First Class Mail VOL. 1 NO.1 APRIL 2004 U.S. POSTAGE PAID Hofstra University Hofstra Sikh Studies Bulletin Newsletter of the Sardarni Kuljit Kaur Bindra Endowed Chair in Sikh Studies

Welcome from Bindra Endowed Chair Dr. Mandair

Welcome to this inaugural issue of Hofstra Sikh Studies Bulletin, the annual newsletter supported by the Bindra Endowed Chair in Sikh Studies. The aim of this newsletter is to Mark Your provide the broader community with up-to- Calendars: date knowledge, information and news about courses, projects and events being organized at Hofstra University. This newsletter will be Sikh Studies published at the time of the Vaisakhi festival. 2004 Events ... Vaisakhi is both the harvest festival and the Sikh New Year, marking the birth of the Sikh The year 2004 is a special year for order of the Khalsa. the Sikh community which is celebrating, among other events, The publication of this newsletter also the 400th anniversary of the can- coincides with a remarkable period of expan- onization of the Adi Granth (the sion in the study of religions at Hofstra. Since original Sikh scripture) and its the establishment of the Sikh Chair, the installation at the Harimandar Department of Philosophy and Religious Sahib — the central shrine of the Sikh religion — or, as it is better Studies has hired scholars specializing in New Dr. Arvind-pal S. Mandair, known, the Golden Temple at A Look Back ... Testament studies (early Christianity) and Bindra Endowed Chair in Sikh Studies . It will also be 20 years more recently in the study of . With a since Operation Blue Star (the Chair in Catholic Studies on the horizon, the storming of the Golden Temple The BindraEndowed Chair in Sikh Studies hosted department will be able to offer undergradu- In future issues, we hope to highlight not complex by the Indian army in several successful international conferences in • Tejwant Kaur Purewal, ate study in a wide selection of the world’s only the activities of the previous year, but June 1984) an event that led to , including Aspects of Sikh Heritage (April University of Manchester (U.K.) speaker was Professor Christopher Shackle, pro- one of the most traumatic periods 2001), Sikhism and Critical Theory (September • Jeevan Deol, director of the University of London’s prestigious religious traditions, including Chinese also the work of our students who are study- 2002) and Sikhism and Inter-Religious Relations Cambridge University and Smithsonian Institute School of Oriental and African Studies, and himself religion, Sikhism, Hinduism, Judaism, ing Sikhism and South Asian religions. in the history of , particularly (October 2003, co-hosted at the University of • Gurcharan Singh, Marymount Manhattan College a leading scholar of Sikhism. A special element of Christianity and Islam. for the . It is appropriate that Birmingham in the United Kingdom). • Surindar Singh Matharu, this conference was the Public Forum, which fea- these diverse events be commemo- Sikh Musical Heritage (U.K.) tured prominent members of the Sikh community rated by reflecting on the very • Daljit Singh, Sikh Musical Heritage (U.K.) who led a discussion on the future of community means by which cultural memory education in the Sikh diaspora. Aspects of Sikh Heritage Conference itself is shaped. In this special Discussions included: “The Khalsa: Past, Present anniversary year, the Bindra and Future”; “Reflections on the 200th AnniversaryThis conference marked an innovation in the field Aspects of Sikh Heritage was the first conference of Endowed Chair in Sikh Studies is of the Sarkar Khalsa of Maharajah Ranjit Singh”;of Sikh studies. During the last two decades, the many to follow and was appropriately marked as an and “Sikh Musicology.” The keynote speaker wasgrowth of Sikh settlement in North America has proud to serve the community by introduction to Sikhism. T. Sher Singh from Toronto, Canada. given the Sikh diaspora a voice hitherto occupied hosting the following events: by a few mostly non-Sikh Western academics. A series of panels were led by prestigious speakers, Recent years have seen the emergence of new intel- In This Issue Saturday and Sunday, including: Sikhism and Critical Theory Conference lectual demands for a Sikh studies agenda capable • Nikky Singh, Colby College of addressing the needs of a Sikh diaspora in the May 8 and 9 • Navddep Singh, University of Warwick (U.K.) Remembering and Forgetting: This second conference attracted a field of distin- English-speaking world. In accordance with this Bindra Chair Established ...... 2 • Virinder Singh Kalra, demand, Sikhism and Critical Theory explored new A Look Ahead ...... 3 Memory and Trauma in Recent Sikh University of Manchester (U.K.) guished scholars from the United States, Canada, ways of relating contemporary Sikh experience to and Punjabi Experience • Jasdev Singh Rai, University of Nottingham (U.K.)the United Kingdom and Japan. Over the course of About The Bindras ...... 2 A Look Back ...... 3 two days, participants debated a wide range of recent movements of critical thinking in the • Amandeep Singh Madra, humanities and social sciences. Victoria and Albert Museum issues, including Sikh bodily identity, text interpre- Saturday, September 18 tation and diasporic transnationalism. The keynote Sikh and Punjabi Film Festival

