| Academic Council
USA
WILLIAM K. MAHONY
(President)
Professor of Religion
Chair, Department of Religion
Davidson College
Davidson, North Carolina
Educated at Williams College (B.A.1973), Yale University
(M.Div.1976) and the University of Chicago (Ph.D.1982), Professor
Mahony’s teaching, research and writing interests center on the
religions of South Asia and particularly of India. A recipient of
a National Endowment for the Humanities Fellowship, Professor Mahony’s
publications include The Artful Universe:
An Introduction to the Vedic Religious Imagination (State
University of New York Press, 1998) and, as co-author, Meditation
Revolution: A History and Theology of the Siddha Yoga Lineage
(Agama Press, 1997) as well as numerous articles and reviews in
various journals.
He served as an editor and major contributor to
the 16-volume Encyclopedia of Religion
(Macmillan Press, 1987), which received the Hawkins Prize and the
Dartmouth Medal from the American Library Association for the best
work in any category of publishing.
In addition to serving as President and member of
the Board of Directors of the Muktabodha Indological Research Institute,
Professor Mahony has been a member of the Board of Directors of
the American Academy of Religion and of its Executive Committee.
He has also been the President of the American Academy of Religion
Southeast Region and the Chairman of the Southeast Commission for
the Study of Religion.
Professor Mahony travels frequently to India for
research and teaching purposes. Over the years he has lived for
extended periods in different regions of India and leads semester-long
seminars in India for western college students and professors, during
which time participants visit numerous sites of historical, archeological,
cultural and religious significance. At Davidson he has received
prestigious awards in recognition of his teaching abilities.
PAUL E. MULLER-ORTEGA
Professor of Religion
University of Rochester
Rochester, New York
Considered a world authority on the Non-Dual Shaivism
of Kashmir, Dr. Muller-Ortega was educated at Yale University (B.A.
1971) and the University of California in Santa Barbara (M.A. 1979,
Ph.D. 1985). His areas of specialization include History and Phenomenology
of Religions, Mysticism, and classical Sanskrit, with a special
interest in Indic Religious Studies including Vedic Studies, Classical
Indian Philosophy and Yoga Traditions.
In addition to publishing a wide selection of articles
and book reviews, Dr. Muller-Ortega produced an audio tape of several
versions of a famous set of Sanskrit sutras in the tradition of
Kashmir Shaivism entitled Pratyabhijnahrdayam:
Sutra Pronunciation. His book publications include The
Triadic Heart of Shiva: Kaula Tantricism of Abhinavagupta in the
non-dual Shaivism of Kashmir (State University of New York
Press, 1988), and he coauthored Meditation
Revolution: A History and Theology of the Siddha Yoga Lineage
(Agama Press, 1997). His forthcoming books are entitled Linga
Pilgrimage: Meditations on Siva as Consciousness, and Yogina
Born: Tantraloka Studies and Reflections
on the Hindu Tantra.
Since 1988, he has served as Editor for a series
entitled Tantric Studies published
by the State University of New York Press, and his extensive authorship
of book forwards includes The Splendor
of Recognition: An Exploration of the Pratyabhina Hrdayam
by Swami Shantananda (SYDA Foundation, 2003) and The
Yoga of Vibration and Divine Pulsation: A Translation of the Spanda
Karikas with Kshemaraja’s Commentary, the Spanda Nirnaya
by Jaideva Singh (SUNY, 1992).
A recipient of several noteworthy fellowships and
grants including a National Endowment for the Humanities Grant,
he holds many professional memberships such as the American Oriental
Society, American Academy of Religion, Society of Asian and Comparative
Philosophy, Society for Tantric Studies (Member of Central Steering
Committee), and the Association for Asian Studies.
CONSTANTINA RHODES-BAILLY
Professor of Religious Studies (tenured)
Eckerd College
St. Petersburg, Florida
Professor Bailly was educated at Rutgers University
(B.A. 1976) and Columbia University in New York (M.A. 1980, M.Phil.
1980, Ph.D. 1983). She spent two years in India researching and
translating manuscripts of sacred Sanskrit poetry. A Who's Who of
American Women recipient, her wide-ranging teaching, research, and
writing interests include tantrism, goddess worship, women in world
religions, Native American spirituality, Kashmir Shaivism, and Sanskrit
devotional poetry.
She is the author of Shaiva
Devotional Songs of Kashmir: A Translation and Study of Utpaladeva's
Shiva Stotravali (State University of New York Press, 1987;
revised and republished in India by Sri Satguru Publications, 1991);
Meditations on Shiva (State University
of New York Press); and numerous articles, chapters, and book reviews.
She is a co-author of Meditation
Revolution: A History and Theology of the Siddha Yoga Lineage
(Agama Press, 1997), and she contributed the introductory essay
to Swami Chidvilasananda's Inner Treasures.
In addition to serving as a member of Muktabodha’s
Academic Council since its inception, Dr. Bailly's professional
and cultural affiliations include the American Academy of Religion
(for which she served as Southeast Regional President) and Society
for Tantric Studies (of which she is a founding member and steering
committee member).
