5 classes matched your search criteria.

Fall 2021  |  HIST 3492 Section 001: Hinduism: Traditions, Texts, Politics (22872)

Instructor(s)
Class Component:
Lecture
Credits:
3 Credits
Grading Basis:
Student Option
Instructor Consent:
No Special Consent Required
Instruction Mode:
In Person Term Based
Class Attributes:
UMNTC Liberal Education Requirement
Meets With:
RELS 3671 Section 001
AMES 3671 Section 001
Times and Locations:
Regular Academic Session
 
09/07/2021 - 12/15/2021
Mon, Wed 01:00PM - 02:15PM
UMTC, West Bank
Scott Hall 4
Enrollment Status:
Open (5 of 20 seats filled)
Also Offered:
Course Catalog Description:
Development of Hinduism focusing on sectarian trends, modern religious practices, myths/rituals, pilgrimage patterns/ religious festivals. Interrelationship between Indian social structure/Hinduism.
Class Description:
This course focuses on the traditions, texts, and politics that have shaped Hinduism from the earliest times to the present. It is especially attentive to five substantive themes:
--the everyday practices of Hinduism - how people live Hinduism in their everyday lives.
--Key texts that have been part of Hindu traditions: especially the Vedas, Upanishads, Ramayana, Gita, bhakti traditions, and modern reformist texts.
--the institutions of caste as these manifest themselves in both texts and everyday practices historically and in the present.
--the relation between Hinduism and other religious traditions (especially Buddhism in the first millenium, and Islam and Christianity during the second millenium)
--the remaking of Hinduism in the wake of colonialism and modernity: nineteenth century Hindu reform movements, twentieth century Hindu nationalism, the relation between Hinduism and secular institutions and traditions.
Learning Objectives:
This course will meet the following SLOs.

1.Have mastered a body of knowledge and a mode of inquiry a body of knowledge about Hinduism in the Indian subcontinent, as noted above in the Class Description. The mode of inquiry you will be learning is humanist and historical. In matters such as religion, there is no simple body of facts to be mastered. Rather, by critically reading primary texts and secondary scholarship, you will learn to critically reflect on the debate amongst the various actors, and to recognize how actors' responses are shaped by their historical circumstances, and how we in our turn interpret events in distinctive ways because of our perspectives. For example, in studying the Ramayana, we shall see how questions of gender have become differently visible to devotees at various times, and how moreover contemporary scholars and feminists also differ amongst themselves about figures such as Sita or Rama.

2. Understand diverse philosophies and cultures within and across societies. In focusing on the historical development of Hinduism, this course will be especially attentive to Hinduism as an ethical framework that addressed and addresses questions of social life together amongst various groups, including lower castes and Muslims. So, for example, central to Hinduism is concept of dharma (religion/law/duty) articulated in the Vedas and Upanishads, rearticulated in the Ramayana and the Gita and the bhakti tradition, and then reworked again from the nineteenth century by modern reformers. This course looks at how the idea of dharma was shaped in the first millennium by encounters with Buddhism and Jainism, in the second millennium by encounters with Islam, and from the nineteenth century by an engagement with both Christianity and secularism. It thus explores how one important idea - dharma-- travels through time and space, morphing and changing along the way in response to historical, political, and social contexts. Moreover, students will not only will get a complementary perspective on how religion has developed in a situation very different from that of the United States; they will be constantly asked in class discussions to reflect on the readings in relation to their current and more familiar context.

3.Have acquired skills for effective citizenship and life-long learning. Most broadly, the course will cultivate the ability to question critically, which is the first pre-requisite for citizenship and for learning. More specifically, it will teach them to approach the concepts of ethics and religion thoughtfully. Here are three examples of how it will do this. First, it will bring out how canonical Hindu texts, in focusing on dharma, ask key ethical questions. To attend to these questions is to both guard against any easy dismissal of ‘religion' as superstition, and to throw into sharper relief the ways in which ethical questions are asked in the very different situation of the United States. Second, it will be attentive to the social context within which these questions are asked and even imagined; it will teach us to ask: what are the questions that cannot be easily asked or formulated within certain historical moments? Third, India is a case of a secular democracy where the place of ‘religion' is especially contentious: a strong Hindu nationalist movement is seeking now a more prominent place for ‘Hindu' values in the public sphere, and other strong secular movements (often also led by those who consider themselves Hindus) are opposing this. Class work will dwell on these themes, constantly encouraging students in discussion to reflect on the distinctions and relations between religion and ethics, religion and secularism, the private sphere and the public sphere.

