Jain Studies professorship in Florida University

Washington: The Florida International University (FIU) has established the Bhagwan Mahavir Professorship of Jain Studies, the first of its kind in the western world, with a $600,000-donation from the Jain Education and Research Foundation.

Nathan Katz, FIU professor who specializes in the religions of India, was named the first Bhagwan Mahavir Professor of the endowed professorship in the Department of Religious Studies in the College of Arts & Sciences, the university announced on Wednesday.

"Dr Katz is a pioneer in the field of Indo-Judaic Studies and has been involved in the Jewish-Hindu dialogue for decades, making him a great candidate for this professorship" said Kenneth G. Furton, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences.

The endowment is part of a larger initiative by the Jain community to establish an academic education centre for Jain studies and research at FIU.

The proposed Bhagwan Mahavir Interdisciplinary Centre for Religious Pluralism would offer courses in Jainism, provide research opportunities and collaborate with universities throughout the world, the university said.

"The centre will link FIU with other universities globally in a number of projects, including study programmes in India, working with secondary schools and community organizations on religious pluralism, summer institutes, faculty and student exchanges, and lecture series, among other projects," Katz said.

The endeavor is being led by Dipak C. Jain, renowned scholar and chairman of the Jain Education and Research Foundation.

"FIU's faculty shows excellence in the dissemination and application of knowledge," said Samani Charitra Prajna, a faculty of the FIU in Department of Religious Studies.

"The diverse ethnic student body has freedom of thought and expression. This professorship will open new horizons and be a truly worlds ahead initiative for FIU."

Founded in 1965 and Miami's only public research university, the FIU has more than 38,000 students and has been classified by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching as a "High Research Activity University". IANS

Parshwanath Vidyapeeth hot pick of foreign students

VARANASI: The International School for Jain Studies (ISJS), Parshwanath Vidyapeeth, Karaundi, is nowadays frequented by foreign students from various countries to study Jain philosophy.

In the recent past, two groups of foreign students from countries like the US, UK, Belgium, Japan, Thailand and Norway made visits for study purpose.

According to Dr SP Pandey, director in-charge of Parshwanath Vidyapeeth, the first group of 13 foreign students was on an education tour from June 14 to 19 while the second group of 12 students stayed for study purpose from June 30 to July 11. Lectures of noted scholars like Prof Anne Valley, department of Religious Studies, University Ottawa, Canada, Prof SN Upadhyay, director, Institute of Technology, Banaras Hindu University, Prof RS Ambasht, professor emeritus at BHU, and others were organised for them.

The Parshwanath Vidyapeeth, established in 1937 as an Institute of Indology, is an institution of higher learning in Jain Studies.