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Gaudiya Studies
Weekend
4 Virtual Sessions
July 20th & 21st, 2024
How is our tradition similar to and different from other sampradayas?
How do we make sense of extraordinary stories in our scriptures?
In what ways can Gaudiya Vaishnavism offer solutions for today's problems?
About the Program
The Gaudiya Studies Weekend is for youth (ages 17 to 24) to explore questions about our faith in the modern world with scholars who are experts on the topic. The program provides an open space to discuss difficult questions about our tradition and practice in our lives. Working in small groups of 10-12 students, you will participate in three sessions during the weekend, with each session focused on a different aspect of Gaudiya Vaishnava history, theology, or practice. Each session will be led by a tutor who is an expert on the topic, with plenty of time for discussion and introspection.
Before the weekend, you will invest time into reading and exploring the topic by yourself, so that you come to each session not just with questions, but also with information and ideas. This will allow you to get much more out of the weekend. We recommend setting aside a total of 10 to 15 hours to read during the month before the weekend. These readings will form the basis of the conversations you’ll have with your tutors and fellow students.
The intent of this weekend is to help you explore, with an open mind, a variety of views on Gaudiya Vaishnavism. It is common for our students to feel intellectually and spiritually challenged through the readings and discussions. The tutors will encourage you to discuss and unpack any challenging elements through open and honest exploration of these topics. We hold this as key to a meaningful education—the ability to explore that which we hold close to our hearts with an open mind.
Elements of the Gaudiya Studies Program
Texts to Read
Each scholar will provide a list of relevant texts to read before each weekend. Your task will be to read each text and note the questions that you’d like to explore with the scholar.
Community Time
You will meet before each tutorial in a small group to review your readings, explore your questions together, and discuss ideas and realizations you may have about the topic. These will be approximately an hour long and no scholars will attend these conversations.
Scholar Sessions
The weekend will feature four interactive learning and teaching spaces, each with a different scholar. These 90-minute sessions (“tutorials”) will provide you a chance to ask questions of the scholar and explore the curiosities you have.
Our
Teachers
Shaunaka Rishi Das
Shaunaka Rishi Das is the Director and founder of the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies (OCHS), andHindu Chaplain to the University of Oxford. Hewas Chairman of ISKCON Communications Europe from 1991-2003, an executive member of ISKCON’s Ministry of Educational Development from 1996-2010, and a trustee of Bhaktivedanta College in Belgium. He is also a frequent broadcaster on BBC Radio 4. His interests include education, comparative theology, communication, and leadership.
Rādhikā Ramana Dāsa
(Prof. Ravi M. Gupta)
Rādhika Ramaṇa (Prof. Ravi M. Gupta) holds the Charles Redd Chair of Religious Studies at Utah State University. He is the author of The Caitanya Vaiṣṇava Vedānta of Jīva Gosvāmī (Routledge, 2007), co-editor of The Bhāgavata Purāṇa: Sacred Text and Living Tradition (Columbia University Press, 2013), editor of Caitanya Vaiṣṇava Philosophy: Tradition Reason and Devotion (Ashgate Publishing, 2014), and co-author of The Bhāgavata Purāṇa: Selected Readings (Columbia University Press, 2016). Together with Dr. Kenneth R. Valpey (Kṛṣṇa Kṣetra Swami) he leads the OCHS’s Bhāgavata Purāṇa Research Project. He is also a member of ISKCON’s Śāstric Advisory Committee.
Sundar Gopal Dasa
(Simon Haas)
Simon Haas is an internationally renowned author and teacher of yoga philosophy who specializes in applying yoga wisdom to everyday life. He is author of the international bestsellers The Book of Dharma: Making Enlightened Choices and Yoga and the Dark Night of the Soul, published in seven languages. Simon has delivered seminars and workshops across five continents, including at the United Nations in 2019. He graduated in Law from the University of Cambridge and holds a Master of Studies in the Study of Religions with distinction from the University of Oxford. He is currently completing doctoral studies at the University of Oxford on the ontology of the self in the Caitanya Vaiṣṇava tradition. His academic interests include Caitanya Vaiṣṇavism, syncretism and eclecticism, textual reuse, and responses to religious difference.
Our Weekend Topics
Intersection of History, Reason, and Faith
In this session, we will look at the (broad) theological context in which Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇavism emerged, and how history, reason, and faith intertwine within this tradition to shape our current society, structure, and practices.
What is a Legitimate Sampradaya?
In this session, we will explore the concept of sampradāya, meaning "tradition" or "lineage," focusing on questions of legitimacy and orthodoxy within Hinduism, especially the Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava tradition.
We will define what a sampradāya is and examine the role of "founders" in within the Hindu context. We'll discuss whether a religious community must align with a sampradāya and if an individual can establish a new one. We'll also look at how legitimacy is determined within the Gauḍīya tradition and how practitioners judge whether new innovations fit or disrupt the tradition.
Our study will use primary texts from the Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava tradition and analyze the historical Jaipur debates held in the royal court of Jaisingh II in the early 18th century.
Does Gaudiya Vaishnavism Offer Practical Solutions for Today's Problems?
In this session, we will look the way Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇavism could address contemporary concerns, such as the environmental crisis, stress and mental health, consumerism and capitalism, loss of community and social isolation, and a range of social issues, pushing us to think deeply about the tradition’s relevance to the contemporary world.
Our Technology
Virtual Weekend
July 20th & 21st, 2024
We will host our sessions online via Zoom for youth to join from anywhere! No need to travel to explore these meaningful conversations. More details will be sent to those who apply for the program.