Distinguished members of ISJS family:

Sadar Jai Jinendra
Wishing you all a Very happy, healthy, peaceful and prosperous 2011

The year 2010 is coming to close shortly. As most of you will be going on Family get together and celebrations, Christmas break and vacations, I take this opportunity to share some of the significant developments that have taken place at ISJS recently and during 2010.

A. Future works

• Nine ISSJS2011 announced: We have announced three levels of ISSJSs for 2011 along with four specialized modules of one week each on meditation, pilgrimage, reading one Jain holy text each in Prakrat and Sanskrit. Response had been very encouraging and we expect significantly more participants in these programs in India and Thailand. Also Prof Jeffery Long of Elizabethtown PA has agreed to be the guest faculty for a week in ISSJS2011.
• Proving financial support to three PhD students from Universities of Pennsylvania and Columbia to present papers at AAS-ICAS conference in Hawaii in March- April 2011.

B. Key projects initiated in Nov Dec 2010

• Organized very successfully the first of a series of three seminars on: ” Integrating Modern Science and Spirituality for Social Wellness: A Challenge of 21st Century on Dec 11th -12th at PHD Chamber New Delhi. This will be followed by one more seminars each at Varanasi and Jaipur later on.
  Organized a faculty conclave on Dec 15th to 16th attending by over 15 faculty members from all over India and Prof Chapple of LMU USA. We all discussed ways and means to enhance the teaching methodology, course content and structure of various programs offered in ISSJS2011.
• Translated, edited and getting the set of four books on Jain history from 1st tirthankara to 500AD by Ac Hasti Malji in English had been completed for launch on January 1st 2011 by Samyak Gyan Pracharak Mandal Jaipur. It will be an excellent reference book for students of Jain history and culture.
  Publishing a book on Jain Society in India and Abroad by Prof P.C. Jain of JNU (ISJS faculty member). With Key to Reality in Jainism (Tattvarthasutra in English in easy to understand question and answer form) ISJS is implementing its publication services in English for global students and scholars of Jainism.

• MOU with Vanier College of Montreal Canada for joint programs and faculty / student exchange is signed. Similar MOUs are under progress with other universities of North America.
• MOUs with Mangalayatan University Aligarh and Teerthanker Mahaveer University Moradabad finalized for setting up centres of Jain studies there and to jointly award certificates, MA and PhD programs.
• Cooperation with Parashwanath Vidhyapeeth Varanasi extended to have ISJS run the institute and make it an international centre of Jain education. BHU had renewed their recognition of the institute to jointly award PhD degrees to institutes candidates. Jain community has whole heartedly approved this arranged and is providing financing support to Parashwanath Vidhyapeeth to develop Jain education and Meditation programs for global delivery along with research and publication work going on. International Jain scholars already inducted in the advisory council of the institute.

ISJS alumni are registering for PhD programs with thesis on Jain philosophy and having ISJS as recommending and guiding institute. Three ISJS alumni are returning to ISJS for extended periods of studies of Prakrat, Sanskrit and Jain philosophy /art in 2011 under various scholarships and grants.

Dec 11th -12th at PHD Chamber, New Delhi

Dec 15th to 16th at Chhotidadabari, New Delhi

MOU with Vanier College of Montreal Canada

D. July 2010-October 2010

• Prof Nathan Katz, Chair Bhagwan Mahavira of Florida International University visits ISJS. Cooperation between FIU and ISJS is being explored.
• ISJS along with Jain community of Atlanta hosted a dinner reception on October 29th at Jain Centre Atlanta to the academics to DANAM and AAR conferences where they presented papers on various aspects of Jainism.
• Two batches of 25 students and faculty members each (Principia College Illinois USA and University of Waterloo Toronto Canada) visited ISJS Delhi for a day long exposure to Jainism and Jain way of life.
• Organized a seminar on Non violence jointly with Mahidol University Bangkok on Oct 1st. Director delivered three lectures more at different universities of Bangkok a day before.

