Category: Uncategorized
-
Event: The Study of ‘Other’ Religions by Ankur Barua
Join Dr. Ankur Barua, University Senior Lecturer in Hindu Studies, the University of Cambridge, to discuss one of the most famous problems in the academic study of religion – the insider-outsider problem. We are usually brought up as members of one specific socioreligious group, and we do not routinely jump in and out of these…
-
The Truth in a Truism: A Tafsir
by Ankur Barua Once upon a time, in a land not too far from where you are, there lived Abdul-of-the- desolate-mountain. Now Abdul was a boy of few words, and he grew up to become a man of even fewer words. The very act of speaking seemed pointless to him. He disliked having to repeat…
-
Recommended Reading on Philosophy of the Self in Islam and Neuroscience
Recommended by Muhammad U. Faruque, Inayat Malik Assistant Professor at the University of Cincinnati and a Taft Center Fellow at the University of Cincinnati. He also holds a Visiting Scholar position at Harvard University. Prof. Faruque offers his book recommendations below on the philosophy of the self in Islam and modern neuroscience, a nascent subject…
-
On Bhakti (Devotion)
We will consider one of the most polyvalent concepts in Hindu religious worldviews – namely, bhakti. I will focus on one particular set of meanings of the Sanskrit word bhakti – namely, devotional love or loving attachment. One encounters bhakti in diverse contexts of Hindu life – as an attitude of dedication to an icon…
-
Zikr: The Delightful Domains of Dhaka
by Ankur Barua O my Lord –When the darkness falls on me thickly and my heart is heavy with historyGrant me a glimpse of your face that is wrapped in this world’s mysteryO Allah – on the perilous seas of the world you are this mariner’s compass. In every direction I turn I see signs…
-
Zikr: The Allusions of Agra’s Assertions
by Ankur Barua O my Lord –In the autumn of my life I pine for the verdant gardens of AgraNourished by these delightful waters of your abundant YamunaO Allah – your supreme strength is sufficient for this servant. In these tumultuous times it is your still voice I seek to hearYou will not burden my…
-
Zikr: The Bustling Brocades of Bombay
O my Lord – Sailing along the blue Arabian sea it is this oasis that I first see When I leave its green coves its memories continue to haunt me O Allah – we are sent by you and it is to you that we seek to return.
-
Zikr: The Distant Domes of Delhi
by Ankur Barua O my Lord –Of countless currents of civilization this city is the connectionOf your beautiful names I discern a reflection in every directionO Allah – enliven my exhausted spirit with the breezes of your monsoon. Across the demands of dīn1 and duniyā2 help us all to find a mīzān3In the cave of…
-
Zikr: The Labour of Lucknow’s Love
by Ankur Barua O my Lord –If there is paradise on earth it is this pearl of exquisite beautyThat gently nestles on the meandering necklace of your GomtiO Allah – this beggar stands waiting at your door for your bounty. In every iota of dust do I discern your resplendent Residency1In whose mansions once dwelled…
-
Zikr: The Boatman of Calcutta
by Ankur Barua O my Lord –From the rivers to the sea is this great land blessed with greeneryThrough the fleeting clouds on blue skies you breathe mercifullyO Allah – across this partitioned land your indivisible love does stand. On a luminous arc from the valleys of Sind to this corner of al-HindThrough the golden…
Project Noon 