Tantra and Buddhist Ritual in South Asia: A Conference in Honor of Dr. Ronald M. Davidson at Fairfield University

Fairfield University’s College of Arts and Sciences’ Humanities Institute will host a two-day
symposium on Tantra and Buddhist ritual in
medieval South Asia, on Feb. 21-22, at Bellarmine Hall, Diffley Board Room. Presenters from
around the country will explore ritual developments in South Asia from roughly 600-1200
CE, discuss Buddhist and non-Buddhist tāntrikas in the medieval period, and examine the
way these ritual developments were carried beyond the Himalayas into Tibet proper, and
their subsequent developments up to the modern period. Panelists will share their abstracts
and participate in Q&A and group discussion.

This symposium is being held to celebrate and mark a transition in the study of Buddhism,
Tantra, and Asian traditions more broadly at Fairfield University. The topic was inspired by
the work of Professor Emeritus Ronald M. Davidson, PhD, in Indian Esoteric Buddhism and
the Tibetan Renaissance. Dr. Davidson is scheduled to deliver the conference keynote
address. The Humanities Institute, in collaboration with Samuel Grimes, PhD, assistant
professor of Religious Studies, helped bring this event to fruition. Dr. Grimes will be a
featured speaker, along with the following panelists:

Kristina Anderson, The Art Institute of Chicago
Keith Cantú, PhD, Harvard University
Pronoy Chakraborty, University of California, Berkeley
Jacob Dalton, PhD, University of California, Berkeley
Sonali Dhingra, PhD, University of California, Berkeley
David Germano, PhD, University of Virginia
Shaman Hatley, PhD, University of Massachusetts, Boston
John Nemec, PhD, University of Virginia
Davey Tomlinson, PhD,Villanova University

The symposium will begin on Friday, Feb. 21, from 3-6 p.m., and continue on Saturday, Feb.
22, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., with a reception to follow. The conference will feature
presentations from this distinguished group of scholars on the theme of Tantra and
Buddhist ritual in medieval South Asia, and their lasting impacts beyond both the
subcontinent and the medieval period.

Vol. 56, #103

Fairfield University is a modern, Jesuit Catholic University, rooted in one of the world’s oldest
intellectual and spiritual traditions. More than 6,000 undergraduate and graduate students
from 44 states, including the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, and 46 countries, are
enrolled in the University’s five schools. In the spirit of rigorous and sympathetic inquiry into
all dimensions of human experience, Fairfield welcomes students from diverse backgrounds to
share ideas and engage in open conversations. The University is located in the heart of a

region where the future takes shape, on a stunning campus on the Connecticut coast just an
hour from New York City.

For more information