varakhedi, Vice-chancellor, Central Sanskrit University, Delhi. Dr. Adil Rasheed, Research Fellow, MP-IDSA also made a presentation. The Iranian delegation headed by Dr.

December 26, 2022 Event Report