“Exploring Hinduism – Society and Culture”, is the fourth and final course in the series titled “Exploring Hinduism” that will examine how, despite these various dimensions, this civilization has had a common culture, the Bharatiya Kalachar. It will help understand why the Hindus are considered to be the most adaptable, accommodating and assimilating people in the world and how the Hindu Civilization has been a hallmark for Unity and Diversity. It will also throw light on factors that have caused a substantial breakdown of this Hindu Society and its flourish. It will clear the wrong understanding of the Hindu Society and break the myths that have wrongly dubbed it as a patriarchal, male dominated, oppressive, rigid, stratified, regressive society.

Exploring Hinduism Course Content: 

This course spans 10 sessions of 100 minutes each. These sessions will cover aspects of the Society and Culture of the Hindu Civilization such as:

1. Caste System vs Jati Varna
2. Breaking Myths around Jati Varna System
3. Women in Hindu Society
4. Breaking Myths around Women in Hindu Society
5. Breakdown of Hindu Prosperity
6. Breakdown of Hindu Social Fabric
7. The Enabling Traditional Frameworks
8. Law and Order in Hindu Society
9. Aspects of Bharatiya Culture
10. Idea of Bharat and Bharatiya Kalachar

Course Description:

This course, coming in the series of courses titled “Exploring Hinduism”, will widen people’s understanding about Hindu Society and its organization. This course will take the explorer to the core of the Hindu civilization to fathom the weave that makes up the fabric of the Hindu Civilization. It will showcase how the various dimensions of a Hindu life are interlaced together, to form the intricately woven fabric called the Hindu Samaj.

This course will also throw light on how, despite these various dimensions, this civilization has had a common culture, the Bharatiya Kalachar. It will help understand why the Hindus are considered to be the most adaptable, accommodating and assimilating people in the world and how the Hindu Civilization has been a hallmark for Unity and Diversity.

This course is open to all – with or without Indian or Hindu roots, wherever they may be in the world.

COURSE LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

In this course, students will

1. Widen their understanding and mindset about Societies and organizations
2. Discover the framework that governed a flourishing Hindu Society
3. Learn how this framework has been a key to their continued prosperity for millennia?
4. Learn of the practice of gender balance in the Hindu Society
5. Become aware of the myths that have painted a wrong narrative of the Hindu Society
6. Learn of the truth behind these myths
7. Understand how this vastly diverse civilization has had a single culture?
8. Realize how and why the Hindu society was a Samaj and a Kalachar?

Course Design and Class Structure

The Course has been designed as 10 sessions that go to build up the picture successively. Course will be covered with 1 online session of 100 minutes each, per week.

Area of Study: Hindu Studies Foundation
Required/ Elective: Core
Instructor: Dr. D.K. Hema Hari & Dr. D. K. Hari
Quarter Offered: Spring
Day : Saturday
Time : 11 :00 am EST – 12:30 pm EST (8:30 pm IST – 10:00 pm
Start Date: April 8,
End Date: June 17, 2023