CHICAGO: Leading scholars from Cambridge University and Hebrew University have been appointed to the Indian Ministry of Culture Vivekananda Visiting Professorship at the University of Chicago.
Sir Christopher Bayly of Cambridge University, an expert on post-18th-centuryIndian history and British imperial history, will join the faculty of South Asian Languages and Civilizations for Spring Quarter of 2014 and 2015. A PhD from London University, Dr David Shulman of Hebrew University, studies the history, religion, poetry and languages of Southern India. He will be in residence for Spring Quarter of 2016 and 2017.
The Indian Ministry of Culture Vivekananda Visiting Professorship was established to commemorate the legacy of Indian spiritual leader Swami Vivekananda and to enrich the University’s renowned program for the study of the Indian subcontinent. The professorship is supported by a $1.5 million gift to the University from the Indian Ministry.
Indian president Pranab Mukherjee and Ambassador Nirupama Rao attended a January 2012 ceremony at the University to celebrate the founding of the program.
During their time on campus, Sir Bayly and Dr Shulman will offer classes in South Asian Languages and Civilizations and participate in the intellectual life of the University through conversations with students and colleagues. Both scholars will also deliver a public lecture that shares their respective research with a wider audience.
“Sir Christopher Bayly, through his careful attention to the lives of Indian people and the wide-reaching impact of Indians on social and political change, continues to illuminate the role of India in modern history. Dr David Shulman’s work explores the rich interactions of literature, philosophy, religion, and regional cultures in the intellectual and social life of India across the centuries,” said Gary Tubb, professor in SALC, who chaired the committee that selected Bayly and Shulman.
This year marks the 150th anniversary of the birth of Swami Vivekananda, who helped to raise awareness of Hinduism and Indian culture in the United States. He was also a strong advocate of interfaith understanding and cooperation.
Vivekananda rose to prominence in the United States during the 1893 Parliament of the World’s Religions in Chicago, when he delivered an enormously popular lecture on the teachings of Hinduism.
The selection of the inaugural holders of the Vivekananda Chair comes as the University of Chicago prepares to further strengthen its ties to India. In 2010, a faculty committee recommended the creation of a center in New Delhi as a focus for the University’s scholarship, teaching and engagement in India.
Ramesh Soparawala
India Post News Service
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