Ashoka Reflections_NOVEMBER 2023
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ASHOKA
REFLECTIONS
A S H O K A U N I V E R S I T Y ' S M O N T H L Y N E W S L E T T E R
N O V E M B E R 2 0 2 3
Ashoka University is India’s premier interdisciplinary research and
teaching university located in the National Capital Region, New
Delhi. It is built on the finest global best practices of institution and
university
governance.
Accomplished
leaders,
philanthropists,
thinkers, and academicians with expertise in varied fields have come
together to create the university. It brings the best contemporary
values and practices in higher education, in the tradition of the
world’s leading universities, to India. With a strong emphasis on
multi-disciplinary learning, development of skills and leadership
attributes for the 21st century, Ashoka is preparing students to be
critical thinkers and ethical leaders in an increasingly diverse world.
A B O U T
Ashoka University
A S H O K A R E F L E C T I O N S
03
07
33
80
95
Table of
Contents
ASHOKA REFLECTIONS
November 2023
Feature Story
In Focus
Latest Happenings
In Other News
In the Media
Ashoka Reflections | Page 03
Feature Story
Ashoka University
Inspire Lectures:
Bridging Boundaries
with Interdisciplinarity
Interdisciplinarity, the belief that knowledge has no boundaries, has been a foundational premise in the
growth of human knowledge. The Ashoka University Inspire Lectures is a series of talks on the theme of
Interdisciplinarity by distinguished speakers for Ashoka and the World. Professor Dame Gillian Beer, King
Edward VII Professor Emeritus, University of Cambridge, delivered the inaugural lecture in June 2021. For the
second lecture, Ashoka University hosted Professor Ruth Harris, a distinguished historian and Senior Research
Fellow at All Souls’ College and a Professor of Modern History at the University of Oxford, in January 2023.
The third lecture was delivered by Professor Patrick Olivelle on 18th October 2023. He is a distinguished
scholar of Sanskrit texts, Indian religion, asceticism and law. He served as Chair of the Department of Asian
Studies at the University of Texas at Austin (1994-2007), where he is currently Professor Emeritus of Sanskrit
and Indian Religions. He was elected Vice President of the American Oriental Society in 2004 and President in
2005, and has received many prestigious awards and fellowships. His path-breaking work, marked by
extraordinary range and rigour, has had a major impact on understanding ancient India’s intellectual
traditions and history. Professor Olivelle has written extensively on themes such as dharma, the ashrama
system and asceticism and has published authoritative translations of the Upanishads, Manava
Dharmashastra, Arthashastra, Buddhacharita and Panchatantra. His most recent book is Ashoka: Portrait of a
Philosopher King.
Professor Somak Raychaudhury, Vice-Chancellor, Ashoka University formally introduced the event by
expaining what interdisciplinarity and liberal arts means and how that is woven into the ethos of the Inspire
Lecture Series. This was followed by Professor Rudrangshu Mukherjee, Chancellor, Ashoka University
introducing Professor Patrick Olivelle and the topic he would speaking on.
For the third session of the Inspire Lecture Series,
Professor Patrick Olivelle spoke on “Ashoka's Journey:
From Devotee of Buddhism to Apostle of Ecumenism”
Ashoka Reflections | Page 04
Ashoka Reflections | Page 05
Professor Olivelle spoke on “Ashoka's Journey: From Devotee of Buddhism to Apostle of Ecumenism”. He
discussed Ashoka’s experience and innovations as ruler over a vast, multi-cultural and multi-religious empire.
He described how he pivoted from being an ardent Buddhist to becoming a proponent and propagator of a
broader, universal moral and political vision, referred to in his inscriptions as dhamma. Professor Olivelle
discussed the various aspects of the meanings of Ashoka’s dhamma. He especially focused on the term
pasanda, which referred to various religious groups. The Maurya emperor Ashoka embarked on a programme
of religious ecumenism, where members of different religions would meet to establish harmony and dialogue
and learn from each other. Ashoka’s message went beyond simple religious harmony. It called for active
inter-religious cooperation and mutual respect that would enhance the spiritual life of all religions. The
lecture delved into this aspect of Ashoka’s messages to the various religious organisations of his time,
especially the Buddhist, Brahmanical, Jain, and Ajivika—a message of harmony within diversity that is relevant
in modern times. He considered this an essential part of human goodness or virtue.
The conversation then switched to the understanding of two fundamental principles, ahimsa and dharma, as
seen through the prism of Ashoka's edicts. The inquiry addressed the topic of whether Ashoka's perspective
on ahimsa was more aligned with Jain or Buddhist principles, implying that Ashoka's stance was somewhat
unclear and did not provide a thorough philosophical grasp of the idea.
