Himanshu Ray: "Modern History of Buddhism in India"

Date
Thursday May 9th 2013, 5:30 - 6:30PM
Event Sponsor
Ho Center for Buddhist Studies at Stanford, Department of Religious Studies, Center for South Asia
Location
Building 70, Room 72A1, Main Quad
Himanshu Ray: "Modern History of Buddhism in India"

Abstract:

The story of the discovery of the relics of the Buddha at Shahji-ki-dheri near Peshawar now in Pakistan, was widely reported and appeared in the Baltimore American on Sunday May 22, 1910 and in several other US newspapers. This process no doubt started a century earlier with an antiquarian search for relics that could be sold at a profit to museums in Europe and England. At the same time, the colonial state was not averse to using archaeological finds, such as relics to further its geopolitical agenda and as a tool in diplomatic engagement. The larger issue that interests me is the extent to which the institutionalization of various forms of knowledge, such as archaeology has impacted the study of India’s past. In this presentation I will focus on a specific Buddhist monument, i.e. the stūpa and examine ways in which it entered public discourse. This forms a chapter from my forthcoming book The Return of the Buddha: Ancient Symbols for a New Nation (Routledge India, New Delhi.)

Speaker's Bio:

After teaching for more than three decades at the Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, Himanshu Prabha Ray is currently the Chairperson at the National Monuments Authority, New Delhi. Her research interests include maritime history and archaeology of the Indian Ocean, the history of archaeology in South and Southeast Asia and the archaeology of religion in Asia.