News

Bursaries 2010

1 July 2010

The Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies helps bring young students and supporters of good scholarship together. We are grateful to the following benefactors for providing bursaries and to these OCHS students for all their hard work.

The bursaries were presented by His Excellency Dr Zola Skweyiya, the South African High Commissioner, at our annual Board of Governors Dinner

OCHS friends take to the hills

1 July 2010

OCHS Friends Harish and Gita Patel, Raam Chauhan, and Aarti Hansrani, all took to the hills. Harish and Gita to the Andes; Aarti and Raam to Ben Nevis, Scafell Pike, and Snowdon. All in support of the OCHS.

 
On 26 June, Aarti Hansrani and Raam Chauhan, two of our young Friends of the OCHS from Leicester, undertook the Three Peaks Challenge. This means that in just 24 hours they climbed the three highest mountains in the UK – Ben Nevis (in Scotland, 1344m), Scafell Pike (in England, 978m), and Snowdon (in Wales, 1085m). Together they raised over £1200 in sponsorship for the OCHS.

OCHS celebrates lucky thirteenth birthday

29 June 2010

The Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies (OCHS) celebrated thirteen years of growth from humble beginnings in a suburban house to one of the world’s leading Hindu Studies centres building bridges between academia, tradition, business, and government.

 
The OCHS celebrated this birthday as it does all its birthdays – at its annual Board of Governors Dinner. This year’s event took place on Monday 28 June at the Oxford Town Hall with guest speaker, Mr Dixit Joshi. Mr Joshi is an active philanthropist and also a leading member of the OCHS Endowment Campaign.

Friends Event: Yamuna's Plight: Some "Fluid Reflections" on Nature and Hinduism

Saturday, 19 June 2010 - 7:00pm to 9:00pm

A talk given by Dr Kenneth Valpey of the Oxford Centre For Hindu Studies.

With consideration of the Yamuna River's sacredness and present polluted condition as a starting point, we will make some observations about Hindu presuppositions about human relations to nature: Purity and pollution, the Bhagavad-gita's discussion on the "modes of nature" (the gunas), and of course dharma are key themes in articulating a viable theological basis for Hindu environmental activism.

Friends Event: Kids Zone: Father's Day Fun

Kids Zone Leicester
Saturday, 19 June 2010 - 3:00pm to 5:00pm

Come and join us in celebrating Fathers Day with card making, presentation and lots of fun.

Friends Event: Three Peaks Challenge

Leicester Friends Event
Saturday, 12 June 2010 - 8:00am

Intrepid mountaneers, Aarti Hansrani and Raam Chauhan, will be climbing the UK's three highest peaks in under 24 hours all to raise funds for the OCHS.

Friends Event: Creation and Chaos in Hinduism

Leicester Friends Event
Saturday, 22 May 2010 - 7:30pm to 9:30pm

Talk given by Ravi Gupta of the Oxford Centre For Hindu Studies.

A potter gently shapes a lump of clay upon his wheel. A carpenter hews and joins measured pieces of wood.
 
Creation, we see, is often a process of reasoned thought and careful construction. And yet, just as often, creation arises in far more unpredictable circumstances from chaos, transgression, and failure. In this lecture, we will examine the interplay of creation and chaos in Hindu narratives, paying special attention to the story of the churning of the ocean.

Friends Event: The Nectar of Kumbh Mela

Kids Zone Leicester
Saturday, 22 May 2010 - 3:00pm to 4:30pm

Learn about the Kumbh Mela with lots of fun activities.

OCHS research projects

8 April 2010

A lot of the work done at the OCHS is focused on our Research Projects, the number and breadth of which is increasing at a satisfying rate. Equally satisfying is the phenomenon of OCSH alumni, now studying and teaching elsewhere, coming back to the Centre as a natural home for their projects.

Three notable Research Projects are ‘Sakta Traditions, History, Doctrine and Practice’; ‘Bengali Vaishnavism in the Modern Period’, and ‘Bridges and Barriers to Hindu-Christian relations in the UK’.

Friends Event: Hanuman Jayanti

Kids Zone Leicester
Saturday, 17 April 2010 - 3:00pm to 4:30pm

A fun-packed afternoon of Hanuman stories, quizzes, competitions and prizes.

Friends Event: Truth About Tantra

Leicester Friends Event
Saturday, 17 April 2010 - 7:00pm to 8:30pm

A talk given by Dr Jessica Frazierof the Oxford Centre For Hindu Studies.

Indian High Commissioner delivers Ford lecture

2 February 2010

On 1 February 2010, HE Nalin Surie, India's High Commissioner to the UK delivered the Ford Lecture. Below is the transcript.

Alfred Brush Ford Lecture by the High Commissioner of India to the UK, Mr. Nalin Surie, at the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies

Shifting Roles and Challenges in the New Decade.