Awards received include a number of fellowships
from Columbia University, and a Research Fellowship from the Rashtriya
Sanskrit Sansthan (National Institute of Sanskrit) in New Delhi,
India. She serves as an editorial consultant for the State University
of New York Press and Oxford University Press, and served as the
editor of South Asian Religions for the Encyclopedia of Religion.
Dr. Bailly is currently working on Invoking
Lakshmi: The Hindu Goddess of Prosperity in Song and Ceremony
(Verse translation and explication of Sanskrit devotional poetry).
SWAMI SHANTANANDA
Monk & Scholar in Residence
SYDA Foundation
New York
An art historian by training, Swami Shantananda
has been a monk, student and teacher of Siddha Yoga for 30 years.
His area of specialty is Kashmir Shaivism. In addition to many articles
on this non-dual philosophy, Swamiji has published The
Splendor of Recognition, a commentary on the Kashmiri sage
Kshemaraja’s Pratyabhijnahrdayam.
Swami Shantananda has offered countless courses,
workshops, and meditation retreats around the world on Kashmir Shaivism
and meditation. He was the director of the Siddha Yoga ashram in
Oakland, California, and has served as an officer of the SYDA Foundation,
the international organization that supports Siddha Yoga teaching
activities. Swamiji is a member emeritus of the Siddha Yoga Teachings
Council, the panel that oversees the interpretation and dissemination
of these teachings internationally.
INDIA
DR. T. N. DHARMADHIKARI
Retired Director of the Vaidika Samshodhana Mandala
Pune, India
Dr. Dharmadhikari is a renowned Vedic scholar, specializing
in Shrauta ritual and the Taittiriya and Maitrayani Samhitas of
the Krishna Yajur Veda. He has written many research articles and
has created a three-volume descriptive catalogue of Sanskrit manuscripts.
As Director of the Vaidika Samshodhana Mandala in Pune for 30 years,
he made great efforts in collecting rare Vedic manuscripts, and
creating a museum of utensils used in Vedic sacrifice. He was also
an Instructor at Balmukund Sanskrit Mahavidyalaya.
In 2003, he received the Ved Vedang award from the
National Ved Vidya Foundation for his contributions to the research
and study of the Vedas. His forthcoming titles for publication with
Muktabodha include a translation of Katiyani
Ishti. His Ph.D. is from Pune University.
DR. D. B. SENSHARMA
Senior Research Fellow
Ramakrishna Mission Institute of Culture
Kolkata, India
During his distinguished career, Dr. SenSharma was
Professor and Chairman of the Department of Sanskrit at Kurukshetra
University, Director of the Institute of Sanskrit and Indological
Studies, and Dean of Faculty of Indic Studies, and later a Senior
Research Fellow at the Asiatic Society.
Dr. SenSharma’s Ph.D. is from Banaras Hindu University.
He was a long-time student and disciple of Gopinath Kaviraj, who
was one of the leading experts of his time on the Shaiva and Shakta
traditions. Dr. SenSharma is himself a renowned scholar of Kashmir
Shaivism and Tantra Shastra. Among his dozens of academic works,
he has published The Philosophy of Sadhana,
(State University of New York Press), which examines Tantric sadhana
(spiritual practice) in the light of shaktipata, or the
descent of divine grace, and Aspects
of Tantra Yoga (Natraj Publications House). His forthcoming
publication with Muktabodha is a translation of Paramarthasara
of Abhinavagupta with the Commentary of Yogaraja.
In 2006, Dr. SenSharma was chosen to receive the
Certificate of Honor by the President of India for his lifetime
contributions to the field of Sanskrit study.
DR. B. N PANDIT
Retired Professor of Sanskrit
Himachal Pradesh University
Shimla, India
Dr. B. N. Pandit was Professor of Sanskrit and Philosophy
at Himachal Pradesh University. After retirement, he has been a
scholar in residence at the Ranvir Kendri Sanskrit Vidya Peeth,
Jammu. A renowned traditional scholar of Kashmir Shaivism, he has
been honored for his work by the President of India.
He is the author of Specific
Principles of Kashmir Shaivism published by Munshiram Manoharlal,
History of Kashmir Shaivism published
by Utpal Publications, and Isvarpratyabhijna
Karika of Utpaladeva: Verses on the Recognition of the Lord,
a translation and commentary published by Muktabodha Indological
Research Institute, in association with Motilal Banarsidass Publishers.
His Ph.D. is from Punjab University.
DR. S. P. SABHARATHNAM
Retired -- Department of Shaiva Siddhanta
University of Madras
Madras, India
Dr. Sabarathnam was Professor of Tamil at Vaishnav
College in Madras for more than 20 years, and Reader in the Department
of Shaiva Siddhanta at the University of Madras. An authority in
the area of Shaiva Agama and Vastu Shastra, he has published and
lectured widely in Tamil and English. His Ph.D. is from the University
of Madras.
Among his published works in Tamil are Nadamenium
Koyilile (a treatise on Agamic literature), Atmopadesa
Satakam (Narayana Guru’s Malayalam work), and Guruprakasam
(a commentary on the Kumarastavam).
Dr. Sabharathnam is also a co-author of Meditation
Revolution: A History and Theology of the Siddha Yoga Lineage
(Agama Press, 1997). His forthcoming publication with Muktabodha
is titled Introduction to Shaiva Agama.
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