Svarodaya: Breath and Divination at the Nexus of Religion, Science, and Magic
This graduate symposium analyzes the ancient Hindu breath-centered divination practice known as svarodaya (Sanskrit: “attainment of toned breath”) to untangle a knot of discourses which scholars usually study as isolated threads. By the 14th century CE, Muslims in India began to interpret svarodaya, and titled their translations `ilm-i dam (Persian: “science of breath”) in encyclopedias and handbooks of mysticism. During British colonial rule, Indian scholars produced English translations and argued svarodaya was not superstitious magic, but should be valued equally alongside any Western science. My interdisciplinary project on svarodaya from the medieval period through the present day pushes scholars to understand that the boundaries between religious communities as well as academic disciplines are more porous than rigid.
Patrick J. D’Silva specializes in the study of Muslim engagement with Yoga during the early-modern period in South Asia and Persia. He is the co-author (with Carl Ernst) of the forthcoming book “Breathtaking Revelations: The Science of Breath from the Fifty Kamaru Verses to Hazrat Inayat Khan” (Suluk Press). He is currently Visiting Teaching Assistant Professor of Islamic Studies at the University of Denver.
Patrick D’Silva, University of Denver
11am on Wednesday, October 25th in Humanities 230
Hosted by the Department of Religious Studies, co-sponsored by the Center for Asian Studies.