Prof Nathan Katz, Chair Bhagwan Mahavira of Florida International University visits ISJS

Non violence jointly with Mahidol University & other universities Bangkok

E. January – July 2010

• We have already informed you about the tremendous success of ISSJS2010 and the resulting fallout as seen above.
• With your continued patronage, guidance and financial support, ISJS is set to be the foremost Jain studies centre globally.

Prof Peter Flugel of SOAS Univ of London visits ISJS Delhi

Series of seminars on Integrating Modern Science and Spirituality for Social Wellness: A Challenge of 21st Century.

ISJS is organizing a series of seminars during Dec 2010-March 2011 in Delhi, Jaipur and Varanasi. A number of papers have already been received from eminent scientist, engineers, philosophers and religious teachers. It is likely that eminent and top scientist plus spiritual leader will join these seminars to share their views. ISJS expects to launch some collaborative research projects on some of the papers presented. Please visit www.jainstudies.org for participation and details.

A. Lectures on different aspects of Non violence.

Director ISJS is visiting Bangkok to deliver a series of lectures at Mahidol University, Sripatum Univ, Srinakharinwirot University and other centers of higher learning in Buddhist studies there.

B. ISJS hosts dinner and temple visit to the Jain scholars attending DANAM in Atlanta on Oct 25^th 2010.

As a part of its ongoing activities to encourage research in Jain studies, ISJS in association with the Jain Centre Atlanta is organising a dinner cum reception to the Jain scholars attending the annual convention of DANAM in Atlanta USA. Dr Sulekh Jain in association with Prof Chris Chaple and Prof Pankaj Jain of ISJS USA are coordinating this activity.

C. Research project ‘Antiquity of Jainism in Greece launched

A two year long research project headed by Prof G. Jawahar Lal had been launched to carry further the detailed library research conducted by Sh Satish chand Jain of Nagpur. Sh Satish Jain had spent a significant amount pf his ten years researching Jainism in Greece. To carry this research further to meet academic requirements and publish as a book, Sh Jain has funded this project under the auspices of ISJS. Dr Manju Jain, a member of ISJS council will coordinate this project.

Three ISSJSs at Delhi

Three ISSJSs at Hastinapur

ISSJS2010-3W at Jaipur

ISSJS2010 VARANASI & TMU Moradabad

ISSJS2010-6W Jaipur and Varanasi

ISSJS2010-3W		ISSJS2010-O

ISSJS2010-6W

Kunda Kunda Bharati Qutab Institutional area New Delhi decorated Dr Natalia with their highest (and most valued Rs 500,000) on March 7th Sunday. The award was presented by Ms. Sonia Gandhi to Dr Natalia Zheleznova, for her research on ‘Kunda Kunda’ and associated publications as books and papers. She is a research scholar at Moscow University Russia.  
 
 
 

ISSJS is proud of her achievements and wish her many more such awards.

Unique and innovative experiment (first time) to conduct a series of ten national Seminars at different universities of India was concluded successfully on March 8th at Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri Sanskrit Vidhyapeeth New Delhi

This year ISJS dedicated itself to network the Indian universities and research institutes so that Jain Studies and relevance of Jain principles to 21st century could be discussed, researched and deliberated in the academic community. Also ISJS always felt the strong need to interface the Indian institutions and the overseas universities to start a dialogue on Jain Studies so that multi cultural and viewpoints can review, analyze and present the Jain principles and way of life. With these in mind the following ten seminars were organized which were completed successfully creating an excellent network of academic community and an open environment of dialogue and exchange of research and ideas. These seminars will greatly enhance the ISJS programs. ISJS thanks the associate institutions and their coordinators and look forward to enhance this cooperation further.

ISSJS2010 programs oversubscribed. Largest ISSJS2010 planned in 2010 summer.