You will achieve these three SLOs through a combination of primary and secondary readings, lectures, class discussion, and writing assignments. The primary readings will introduce you to Hinduism as a body of knowledge and way of knowing; these readings, when they deal with earlier times, introduce worldviews that are often far from our own times, and yet may bear resonances. The secondary readings take this process further by supplementing this body of knowledge and, even more, performing and enacting the humanistic mode of inquiry, which is a mode of inquiry that seeks to sympathetically and yet critically understand how the ethical principles, philosophies and cultures of Hindu traditions have evolved through group processes and debates. As you make your way through these primary and secondary readings, your personal values and beliefs will also be thrown into sharper relief. Class lectures, which will usually account for around half of each session, will expose you further to the body of knowledge around Hinduism, and will also continue the work initiated by the secondary readings. Class discussions (including each student leading one discussion), which will account for the other half of each meeting, will encourage you to reflect critically on the readings, bringing it into conversation with your own values and concerns as a citizen of the United States and the world. These discussions are crucial to developing your skills as a citizen, for responsible citizenship in a democratic society involves the ability to critically evaluate arguments for their factuality and their ethical, political, and social implications for other citizens of the United States and the world. The writing assignments (five reflective posts, and a final reflective essay on any one theme) will help you systematize your insights into the body of knowledge around Hinduism, deepen your understanding and engagement with diverse philosophies and cultures, and help you explicitly articulate a perspective based on your own personal values, which will hopefully have shifted in subtle and not so subtle ways as a result of the course.

Grading:
--50% five reflective essays, one due every third week
--30% final essay on any one theme from the course
--20% attendance, participation in class discussion, and leadership of discussion in one session
Exam Format:
No exams: grading is as indicated above
Class Format:
50% discussion, and 50% lectures
Workload:
60-80 pages of reading a week
Textbooks:
https://bookstores.umn.edu/course-lookup/22872/1219
Instructor Supplied Information Last Updated:
9 May 2019

Fall 2019  |  HIST 3492 Section 001: Hinduism (33017)

Instructor(s)
Class Component:
Lecture
Credits:
3 Credits
Grading Basis:
Student Option
Instructor Consent:
No Special Consent Required
Instruction Mode:
In Person Term Based
Meets With:
RELS 3671 Section 001
Times and Locations:
Regular Academic Session
 
09/03/2019 - 12/11/2019
Mon, Wed 11:15AM - 12:30PM
UMTC, West Bank
Blegen Hall 110
Enrollment Status:
Open (4 of 35 seats filled)
Also Offered:
Course Catalog Description:
Development of Hinduism focusing on sectarian trends, modern religious practices, myths/rituals, pilgrimage patterns/ religious festivals. Interrelationship between Indian social structure/Hinduism.
Class Description:
This course focuses on the traditions, texts, and politics that have shaped Hinduism from the earliest times to the present. It is especially attentive to five substantive themes:
--the everyday practices of Hinduism - how people live Hinduism in their everyday lives.
--Key texts that have been part of Hindu traditions: especially the Vedas, Upanishads, Ramayana, Gita, bhakti traditions, and modern reformist texts.
--the institutions of caste as these manifest themselves in both texts and everyday practices historically and in the present.
--the relation between Hinduism and other religious traditions (especially Buddhism in the first millenium, and Islam and Christianity during the second millenium)
--the remaking of Hinduism in the wake of colonialism and modernity: nineteenth century Hindu reform movements, twentieth century Hindu nationalism, the relation between Hinduism and secular institutions and traditions.
Learning Objectives:
This course will meet the following SLOs.

