Through the course of this five week Program, we explored the immense beauty of the art and architecture of South Asia. The students learned about India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh through its paintings, sculpture, and architecture by discussing each work of art in its religious, cultural, and historical context. We examined numerous artistic and architectural styles spanning roughly 5,000 years of history, from the Indus Valley Civilization to the subcontinents contemporary art market. We looked at a variety of images, including the Taj Mahal, the Buddhist cave paintings at Ajanta, the Minaksi Temple in Madurai, the Asokan pillars, the Qutb Minar, and many other things. By exposing the students to South Asian art, a topic many of them had never studied before, it was the goal of this class to inspire each of them to go out and explore the many different cultures of the world.

Caleb M. Faruki Auspicious? Not Indus: The Architecture and Urban Planning of the Indus Valley Civilization

Vishal P. Jani Puja: An Art of Hinduism

Arvind R. Krishnamurthy Unity in Diversity: The Art and Architecture of the Akbari Period

Caitlin A. McGuire Shiva as Linga and Nataraja

Ashim Midha The Influence of Ancient Greece and Persia on Mauryan Pillars and Capitals: Did Alexander the Great or King Xerxes (or both) Affect Mauryan Art?

Prachi Singh Parihar Vastu Shastra: Its Key Components, Transformation, and Contemporary Uses

Joshua Sung Photography and Orientalism in India

Mitali A. Thakore Masculine and Feminine Iconography in Hinduism

Adam L. Weiss Manifest Imperialism: Architecture of the British Raj

My lectures and seminars all explored the paradox of South Asia as an amalgamation of cultural, economic and political influences that span Central Asia and the broader Middle East, though focusing primarily on India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. However, owing to the cultural and ethnic impact, the Middle East and Central Asia cannot be excluded, specifically in understanding Pakistan. Theoretical approaches to this quagmire are drawn from an historical analysis beginning with (1) a study of the Indus Civilization; (2) the entry of Islam as a political and religious force in 711 A.D. into South Asia; (3) the Delhi Sultanates and Moghul Empire; (4) the British Raj; and, lastly, (5) Paths to Peace: Origins of the Kashmir Conflict and hope for the future. These lectures and seminars were reinforced by videos, power-point presentations and hand-outs.

MEHNAZ M. AFRIDI

The literature section of our program analyzed, dissected and at times debated the major contributions of sub-continental writers. From Sanskrit to Persian to Hindi to Urdu and to English we traversed the history of literature. The books we read dealt with major concerns of cross cultural identity, politics, love, relationships, Diaspora, economy, race, gender, and religion. The writers although contemporary shed light on pre-colonial, colonial and post-colonial issues of sub-continental identity. Each student will leave with an aftertaste of sub-continental writers who have been world renowned and celebrated in their native countries. Furthermore, the novelists deal directly with the emergence of a hybrid identity that lies between the East and West and more importantly the creation of a post-colonial identity. We explored writing styles, tones, illustrations of cultural difference, and finally the artistic & visual expression of these cultures.

Miruna Barnoschi West Becomes East: the Counter-Influence of the Indian Identity on European Literary and Philosophical Ideology During the 18^th Century Till the Present

Saakshi Dulani Bollywood: Ambassador to the Subcontinent

Sibjeet Mahapatra Paradign Shift: the Influence of the South Asian Diaspora and the "ABCD" Phenomenon on Sub-continental Literature

Brennan McCormick The Universal Dream: the Prevalence of the "Great American Dream" in Indian Sub-Continent Literature

Helene L. Sajer Defining Identity in Sub-continental Literature: Women, Nationalism, and Mother India

Noni Sethi An Exploration of Identity in Indo-Pak Literature

Hayley S. Shoener Women in Pakistan: Traditionally Islamic and Revolutionary Influential

Emma F. Weinrich Forster and Rushdie on the Search for Sub-continental Identity

Daniel J. Wertman Political Allegories in Tagore’s "The Home and the World"

Isabella A. Weschler The Effects of Indic Literature: Society, Identity, and Politics in the Works of Salman Rushdie and Rabindranath Tagore

Mrinal Agrawal Religious Reforms Lead to Political Permutations: The Brahmo Samaj, the Arya Samaj, and the Religious and Social Teachings of Swami Vivekananda

Michael P. Barile Roots of a Pakistani Schims : A Comparative Look at Mawdudi's Islamist Politics in Post-Partition Pakistan

Francesco DeMarco What is it to Burn? A Look into the Film Fire, Its Unconventional Use of Religion and "Claiming Desire"

Marina M. Dimitry Ghandis Ideology: How do Gandhis Religious Ideals Affect his Political Policies and Would He Have Made a Hugh Impact in Todays World?

Anh Hoang Doctrinal and External Factors that Led to the Rise of the Mahayana: The Compassionate and "Greater Vehicle"

Jamie Joseph Jainism: Adapting to a Changing World

John H. Onieal Existance: Ontology in Samkhya and Vedanta Hinduism

Akshata Sanga When Ram is Synonymous with Allah: The Pluralstic Legacies of Kabir and the Mughal Empire

Sugam Sarin Gandhi Revisited – Gandhi Retaught?

Matthew R. Yeaton The Treatment of Nuns and Laywomen in Early Buddhism