The Śivadharma Project - shivadharma

✨ V O L U M E 🖐️! ✨The ShivaDharma book series has just welcomed its fifth volume—in time to make it onto your summer reading list!

Śaiva-Buddhist Encounters in Medieval India, edited by Lucas den Boer and Florinda De Simini, brings together contributions from leading scholars exploring the interactions between these two traditions in medieval South Asia.

You can download your free open-access copy via this link http://www.fedoabooks.unina.it/index.php/fedoapress/catalog/book/800, or pick up a complimentary print copy the next time you’re in Naples—always a good excuse for a visit!

Summer has come, and it is time for our final Dharma Project extravaganza! Come join the conversation around Religion, Society and History in Medieval South and South-East Asia that will unfold at L’Orientale University of Naples on June 3rd-6th ✨

📣 We are delighted to announce that the 16th International Indology Graduate Research Symposium (IIGRS 16) will take place on 24–25 September 2026 at L’Orientale University of Naples. The symposium will be held at Palazzo Corigliano.

📄 The Call for Papers is open: abstracts should be submitted by 10 April 2026, and applicants will be notified by 8 May 2026. Papers may address any Indological topic based on primary sources in the original language. You can find all the information for submitting your abstract here: https://iigrs.wordpress.com/call-for-papers/

See you in Naples! 🇮🇹

Call for Papers Submission of papers: If you wish to present a paper, please submit an abstract via this Google Form by 10 April 2026. You will be notified of your results by 8 May 2026. Abstracts should include…

"Corpo medico e corpo mitico: embriologia e sofferenza nel capitolo 8 dello Śivadharmottara" by Luca Piscopo (University of Naples L'Orientale)

Where: Sala Mondolfo - Via Zamboni 38 - University of Bologna
When: 25 February 2026, 17:00–19:00 (CET)

Gli eventi della prossima settimana raddoppiano! Il progetto ERC UseFool in collaborazione con l'OFFISS ospiterà il seminario di Luca Piscopo (Università di Napoli "L'Orientale") che parlerà di "Corpo medico e corpo mitico: embriologia e sofferenza nel capitolo 8 dello Śivadharmottara"

Quando: 25 Febbraio 2026 - ore 17-19
Dove: Sala Mondolfo - Via Zamboni 38 - Bologna

Sarà anche possibile partecipare collegandosi su Teams (link nei commenti)

ERC event in Naples this week!
Join us for a conversation on the state of Humanities research in Italy. The Shivadharma Project is in!
You can also join online at the following zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82313296138

🔱 Don’t miss this talk tomorrow! 🔱

✨F I N A L L Y✨
A new flower has just bloomed in the Śivadharma fields to brighten our winter. Bhūtārthakathane … Sarasvatī. Reading Poetry as a History Book, edited by Marco Franceschini, Chiara Livio, and Lidia Wojtczak, is exactly what all Sanskrit- and poetry-lovers needed right now: a wealth of new research and sharp insights on the intersection of South Asian literary traditions with the study of history and religion.

The Śivadharma Project is very proud to support this research and publication, and deeply grateful to all the editors and authors.

Link to download the PDF for free — as it should be: http://www.fedoabooks.unina.it/index.php/fedoapress/catalog/book/715 🔱

P.S. Are you ready for more?

Friends from all corners of the world have made the past week especially eventful at the Shivadharma Project. Kenji joined us for some intensive work on finalizing his next book project with the Shivadharma team, while Jason and Jacquie were in town for a book launch at the Centro di Studi sul Buddhismo at L’Orientale. Books, books, and more books — that’s definitely the theme of the moment. More to come very soon!

Nothing like an old friend coming to visit! On November 5, we will have the pleasure of hosting once again Prof. Kenji Takahashi from Toyo University, who will deliver a lecture on the southern transmission of the major Indian epics. We look forward to welcoming Kenji back to Naples and hope to see many of you there!

Fall is in the air, but it’s Spring again in the Śivadharma garden 🌸 Something new is budding, soon to be picked and shared! Meanwhile, here is a tiny clue for you…