Concerning dharma, the speaker acknowledged the term's complex nature and the difficulties in adequately
conveying its broad meaning. The translation, whether as "law" or another phrase, was determined by the
context and audience. It was observed that dharma covered a wide range of connotations, including social
order and ethical values, and that its interpretation could differ among translations and historical contexts.
The discussion focused on what makes Ashoka appealing to modern readers, with a particular emphasis on
the individuality and consciousness conveyed in his edicts. Although Ashoka's promotion of an ethic of
tolerance and coexistence in the face of religious diversity was lauded, it was acknowledged that his approach
may not have extended to tribal communities. Furthermore, the debate delved into the complexities of
Ashoka's commitment to nonviolence, as represented by the lion capitals, which suggested a vision of
sovereignty with elements of ferocity and surveillance.
The lecture was followed by a question-answer session where students and faculty posed a variety of
questions to the speaker, leading to a lively discussion.
Ashoka Reflections | Page 06
Watch the lecture here
In Focus
CENTRE FOR
WRITING AND
COMMUNICATION
In Focus
A Unique Resource for Teaching
and Learning: Centre for
Writing and Communication
Ashoka Reflections | Page 08
Kanika Singh
Director, Centre for Writing and Communication | Ashoka University
From initially providing only one-on-one tutorial support to
undergraduates, CWC has evolved and expanded to meet the growing
and diverse needs of the university
Established in 2014, the Centre for Writing and Communication (CWC) at Ashoka is as old as the university
itself and remains central to its work. From initially providing only one-on-one tutorial support to
undergraduates, CWC has evolved and expanded to meet the growing and diverse needs of the university.
The centre now engages with the entire academic community at Ashoka, with its primary focus on developing
pedagogical support for students. This includes teaching, research and outreach activities keeping in mind
students at all levels (UG, PG and Ph.D.) and across disciplines.
Ashoka Reflections | Page 09
The centre’s teaching activities are carried out in the form of one-on-one tutorial sessions, short courses or
workshops and full semester-long courses. In all these formats the focus is on developing the most
fundamental academic writing and communication skills. These include basic questions such as ‘What is
academic writing?’ and ‘What is critical thinking?’ to ethics of research writing and presenting complex
research coherently and clearly. CWC has a robust programme for English Language Teaching which provides
year-long support to the most vulnerable students at Ashoka. This is unique to Ashoka’s writing centre and
includes the Academic Bridge Programme, the English Communication courses taught during the Monsoon
and Spring semesters by the Centre and the learning strategies embedded in the other courses at Ashoka.
The teaching-learning material created by the CWC will eventually contribute towards an open-access
knowledge bank with resources available for use by teachers and students, in multiple languages. Just this
year, CWC has released two resources: an online course for students titled Introduction to Academic Integrity
and Ethics, and a guide for teachers for inclusive teaching practices for students in the classroom.
CWC’s research draws upon our teaching experience at the university and, in turn, supports it. Our
interactions with students and teachers at Ashoka have brought forth new questions and revealed novel
possibilities. We have learnt as we have taught. We would like to learn more—a fundamental privilege of
being a part of a university. Our conferences have provided a platform for scholars, practitioners and
students to come together and explore the most fundamental as well as pressing issues in the field of higher
education. An ongoing research project at CWC examines the relationship between language, pedagogy and
inclusion through a case study of Ashoka University and seeks to make recommendations at the level of policy
and pedagogical practices.
The centre’s teaching and research programmes, while primarily directed at the academic community at
Ashoka, have a wider relevance for other higher education institutions in India, and indeed South Asia. Many
of our programmes are open to the public and our outreach activities include collaborating with other
colleges and universities to teach and create learning material on academic and professional writing and
communication.
The biggest strength of the CWC is the composition of its team. We have made a conscious effort to create a
team where its members come from diverse backgrounds— disciplinary, linguistic and with the experience of
writing in different contexts (academic, journalistic, popular, fiction and nonfiction). We particularly value
educators with experience in creating learning materials for different kinds of audiences. Some of our team
members have experience working with school children and neo-literates, creating learning material in
distance mode, and as language teachers for English and other Indian languages. And, they have varying
levels of educational qualifications: some have a Ph.D. while others have a postgraduate degree. CWC team
has included anthropologists working on humour, music and food, a lawyer researching manual scavengers,
students of English literature and composition, a scholar and writer of children’s books, artists, journalists,
translators, and a historian researching with textual, visual, and ethnographic material. These scholars and
professionals have worked with different kinds of writing and communication practices which when put
together in a university setting, introduce a range of ways of thinking about the world.
The diversity of expertise in the team, I believe, is instrumental to the CWC’s vision. When a group of scholars
and professionals with diverse experiences work closely with each other throughout the year to discuss
reading, writing, communication and pedagogy, only then can we truly begin thinking about a vibrant writing
centre.
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