Course Content

What is Hinduism? Is it a religion, a tradition or a family of religions or traditions? Is Hinduism a backward religion, that has no place in our contemporary modernity? Are its ideas obsolete, perhaps appropriate for a bygone ancient era, but no more in our current age? Or is Hindu thought timeless i.e., Sanatana – something that has validity in all times and places?

What does the word “Sanatana” mean? Does it mean static, stuck in the past, unable to progress, except via an intervention from outside? Or does it mean something more dynamic that moves with time, re-inventing, and re-articulating itself time after time? How can each generation access these ideas newly and interpret it for their own time and age?

In contemporary times, following the European Colonization of India, many misconceptions about Hinduism have been set into circulation, that have become ‘received knowledge’ i.e., that are perceived as uncontestable and ‘essential’ features of Hinduism. In this course, as we unfold the central ideas and concepts of Hindu Dharma, we will also address some of these misconceptions.

This course consists of lectures and talks and a facilitated inquiry into the many received ideas about Hinduism. During this course, students will acquire a newfound confidence from the dawning recognition that the Hinduism is quite different from what our received knowledge about it has led us to believe. It will renew their trust in the Hindu worldview and way of life, that has for so long sustained its culture and civilization.