IIASN-9

13-16 January 1997
Pune, India

Indology: Past, Present, Future

A brief survey of the progress of Indology from its classical phase characterized by a romanticist approach, to the modern phase characterized by a variety of approaches -- Orientalist, Nationalist, Eurocentric, to name a few -- reveals that Indology today stands at a crossroads. The shift of the accent from ancient and medieval India to contemporary India is due to the fact that India is no more a "matter of the past".

It has been said by W. Halbfass (India and Europe, First edition, Delhi: MLBD, 1990, p. 44) that "In the modern planetary situation Eastern and Western "cultures" can no longer meet one another as equal partners. They meet in a westernized world, under conditions shaped by western ways of thinking."
If this is true, is "European" or "Western" discourse the destiny of Indology? Will the Neo-Hindu attempts to actualize ancient Indian teachings for the present succeed in establishing a stronger alternative? Will there be an Indian discourse in Indology? Will it serve as the best solution for the present predicament? Indologists today have to address themselves to many questions of the kind mentioned above. It is proposed to offer a forum for Indologists to discuss these and many other issues related to Indology.
This is the first announcement of the International Seminar of Indology: Past, Present, and Future. Presentations dealing with the state of the art in Indology in different countries along with some major issues connected with it are invited from Indologists all over the world.
The proposed Seminar will be organized by the department of Sanskrit and Prakrit Languages (University of Pune) from the 13th to the 16th January 1997.
Papers are invited in areas such as: (1) The state of Indology in different countries with reference to areas such as philology, religion, philosophy, arts, architecture, technology, sociology, and anthropology; (2) Challenges of contemporary Indology; (3) New horizons of Indology; (4) Any other topic from related areas.

For further information:
Saroja Bhate
Head, Department of Sanskrit and Prakrit Languages,
University of Pune,
Pune - 411007
India


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