1.Have mastered a body of knowledge and a mode of inquiry a body of knowledge about Hinduism in the Indian subcontinent, as noted above in the Class Description. The mode of inquiry you will be learning is humanist and historical. In matters such as religion, there is no simple body of facts to be mastered. Rather, by critically reading primary texts and secondary scholarship, you will learn to critically reflect on the debate amongst the various actors, and to recognize how actors' responses are shaped by their historical circumstances, and how we in our turn interpret events in distinctive ways because of our perspectives. For example, in studying the Ramayana, we shall see how questions of gender have become differently visible to devotees at various times, and how moreover contemporary scholars and feminists also differ amongst themselves about figures such as Sita or Rama.

2. Understand diverse philosophies and cultures within and across societies. In focusing on the historical development of Hinduism, this course will be especially attentive to Hinduism as an ethical framework that addressed and addresses questions of social life together amongst various groups, including lower castes and Muslims. So, for example, central to Hinduism is concept of dharma (religion/law/duty) articulated in the Vedas and Upanishads, rearticulated in the Ramayana and the Gita and the bhakti tradition, and then reworked again from the nineteenth century by modern reformers. This course looks at how the idea of dharma was shaped in the first millennium by encounters with Buddhism and Jainism, in the second millennium by encounters with Islam, and from the nineteenth century by an engagement with both Christianity and secularism. It thus explores how one important idea - dharma-- travels through time and space, morphing and changing along the way in response to historical, political, and social contexts. Moreover, students will not only will get a complementary perspective on how religion has developed in a situation very different from that of the United States; they will be constantly asked in class discussions to reflect on the readings in relation to their current and more familiar context.

3.Have acquired skills for effective citizenship and life-long learning. Most broadly, the course will cultivate the ability to question critically, which is the first pre-requisite for citizenship and for learning. More specifically, it will teach them to approach the concepts of ethics and religion thoughtfully. Here are three examples of how it will do this. First, it will bring out how canonical Hindu texts, in focusing on dharma, ask key ethical questions. To attend to these questions is to both guard against any easy dismissal of ‘religion' as superstition, and to throw into sharper relief the ways in which ethical questions are asked in the very different situation of the United States. Second, it will be attentive to the social context within which these questions are asked and even imagined; it will teach us to ask: what are the questions that cannot be easily asked or formulated within certain historical moments? Third, India is a case of a secular democracy where the place of ‘religion' is especially contentious: a strong Hindu nationalist movement is seeking now a more prominent place for ‘Hindu' values in the public sphere, and other strong secular movements (often also led by those who consider themselves Hindus) are opposing this. Class work will dwell on these themes, constantly encouraging students in discussion to reflect on the distinctions and relations between religion and ethics, religion and secularism, the private sphere and the public sphere.

You will achieve these three SLOs through a combination of primary and secondary readings, lectures, class discussion, and writing assignments. The primary readings will introduce you to Hinduism as a body of knowledge and way of knowing; these readings, when they deal with earlier times, introduce worldviews that are often far from our own times, and yet may bear resonances. The secondary readings take this process further by supplementing this body of knowledge and, even more, performing and enacting the humanistic mode of inquiry, which is a mode of inquiry that seeks to sympathetically and yet critically understand how the ethical principles, philosophies and cultures of Hindu traditions have evolved through group processes and debates. As you make your way through these primary and secondary readings, your personal values and beliefs will also be thrown into sharper relief. Class lectures, which will usually account for around half of each session, will expose you further to the body of knowledge around Hinduism, and will also continue the work initiated by the secondary readings. Class discussions (including each student leading one discussion), which will account for the other half of each meeting, will encourage you to reflect critically on the readings, bringing it into conversation with your own values and concerns as a citizen of the United States and the world. These discussions are crucial to developing your skills as a citizen, for responsible citizenship in a democratic society involves the ability to critically evaluate arguments for their factuality and their ethical, political, and social implications for other citizens of the United States and the world. The writing assignments (five reflective posts, and a final reflective essay on any one theme) will help you systematize your insights into the body of knowledge around Hinduism, deepen your understanding and engagement with diverse philosophies and cultures, and help you explicitly articulate a perspective based on your own personal values, which will hopefully have shifted in subtle and not so subtle ways as a result of the course.

