RELI 313: Hinduism

RELI 313-001: Hinduism
(Spring 2019)

10:30 AM to 11:45 AM MW

Krug Hall 204

Section Information for Spring 2019

This course is an introduction to the diverse traditions that, since the British institutionalized the category in the 1800’s, we call Hinduism. We will focus on the beginnings and evolution of sacred texts, stories, ideas, practices, and political identities over a period spanning about 3,500 years, from the revelation of the Vedas to Hindu politics in India today. Our class will proceed in six short units: 1) Vedas and Upaniṣads; 2) Epics and Purāṇas; 3) Philosophy; 4) Ritual and Devotion; 5) Hinduism under the Mughals and British; 6) Hinduism Today. Our overall goal is to develop a broad understanding of the content, evolution, and influence of Hindu traditions.

As an upper-level Humanities course, this class will allow you to apply and further refine advanced skills related to reading, critical analysis, research, and writing. Although there are no specific pre-requisites, in order to do well in this class you will have to be able to read large amounts of complex primary and secondary source material, come to class prepared to discuss these materials, and write extended, coherent papers based on them. One of your papers will be a close reading of our course materials, and one will be an independent research paper. While I am happy to help you work on your writing, it is ultimately your responsibility to have or develop competencies in these areas.

Tags:

Course Information from the University Catalog

Credits: 3

Introduces Hindu religion and thought, beliefs, rituals, ethics and religious practices. Emphasis on classical Hinduism, but also covers Hinduism and modernity, modern Hindu movements, and Hinduism as a global religion. Limited to three attempts.
Mason Core: Global Understanding
Specialized Designation: Non-Western Culture
Schedule Type: Lecture
Grading:
This course is graded on the Undergraduate Regular scale.

The University Catalog is the authoritative source for information on courses. The Schedule of Classes is the authoritative source for information on classes scheduled for this semester. See the Schedule for the most up-to-date information and see Patriot web to register for classes.