The Mahabharata and Inter-Asian Cultures: Transmissions, Adaptations, Performances and Histories

deadline for submissions: 
December 31, 2016
full name / name of organization: 
Department of English, University of Delhi

Call for Papers: International Conference

The Mahabharata and Inter-Asian Cultures: Transmissions, Adaptations, Performances and Histories

The long history of the Mahabharataand its cultural assimilations is spread across not only South East Asia but across Asian regions and is a living reminder of a shared consciousness and is reflective of a syncretic Asian culture.  As a travelling text it circulated, since ancient times, through maritime links across monsoon Asia. It is a strong reminder of an Asia that was interconnected through trade, religion, manuscript, art, architecture, performance, and not the least, through people to people contact. Before the coinage of terms such as cosmopolitanism, universalism, and globalisation, this master text and its epical narrative spoke across the gap of ethnicity, race, religion and culture.   In fact, such is its deep embedment across several Asian regions that even the deep historical rupture created by European colonialism, a timewhen colonised Asian regions became fragmented and inward looking, did not erase the legacy of the Mahabharatawhich lay like a rich seam and kept alive the connections between a pre and postcolonial Asia.

This international conference seeks to bring together

  • Litterateurs
  • Linguists  
  • Art historians
  • Archaeologists
  • Philosophers  
  • Historians
  • Performers
  • Filmmakers
  • Sociologists   
  • Religious studies experts
  • Researchers  

Willing to comment, interrogate, dialogue and discuss the emergent field of Asian studies and the complex dynamics of cross cultural exchanges through a singular text.

Dates of the conference:  6,7, & 8th April, 2017

 Abstracts containing not more than 500 words on topics pertinent to the theme are invited for submission by 31th December 2016. The selected presenters will by intimated by 10th January, 2017, and will be expected to submit working drafts of their full papers by 28th February, 2017. All the abstracts and queries can be mailed to mahabharataconference@gmail.com

No TA/DA will be paid to the outstation participants. Accommodation at the University Guest Houses can be arranged on request at a nominal cost.

Convenors

Professor Christel R Devadwason

Dr. Anjana Sharma

Dr. Haris Qadeer