Cross Cultural Studies

An introduction to the variety of religious practices and teachings that go by the name “Hindu,” both in the U.S. and abroad. The course includes topics such as Hindu deities (e.g., Ganesa, Krsna, Siva, and The Goddess in her many forms), people worshiped as divine both earlier and today, festivals, pilgrimages, temples, various teachings such as dualistic and nondualistic philosophies, and Hindu communities in the United States. The course includes visits to Hindu institutions in the surrounding area. No prior knowledge of or acquaintance with Hindu religions is required.

An historical and systematic examination of both formal and symbolic aspects of structures built for religious purposes, along with their associated religious activities.  Overlapping cultural and symbolic meanings will be studied, with in depth readings of associated religious texts.

Examination of the changing constructions of gender and the shifting configurations of the family, from imperial times to the present. Primary sources (in translation) and secondary literature together convey how changing notions of kinship, property, ritual, space, and the body have informed notions of gender in China, from the traditional courtyard house to the modern high-rise apartment.

Learn about the multifaceted nature of conflict on the inter and intra state levels, historically, and in the current post-Cold War period. Explore the sources, causes, environmental impact, and determinants of conflict, presenting the various perspectives on the genesis and the amelioration of conflict.