Dienstag
30
NOV

16.15 Uhr

Terror and Grace: Saturn Worship in India Across the Ages

Dr. Ofer Peres is a scholar of South Asian religions and literature. His main fields of interest are Vedic myth and ritual, purāṇic Hinduism, south Indian bhakti traditions, and early modern Tamil Śaivism. In his research, he examines the functions of textual adaptations and translations, and their role in cultural and religious transitions. As a Minerva Fellow at the South Asia Institute, Dr. Peres will be working on his research project: “Contesting Realities: Narrative Adaptation as Ideological Discourse in Medieval India.” In addition, he will be pursuing another project, entitled “The Rise of the Dark Planet: The Early-Modern Origins of the Cult of Saturn in South Asia.”

Dr. Ofer PERES

ABSTRACT
Horoscopic astrology has been an integral (and popular) part of everyday life in the Indian peninsula from its first appearance, around the second century CE. While the Indian astrological practice resembles its parallels around the globe, here an additional development took place. The astrological notions entered the religious sphere, and the planets have become part of the local pantheon, mythology, and temple worship.
This talk examines the integration of the planetary deities into mainstream Hinduism. I will mainly focus on the worship of Saturn, the most fearsome planet, which obtains growing popularity in contemporary South Asia. Through an examination of textual evidence, I will delineate the possible cultural and religious mechanisms that enabled the transition in Saturn’s status from a minor astrological divinity to a dominant God.

Streaming / Video URL

https://Via Zoom https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83264804133?pwd=VFphS0JxcVVRYkd4Zk83VTlyMVY3QT09 Meeting ID: 832 6480 4133 Passcode: 737844

Adresse

Building 4010

Room no. 06 (010.00.06)

Voßstrasse 2

69115 Heidelberg

Homepage Veranstaltung

https://www.sai.uni-heidelberg.de/abt/IND/index.php

Veranstalter

Südasien-Institut

Homepage Veranstalter

https://www.sai.uni-heidelberg.de/abt/IND/index.php

Kontakt

Department of Cultural and Religious History of South Asia

Alle Termine der Veranstaltung 'Department Colloquium':

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Religious Girls’ Education in Colonial Sri Lanka: Creating Motherhood and Womanhood

Jessica Albrecht, Ph.D. Canditate, Heidelberg University, Department for the Study of Religions

Dienstag, 01. Juni 2021, 16.15 Uhr

The Holy Garbage of the Temple and the Idea of Holiness

Dr. Hillel Mali, New York University, NYU School of Law

Dienstag, 22. Juni 2021, 16.15 Uhr

Buddhist Nationalism and Islamophobia

Prof. Dr. Iselin Frydenlund, MF Norwegian School of Theology, Religion and Society

Freitag, 02. Juli 2021, 09.15 Uhr

Southeast Asian Buddhist Manuscripts: With a Special Reference to the Palm-leaf Manuscripts at Otani University

Prof. Dr. Shobha Rani Dash, Heidelberg University, South Asia Institute and Dr. Suchada Srisetthaworakul, Otani University

Freitag, 09. Juli 2021, 09.15 Uhr

The Project: Buddhist Manuscripts from Gandhara

Dr. Stefan Baums, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU) Munich and Stephen White M.Sc., Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU) Munich

Freitag, 16. Juli 2021, 09.15 Uhr

Digital Edition of the Nyāyabhāṣya

PD Dr. Phillip A. Maas, Leipzig University, Institute of Indology and Central Asian Studies

Dienstag, 30. November 2021, 16.15 Uhr

Terror and Grace: Saturn Worship in India Across the Ages

Dr. Ofer PERES