QUTVRELIG Religion, Society and Power in South Asia Course description

The program consists of two interdependent courses: Religion, society and power in South Asia and Anthropology: Religion and power

1. Anthropology: Religion and Power (10 ECTS) Anthropology: Religion and Power

The course is suitable for students with prior knowledge of anthropology as well as for students with no formal anthropological training who have an interest in general anthropological issues. The course offers analytical perspectives on enduring anthropological fields of interests ' such as religion and ritual, political structures and the dynamics of power, gender, ethnicity, sociocultural change, and research practices and methodology. Its theoretical emphasis is on the most recent developments within anthropological approaches to religion as a sociocultural phenomenon, paying special attention to how the major world religions of Christianity and Islam are perceived, received and appropriated in different cultural contexts and localities. Based on a selection of ethnographic monographs and articles, the course facilitates and encourages broad cross-cultural comparison, which is a key feature of the discipline. The comparative method promotes an exploration of structural similarities as well as diversities in response to social and ideological change. This opens for a better-informed approach to the otherwise vague and frequently opinionated studies of so-called globalization. In addition, the detailed empirical descriptions of the monographs will stimulate critical reflection on the cultural origins of the norms, values and practices of the students' own societies. The cross-cultural comparative approach is also a valuable methodological tool in relation to the regional course, Religion, society and power in South Asia .

2. Religion, society and power in South Asia (20 ECTS)

The course provides students with knowledge of religious diversity and pluralism in the South Asian region, today and throughout history, and enables them to reflect analytically on religious pluralism as a phenomenon. The course addresses the interplay between different religious traditions and their reciprocal influence in shaping the region. Emphasis is also put on the numerous, and frequently violent, conflicts that religious diversity has brought about, and particularly on the relationship between religion and politics in the formation of the modern Indian state. The course is customized to students' stay in Pondicherry, where the religious pluralism and diversity at stake is experienced daily. Regular lectures and seminars are supplemented with excursions and 'mini fieldworks', facilitating a unique empirical approach to the theoretical perspectives and general analytical insights. In combination with the course Anthropology: Religion and power , students are provided a rare opportunity for first-hand experience of the role of religion in multicultural societies.

Target groups

The Religion and Power program directs itself to

• bachelor students
• professionals (journalists, teachers, diplomats, NGO workers, etc.) and others who seek to deepen their knowledge on, and analytical skills related to, the course topic

Admission requirements

Applicants must meet the minimum requirements for Higher Education Entrance Qualification in Norway ( generell studiekompetanse ).