This year we received many times more applications than we had available facilities. Also to meet the specialized needs of different levels of participants, we had planned separate programs at three levels namely beginners, middle level and advanced for faculty and research scholars. Table below shows the number of candidates accepted and are likely to attend the four ISSJS2010 programs. As can be seen we expect over 50 participants to be benefitted by ISSJS2010, making it to be the largest ISSJS class so far. Also we have added two new venues namely Somaiya Vidhya Vihar Mumbai and Teerthanker Mahaveer University Moradabad as the ISSJS camps for a total of five camp sites for the three ISSJS classes which will run almost concurrently

ISSJS2010 will also feature Prof. Dipak Jain (Dean Kellogg Graduate Business School North Western University Chicago) to be with ISSJS on June 5th teach the participants and also delivering the Annual ISSJS lecture on ‘Jainism: Balancing Professional and Personal Lives’

ISSSJS Alumni News:

• Dr. Andrea Jain ISSJS2006 successfully completed her PhD and joins University of Indiana USA.
• Dr. Pankaj Jain ISSJS2006 joins University of North Texas as faculty member.
• Ms. Leah Costello ISSJS2009 delivering motivating lectures and getting ISSJS programs recognized by her university
• Ms. Kathelene Avahoshi ISSJS2008 successfully launched her CD on Navakar mantra.

ISSJS salutes its alumni for their successes and wish them well for more achievements in future. Keep it up ISSJSians.

At the 15th biennial convention, held during July 2-5 in Los Angeles, California, JAINA honoured Dr. Sulekh C. Jain with its highest award, the JAINA RATNA. The award is presented for exceptional dedication and contribution towards promotion of Jainism in North America.

By profession, Dr. Sulekh Jain is a Mechanical Engineer. He taught mechanical engineering at several universities in India and USA, published more than 50 papers and has nine US and international patents. Eleven years ago, he retired from General Electric (GE) Aircraft Engine Division in Cincinnati, Ohio and now devotes all his energies to the promotion of Jain and Ahimsa related causes and projects.
Dr. Sulekh C. Jain has been instrumental in the establishment of a large number of Jain centers, institutions and programs in North America, Europe and India. For nearly 50 years, he has served the community with vision, commitment, dedication and unflagging energy. He served JAINA for eight years, first as Secretary then subsequently as President for two terms. No other has served as long. He has been the president of two Jain Centers (Cincinnati–Dayton, Ohio and Houston, Texas) as well as several other organizations. Currently, Dr. Jain is the Founder and Chairman of the Governing Council of International School for Jain Studies USA (www.jainstudies.org) and Secretary of Mahavir Vision Inc. USA.

ISJS salutes Dr Sulekh Jain and prays for his long, active life and leadership.

Admissions for ISSJS2010 now open.

The ISSJS program is intended to provide an opportunity to pursue experiential and academic Jain studies in India from May 26th to July 8th 2010 to scholars in philosophy, religion, anthropology, theology and South Asian studies associated with the recognized university systems. During this period the participants will study in the cities of Mumbai, Jaipur, Varanasi and Delhi (including Hastinapur) and also undertake a few one day pilgrimages to holy Jain centers.

The course of study follows a daily schedule of academic lectures by notable Jain scholars covering a range of topics from Jain history, philosophy, rituals, ethics and contemporary Jain life. An important part of this program is the opportunity to contextualize what is learned in the class room by visiting academic, historical places of interests, interacting with Jain communities and participating in cultural activities.

In addition, ISSJS also provides opportunities to learn languages like Prakrat and Sanskrit, study Jain holy texts like Acaranga, Uttradhyana, Rattankarand Shravakachar, Samayasara for short periods. These specialized programs will be in the afternoons and require a minimum participation of three students.

ISSJSs offered in 2010:

For details and online application for admissions, please visit www.jainstudies.org

Eligibility:

This program is open to all scholars in related areas of study engaged in teaching /research or pursuing higher studies in any accredited university worldwide only. All participants are expected to be fluent in English since this program is offered using English as the medium of instruction.

Specialization in Jainism is not required. However, successful program applicants will have prior experience in the academic studies of South Asia /its religions or Hindi/Sanskrit/Prakrat and having the long term objective of including study of Jainism and/ or these fields.

While this is a non sectarian program, yet due to the fact that participants are intimately engaged with jain community, applicants must be willing to respectfully adhere to certain Jain principles while in India for the program.