804:3/04 APRIL 2004 HOFSTRA SIKH STUDIES BULLETIN 1 Hofstra University Establishes Bindra Endowed Chair in Sikh Studies A Look Ahead ...

The Sardarni Kuljit Kaur BindraEndowed Chair in Sikh Studies was estab- lished at Hofstra University in September 2000 with a generous endowment Saturday and Sunday, May 8 and 9, 2004Preserving Sikh Heritage: June 2-6, 2005 from the Bindra family of Brookville, New York. This Chair aims to provide Remembering and Forgetting: A session co-organized by the SmithsonianSummer Seminar on Sikh Mysticism support for the development of Sikh studies within Hofstra University, thus Memory and Trauma in Recent Sikh andInstitute Heritage Fund and the Bindra fostering knowledge about the religious tradition of Sikhism to be shared by Punjabi Experience Chair in Sikh Studies This is an inaugural seven-day Residential Summer Hofstra students and members of the wider community on Long Island. Seminar in Sikh Religious Philosophy. This summer seminar presents a unique opportunity to experience Since the inauguration of the Chair, several new and innovative courses in Sikh Remembering and Forgetting: Memory and Trauma inOn the second day of the Remembering andthe academic study of Sikh religious philosophy studies, and more broadly in South Asian religions, have become available to Recent Sikh and Punjabi Experience is an internationalForgetting conference, there will be a special sessionwithin a practice environment. This course carries the student community at Hofstra. These include: conference that will examine the importance of mem-comprising three lectures on aspects of Sikh her-three transferable undergraduate credits. It examines ory and trauma in recent Sikh and Punjabi experi-itage and its representation. These lectures are co-the nature, roles and meanings of mysticism in Sikh • Warrior Saints (Religion 155): An introduction to the Sikh religion. ence. Focusing on the three main events that under-sponsored by the Sikh Heritage Fund of thethought and its relationship to Sikh existence in con- pin the psychological disembodiment of the Sikh andSmithsonian Museum. Paul Taylor of thetemporary global culture. Expressions of Sikh mysti- • Sikh Mysticism (Religion 157): The religious philosophy of Sikhism based on Punjabi self – partition (1984), insurgency andSmithsonian Institute will open this session by talk-cism as found in the Sikh scripture are presented in the teachings of the Sikh Gurus. migration (post-1984) – this conference will specifi-ing about the Sikh heritage project at thecomparative context. Students are encouraged to cally address the central role that trauma and victim-Smithsonian and focusing on issues of identity, rep-explore the often-misunderstood boundaries • Indian Religions (Religion 120): An excellent overview of the cultural and reli- ization play in the politics of memory. resentation and community co-curatorship in anbetween the political and the mystical, and to learn gious heritage of with a particular emphasis on devotional religions. evolving exhibition and preservation project.how this contributes to modern Sikh consciousness. Speakers at this conference are leading scholars inGurpreet Maini from New will then speakOutside of India this is the only academic course in Dr. Arvind-pal S. Mandair, Bindra Endowed Chair in Sikh Studies the field of South Asian studies: about the treasures and travails of the House ofSikhism that focuses on the meaning and application •Jerry Barrier, University of Missouri Bagrian. The final speaker in this session will beof religious experience. The course will benefit any- •Paul Brass, University of Washington Mohan Singh, former director of cultural affairs,one who wishes to develop an advanced under- •Inderpal Grewal, University of California-Irvine archives and museums in Punjab, who will discussstanding of leading theological and philosophical •Ian Talbot, Coventry University the coins of the Sikh Raj. themes in Sikhism. About The Bindras •Darshan Tatla, University of Birmingham •Pal Alhuwalia, Goldsmiths College, London For more information about these events pleaseFor more information about this seminar please con- •Harjot Oberoi, University of British Columbia contact Dr. Arvind Mandair at (516) 463-5615 ortact Dr. Arvind Mandair at (516) 