[with apologies for cross-posting] Dear Colleagues,
I'm pleased to announce that the Hindu Philosophy unit of the American Academy of Religion is sponsoring three sessions at the upcoming annual meeting (Nov. 19-22) in Denver, Colorado. Please see below for details. Best wishes, Michael S. Allen Co-chair (with Parimal Patil), Hindu Philosophy Unit Assistant Professor Department of Religious Studies University of Virginia --------------- A19-313 Theme: Topics in Indian Philosophy: Perception, Logic, and Embodiment Saturday, 3:00 PM - 4:30 PM Hyatt Regency-Capitol 2 (Fourth Level) Lynna Dhanani, University of California, Davis, Presiding This session brings together three papers on diverse topics from across a millennium of Indian philosophy. The first paper discusses the relationship between philosophy of language and philosophy of perception in the works of Maṇḍana Miśra (8th c.), focusing on his distinctive claim that error leads to truth. The second offers an analysis of Śrīharṣa’s (12th c.) view of tarka (“suppositional reasoning”) and its relevance to theory choice, arguing that Śrīharṣa should not be read as a skeptic. The third paper draws attention to the epics as sites for theological discourse, focusing on early modern (17th and 18th c.) Vedāntic commentaries on the Rāmāyaṇa and Mahābhārata and their treatment of divine embodiment. Eliot Davenport, University of Virginia When Elephants Become Trees: Perception in the Brahmasiddhi and Sphoṭasiddhi of Maṇḍana Miśra Nilanjan Das, University of Toronto Śrīharṣa on Tarka and Theory Choice Vishal Sharma, University of Oxford “As if Embodied”: Reading the Sanskrit Epics in the Age of Vedanta A20-216 Theme: Kumārila on the Intrinsic Validity of Cognitions: A Philosophical Roundtable Sunday, 12:30 PM - 2:30 PM Hyatt Regency-Granite C (Third Level) Parimal G. Patil, Harvard University, Presiding What makes a cognition valid, justified, or true? This roundtable will focus on one of the most important treatments of this question in classical Indian philosophy: Kumārila’s argument for svataḥ-prāmāṇya, or the “intrinsic validity” of cognitions, at Śloka-vārttika II.33-61. Participants will explore and debate the merits of several different interpretations of Kumārila’s argument by later Mīmāṃsakas as well as by Vedāntins. The goal of this format is to create a space for lively and rigorous discussion, rather than traditional paper presentations. A handout with the original Sanskrit and an English translation of selections from Kumārila’s text will be provided. Panelists John Taber, University of New Mexico Lawrence McCrea, Cornell University Elisa Freschi, University of Toronto Michael Allen, University of Virginia Business Meeting Michael Allen, University of Virginia, Presiding Parimal G. Patil, Harvard University, Presiding A21-416 Co-sponsored session: Hindu Philosophy Unit and Sikh Studies Unit Theme: Roundtable on Arvind-Pal Singh Mandair's Sikh Philosophy: Exploring Gurmat Concepts in a Decolonizing World (Bloomsbury, 2022) Monday, 5:00 PM - 6:30 PM Convention Center-301 (Street Level) Puninder Singh, University of Michigan, Presiding Sikh philosophy has typically, when it has been discussed at all, been subsumed within the ambit of area studies or religious studies. More particularly it has usually only been discussed in the context of other religions/philosophies of South Asia, especially the Vedic/Hindu or the Sufi. This roundtable aims to bring together a group of scholars to discuss a new book on Sikh Philosophy that addresses this lacuna by going beyond its usual confines of area studies or solely religious studies paradigms. Arvind-Pal Singh Mandair’s Sikh Philosophy: Exploring gurmat Concepts in a Decolonizing World (Bloomsbury, 2022) aims to bring Sikh philosophy into engagement with a wider sphere, that of global philosophies. Sensitive to both the historical formation of Sikh thought, and to the decolonial context, the book examines some of the key concepts of Sikh philosophy and how they inform its vision of life. Panelists Jeffery D. Long, Elizabethtown College Ananda Abeysekara, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Monika Kirloskar-Steinbach, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam Rita Dhamoon, University of Victoria Responding Arvind Mandair, University of Michigan
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