Grading:
--50% five reflective essays, one due every third week
--30% final essay on any one theme from the course
--20% attendance, participation in class discussion, and leadership of discussion in one session
Exam Format:
No exams: grading is as indicated above
Class Format:
50% discussion, and 50% lectures
Workload:
60-80 pages of reading a week
Textbooks:
https://bookstores.umn.edu/course-lookup/33017/1199
Instructor Supplied Information Last Updated:
9 May 2019

Fall 2017  |  HIST 3492 Section 001: Hinduism (35238)

Instructor(s)
Class Component:
Lecture
Credits:
3 Credits
Grading Basis:
Student Option
Instructor Consent:
No Special Consent Required
Instruction Mode:
In Person Term Based
Meets With:
RELS 3671 Section 001
ALL 3671 Section 001
Times and Locations:
Regular Academic Session
 
09/05/2017 - 12/13/2017
Mon, Wed 11:15AM - 12:30PM
UMTC, West Bank
Blegen Hall 120
Also Offered:
Course Catalog Description:
Development of Hinduism focusing on sectarian trends, modern religious practices, myths/rituals, pilgrimage patterns/ religious festivals. Interrelationship between Indian social structure/Hinduism.
Class Description:
Student may contact the instructor or department for information.
Textbooks:
https://bookstores.umn.edu/course-lookup/35238/1179

Fall 2015  |  HIST 3492 Section 090: Hinduism (34007)

Instructor(s)
Class Component:
Lecture
Credits:
3 Credits
Grading Basis:
Student Option
Instructor Consent:
No Special Consent Required
Instruction Mode:
In Person Term Based
Meets With:
ALL 3671 Section 001
RELS 3671 Section 001
Times and Locations:
Regular Academic Session
 
09/08/2015 - 12/16/2015
Mon, Wed 11:15AM - 12:30PM
UMTC, West Bank
Blegen Hall 220
Also Offered:
Course Catalog Description:
Development of Hinduism focusing on sectarian trends, modern religious practices, myths/rituals, pilgrimage patterns/ religious festivals. Interrelationship between Indian social structure/Hinduism.
Class Description:
Student may contact the instructor or department for information.
Textbooks:
https://bookstores.umn.edu/course-lookup/34007/1159

Fall 2013  |  HIST 3492 Section 001: Hinduism (34821)

Instructor(s)
Class Component:
Lecture
Credits:
3 Credits
Grading Basis:
Student Option
Instructor Consent:
No Special Consent Required
Instruction Mode:
In Person Term Based
Meets With:
ALL 3671 Section 001
GLOS 3960 Section 002
RELS 3671 Section 001
Times and Locations:
Regular Academic Session
 
09/03/2013 - 12/11/2013
Mon, Wed 11:15AM - 12:30PM
UMTC, East Bank
Folwell Hall 116
Also Offered:
Course Catalog Description:
Development of Hinduism focusing on sectarian trends, modern religious practices, myths/rituals, pilgrimage patterns/ religious festivals. Interrelationship between Indian social structure/Hinduism.
Class Description:
Student may contact the instructor or department for information.
Textbooks:
https://bookstores.umn.edu/course-lookup/34821/1139

ClassInfo Links - History Classes

To link directly to this ClassInfo page from your website or to save it as a bookmark, use:
http://classinfo.umn.edu/?subject=HIST&catalog_nbr=3492
To see a URL-only list for use in the Faculty Center URL fields, use:
http://classinfo.umn.edu/?subject=HIST&catalog_nbr=3492&url=1
To see this page output as XML, use:
http://classinfo.umn.edu/?subject=HIST&catalog_nbr=3492&xml=1
To see this page output as JSON, use:
http://classinfo.umn.edu/?subject=HIST&catalog_nbr=3492&json=1
To see this page output as CSV, use:
http://classinfo.umn.edu/?subject=HIST&catalog_nbr=3492&csv=1