You can download the application form and email or mail the complete application form to ISJS. You can also apply online from our website. ISJS accepts applications throughout the year but the deadline to apply for ISSJS2010 is February 14th 2010. If you have questions about the application process, please contact ISJS at info@jainstudies.org.

Program Costs and our generous financial package:

ISSJS provides complete hospitality (tuition, board, lodge, travel) to all participants in India. Almost all participants accepted for ISSJS2010-6W will also be eligible for a generous financial assistance program from ISJS.

The only charge in India from each participants is US$400 or US$500 per participant depending on the program applied for to partially cover expenses in India. For overseas ISSJSs, these charges vary from place to place and are minimal or nil.

About ISSJS

The International Summer School for Jain Studies provides an important link between the Jain community and the academic world. The Jain community despite its small number has, and continues to have, a large impact on Indian religious, social and cultural life. The academic study off Jainism is still an underdeveloped area of research. The spirit of the ISSJS is to work towards rectifying this omission in scholarly inquiry by fostering an interest in Jainism in universities around the world.

ISSJS programs are run by International School for Jain Studies, a project of Mahavir Vision Inc, a non- profit tax exempt, 501 C-3 organization. ISJS works in collaboration with Academic Studies of Jainism in North America (ASJNA), World Council of Jain Academies (WCJA) and Jain Academic Foundation of North America (JAFNA), University of Ottawa, American Institute of Indian Studies and Shastri Indo Canadian Institute (SICI).

The entire program in India and overseas of ISSJS is run and administered by an independent India registered Indian organization which is non profit, tax exempt, section 80G organization, called International School for Jain Studies New Delhi India.

ISSJS programs were started in 2005. Since then 123 participants have benefitted by attending these programs in five annual summer programs. Last year ISSJS was also organized at Mahidol University, Bangkok Thailand. The participants came from eighteen universities and eight countries of the world.

Contact information and mailing address:
Director Admissions
International School for Jain studies
D28 Panchsheel Enclave
New Delhi110017 India
Email: admission@jainstudies.org or info@jainstudies.org
www.jainstudies.org
USA: scjain@ earthlink.net; Canada: annevalley@gmail.com; Thailand: jain_pm@hotmail.com

ISJS 2009 retreat in Karnataka and Kerala India

The governing council members from USA and their spouses are meeting in the holy Jain town of Shravanbelogola Karnataka India from Nov 23rd to 27th 2009. This annual retreat is to review the activities, performance of ISJS in 2009 and finalize plans for 2010. These annual retreats have been a regular feature of ISSJS program and it is the first time that it is being held in India. The retreat is followed by a week long tourism expedition to God’s own country Kerala.

Seminars on Social Consciousness and approaches in Jain religion

ISJS, in association with leading universities of India and Canada, is pleased to announce organizing a series of regional seminars ( 5 to 7 in major cities /Jain centres), one national seminar (Delhi) and an international seminar (Canada) on ‘Social consciousness and approaches in Jain religion. These seminars will be held in the month of March-April 2010 in India followed by an international seminar in Canada in August 2010.

Subjects associated with the seminar on which papers are invited from distinguished experts.

A. Social topics with primary reference to their applications as per Jain religion only.
B. Jain texts and doctrines describing social engagements for Jains.
C. Case studies
D. Statistical reports /presentation

Regional, national and international seminars:

Each region may focus on one or more than one area as primary and others as secondary if possible. Each region will invite at least six papers selected for presentation. Other papers which are considered reasonably well shall be compiled also separately and the writers invited for informal presentations /group discussions. All papers will be sent to National seminar for compilation and record.

Out of the papers presented, each region will nominate one speaker for the national seminar. The national seminar will have two to three additional speakers to present their papers. National seminar will select two papers for sending to the international seminar. Authors of these papers shall get some financial support to travel and present their papers.

Acceptance of papers at regional seminars will be done by the regional academic council. However the regional council will send the papers to national council to avoid repetition of subjects at other regional seminars and approval.

Regional Coordinators &contact addresses

*likely and approvals of some of them awaited