463-5615 or The Sardarni Kuljit Kaur Bindra Endowed Chair in Sikh Studies was •Harleen Singh, Brandeis University [email protected]. [email protected]. endowed by Mr. Ishar Singh Bindra and family in honor of Mr. Bindra’s •Brian Axel, Swarthmore College wife and family matriarch, Sardarni Kuljit Kaur Bindra. The Chair was •Gurharpal Singh, University of Birmingham established to promote the academic study of Sikh religion, culture and •Gurbhagat Singh, Punjabi University, Patiala history. The endowment supports the appointment of a faculty member Saturday, September 18 in Sikh Studies, builds the University Library’s holdings in Sikhism, pro- Discussants will include Giorgio Shani of Ritsumeikan University in Japan, I.J. Singh of NewSikh and Punjabi Film Festival vides scholarship assistance to students interested in Sikh religion and York University and Rita Verma of the University of culture, and funds annual conferences and lectures directed toward the Wisconsin-Madison. Following the success of the Toronto-based Sikh and academic community as well as the general public. Punjabi film festival “Sisters of the Spinning Wheel,” The keynote speaker for this event is EdithHofstra’s Bindra Chair in Sikh Studies is pleased to Mr. and Mrs. Bindra were both born in West Punjab, now part of Wyschogrod, professor emeritus at Rice Universityannounce the launch of the first Sikh Film Festival . After completing a distinguished career as a senior telecommu- and former president of the American Academyin New York. The festival will screen movies and nications engineer in India, Mr. Bindra and his family immigrated to the The Bindra Family with members of the Hofstra University Administration of Religion. documentaries about Sikhs and Sikhism. There will United States in 1979. Along with his sons, Mr. Bindra established an also be opportunities to meet with some of the film- import/export business in the garment industry. Under his astute man- Sardarni Kuljit Kaur Bindra, an individual of great personal warmth and makers in small discussion groups. agement, the Jeetish Group of Companies has evolved into a successful, exemplary kindness, has placed education at the core of the Bindra fam- diversified enterprise with interests in apparel, commodities, real estate ily’s values. Mrs. Bindra was so devoted to the education of her seven chil- and hotels. dren that she sold her personal jewelry to allow them to attend the finest schools. She takes great pride in the fact that all of her children have dis- Ishar Singh Bindra is a founder- tinguished themselves as professionals dedicated to Sikh values. trustee of the Sikh Forum of New “I have an aunt who lives in India, and “Professor Mandair seeks a York and senior vice president of this class allowed me to explore in breadth of similarity, and the Sri Hemkunt Foundation. He depth the diversity and culture within parallels religious ideas, even has a rich and continuous record the Sikh community … Professor from my own Jewish studies … of accomplishments in communal affairs and has been a leading “We learn terms and phrases Mandair is very knowledgeable and he is very passionate in his supporter of various humanitari- from the scripture, but also where gives us a hands-on approach.” approach to Sikh studies.” an endeavors. He was honored by their concept was derived from the Nargis Dutt Memorial Rachel Demby Seth Harris Foundation, a nonprofit organiza- … I’ll continue to study Sikhism, Spring 2004 Sikhism student Spring 2004 Sikhism student tion devoted to the support of even when I’m at law school.” medical facilities in India. He is also the first Indian to be honored Ajit Heir as Humanitarian of the Year by Spring 2004 Sikhism student the Interfaith Nutrition Network, Mr. and Mrs. Bindra a nonprofit organization serving the hungry and homeless. Hofstra Sikh Studies Bulletin is published by the Hofstra College of Liberal Arts and Sciences in cooperation with the Office of University Relations and the Publications Department of Hofstra University. Undergraduate assistant Trevor Wolfe is a contributing writer; Dana Siljander is the graphic designer. For more information call Suzanne Shareef, Associate Director for University Relations, at (516) 463-4601.

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