Global Hindu Conference 2014 to Host Seminars on Hindu Historiography

usamapnewSAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA, April 17, 2014 (Press Release): Two major seminars on subjects that impact the global Hindu community will be hosted at the Global Hindu Conference 2014, scheduled for April 26th-27th weekend in San Jose, CA, USA.

One of the two seminars is on development of Hindu Historiography, which is a one-of-its kind initiative that is being done outside of, and in parallel to, the conventional academic establishment. Sumeet Saxena, the coordinator and chair of the historiography seminar, said that history plays too important of a role in self-identification of Hindus all over the world to be left only to the academia to deal with. The informal sector could also engage equally in history writing. The conventional academic framework, which is based on a Western worldview, is inadequate to capture the complexity of Hindu culture and civilizational experience, in order to properly express the Hindu historical narrative. Thus, the Western expression of Hindu history often stands at odds with the representation of Hindu community in global public affairs, leading to atypical “caste-sati” type caricatures, mocking and even hate crimes. Decades of discrimination has led to low self-esteem among Hindu youth, who now shun their Hindu identity in public spaces. Therefore, the use of unorthodox methods and setting is needed to accomplish the task of Hindu historiographical development.

Paramacharya Sadasivanathaswami and Acharya Arumuganathaswami, editor and managing editor, respectively, of Hinduism Today magazine will conduct a special session on the representation of Hinduism in American public schools. The presentation will draw on their two decades of experience with the portrayal of Hinduism in school textbooks. The target audience will be parents of Hindu children and social studies school teachers who teach Hinduism in public schools. The special session will feature the Northern California premiere of their documentary titled “The History of Hindu India” which is intended for use in public schools in the U.S. to supplement the deficient material now in use. The documentary establishes a historical continuum of faith and practice by narrating the history of Hinduism since the Indus Valley civilization until the modern age.

For more information, click source above, or email Rajiv Varma at info@ghfinc.net or call at (281) 576-7496 or (281) 576 7496.

Source: Hinduism Today