Announcements
Appointment of Sthaneshwar Timalsina as new Mattoo Endowed Chair of Indic Studies
The Mattoo Center is delighted to announce the appointment of Professor Timalsina as the new Endowed Chair of Indic Studies, effective Fall 2023. Professor Timalsina will begin teaching at the University in Spring 2024.
Professor Timalsina has served as Professor of Religious Studies and Philosophy at San Diego State University since 2005, and held teaching positions at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and Washington University in St Louis, MO. He completed his PhD from Martin Luther University in Halle, Germany (2005) with a focus on the history of Advaita (Non-Dualist) philosophy.
His areas of teaching and research include classical Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain literature and philosophies with a specific focus on consciousness studies. His first book, Consciousness in Indian Philosophy (Routledge, 2008) is a comparative study of Advaita and Buddhist understandings of the self and consciousness. Dr Timalsina also works in the area of Tantric studies and his recent publications, Tantric Visual Culture: A Cognitive Approach (Routledge, 2015), and Language of Images: Visualization and Meaning in Tantras (Peter Lang, 2015), explore the cognitive and cultural domains of Tantric visualization.
Professor Timalsina's Faculty page may be found here.
October 18 designated by Suffolk County Legislature as "Hindu-American Appreciation Day"
The Center is pleased to note that, thanks to the unanimous vote from the County Legislature, October 18 has been designated as the annual Hindu-American Appreciation Day to honor the immense contributions of Hindu South Asian American communities to local, state, and national public life.
We wish to warmly thank Legislator Manuel Esteban of Commack for his leadership in introducing the bill, as well as the dedicated vision and tireless efforts of the leaders of the Indian American Community of Long Island (IACLI).
News coverage of the County Legislature's announcement may be found here.
Scholarship Applications Open for 2023
Applications will soon be open for our 2023 scholarships!
The following South Asia-related courses are being taught this Fall semester, which satisfy SBS requirements :
AAS 110 Appreciating Indian Music
AAS 256/RLS 240 Hinduism
AAS 280/RLS 280 Islam
AAS 366/RLS 366 Feminine Spirituality
AAS 472.02/572.02 Topics in Asian Philosophy (1) Bhagavad Gita Ancient & Modern
AAS 472.03/572.03 Topics in Asian Philosophy (2) Ibn Arabi
HIN 111 Elementary Hindi I
HIN 211 Intermediate Hindi I
HIS 301 Religion, Society and Politics in the Premodern Islamic World
PHI 601 Medieval Islamic Philosophy
SKT 111 Elementary Sanskrit I
News & Events
DIWALI 2023 - November 14, 2023, 5:00pm at Roth Pond! Please join us as we celebrate the festival of lights at Roth Pond with a traditional diya (lamp)-lighting ceremony, followed at 6:00pm by an Open House party at the Center with free, fresh samosas, gulab jamun, sweet and savory snacks, and festive music! We will have 100 large floating lotuses and small candles available on a first come, first-served basis at the Pond lighting, along with 200 non-floating, hand-held painted and unpainted clay and brass diyas! Local community members are most welcome to attend along with students, faculty, and staff!
OPEN HOUSE!October 25, 2023, 1:00-2:15 pm in HUM 1003! Please come to learn about our South Asian minor program!
Center honored by Suffolk County Executive at ceremony celebrating Indian independence anniversary
The Mattoo Center for India Studies was recognized on August 18, 2023 by the Suffolk County Executive and Legislature along with other distinguished members of the Indian American community of Long Island at a ceremony at the County Government center celebrating the 76th anniversary of Indian independence (August 15, 1947).
Center Director Professor S.N. Sridhar was honored to receive the award on behalf of the Center alongside Dr Nirmal Mattoo, MD, President and Chair of the Center's Executive Committee, and Sudesh Mukhi, Vice President of the Executive Committee.
After a series of inspiring welcome remarks from Assistant County Executive Olga El Sehamy, the IACLI team, lamp lighting, and single of the two national anthems, the County Legislators present bestowed the awards on behalf of the County Executive.
Professor Sridhar gave the ceremony's keynote address reflecting on the many lessons of Indian independence and India's unprecedented growth and overcoming of many challenges in the last seven decades to become a leading global power.
Many thanks to County Executive Steve Bellone and Legislator Manuel Esteban for their recognition of the Indian American community's innumerable contributions to all aspects of American public life. We extend our deep gratitude to the dedicated IACLI board members, master of ceremonies, host committee, enthusiastic volunteers and supporters, and generous sponsors.
Center sponsored and organized successful IAWE 25 World Englishes linguistics conference
The Mattoo Center for India Studies was delighted to have hosted and facilitated the organization and convening of the 25th global conference of the International Association for World Englishes (IAWE) held at Stony Brook University from June 15-17.
IAWE 25 brought together over 120 professors and researchers in linguistics from 44 countries to discuss the varied roles English plays in a multilingual world. The presentations inspired passionate discussion and feedback.
The Mattoo Center for India Studies and the Department of Asian and Asian American Studies were honored to sponsor the Conference. Center Director S.N. Sridhar noted that "South Asia is emerging as a powerhouse in English usage: it has the largest number of users of English as a second language in the world, and English has been widely nativized there. English continues to be one of the most important languages of Asia and Africa both as an inter-national language and as an intra-national language, being influenced by its engagement with many languages and cultures."
We express our profound gratitude to the IAWE Executive Board, the Conference cosponsors, the international and local organizing committees, plenary speakers, and presenters whose extraordinary efforts and engaging participation made IAWE-25 such a success.
The Ludo and Rosane Rocher Foundation is pleased to announce the competition for the second Ludo and Rosane Rocher Foundation Post-doctoral In-Residence Teaching and Research Fellowship in Classical Indology.
For application forms and details of the terms, eligibility, possibility of renewal, and further information, please visit the Foundation website here. Applications are due by January 15, 2024, with the decision to be announced in early April 2024.
Fall 2023 Mattoo Center Hours
The Center is a dynamic resource for all University students, faculty, staff, and
community members interested in any aspects of Indian and South Asian civilizations,
ancient or modern. We welcome all visitors! Whether you are Indian, Indian-American,
South Asian, or simply interested in learning about the immense contributions of Indic
and South Asian peoples to global systems of philosophy, sciences, religion, architecture,
music and the other high arts over six millennia, our doors are open for you!
We are open on Mondays through Thursdays from 9:00am to 5:00pm, and on Fridays from 9:00am to 12:30pm during the Fall 2023 semester.
We invite you to visit us, enjoy South Asian treats, and peruse the Center's extensive research library and special collections.
If you would like to be added to our e-mail list to receive our monthly event and programming updates, please e-mail us at indiastudies@stonybrook.edu.
For media inquiries, bookings, invitations, and questions, please e-mail the Center Director, Professor S.N. Sridhar (s.sridhar@stonybrook.edu).
As Professor Sridhar is on a Research Sabbatical during the Fall 2023 semester, please contact Ryan Hunter, Assistant to the Director, at 631-632-9742 for any urgent inquiries or questions.
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