RELG 231:
Professor: Daniel Meckel
Office:
Anne Arundel 110C. Ext. 4464
Email: djmeckel@smcm.edu
Office
hours: Fridays 11:00-12:00 PM
Teaching Assistant: Will Frye
Email: cwfrye@smcm.edu
This course will provide an historical introduction to
Indian Civilization in its major religious forms. We will study Hindu
religions, Jainism, Buddhism, Islam and Sikhism, as these have developed,
interacted, and given form to distinctive ways of life in
HISTORICAL TIMELINE
The Story of
http://www.pbs.org/thestoryofindia/timeline
Required Texts:
Wood, Michael India
Koller, John The Indian Way: An Introduction to the
Philosophies and Religions of India
Course Schedule
Topics
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Readings
and Assignments
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Sept 1: Introduction to the Course
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Week
1
Sept 22:
HISTORY I: 60,000 BCE to 500 BCE
The Story of India: Beginnings
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THE VEDIC TRADITIONS OF THE BRAHMANS
Early
Veda: Maintaining the World through Proper Ritual and Righteous Action
Week 2
Sept 8:
I.
The Indus Valley Civilization
II. The Aryans and Vedic religion
|
·
Koller, Ch. 2 |
Sept 10: Vedas and the fire sacrifice
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·
Koller, Ch. 3 |
Late Veda (Vedanta):
Striving for Liberation by Renouncing the World
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Sept 15: I. Human suffering and the rounds of death and re-birth II. The
quest for liberation
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·
Koller, Ch. 4 QUIZ 1 |
Ways of Life in Hindu Society
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Sept 17: I. Dharma and Moksha: The
dynamic |
· Koller, Ch. 5 |
Sept 22:
HISTORY II: 500 BCE to 200 BCE
The Story of India: The Power of Ideas
Wood, Ch. 2
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JAINISM AND BUDDHISM
The Jaina Path of Perfection
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Sept 24: The
Beginnings of Jainism |
·
Koller, Ch. 6 QUIZ 2 |
Week 5
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Sept 29: The
Jaina Worldview |
· Padmanabhav (e-res) |
The
Way of the Buddha
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Oct 1: Buddha and the Conditions of Suffering |
· Koller, Ch. 7, pp.128-149 QUIZ 3 |
Week 6
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Oct 6: The Cessation of
Suffering and the Path to Enlightenment |
· Koller, Ch. 7, pp.149-161
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Oct 8: Yoga |
·
Koller, Ch. 8 |
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Oct 13: No Class
(Fall
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Oct 15: MIDTERM EXAM (Bring Blue Books) |
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THE HINDU EPICS AND DEVOTIONALISM
Week 8
Sept 22:
HISTORY III: 300 BCE to 1000 CE
The Story of India: Ages of Gold
Wood, Ch. 4
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Oct. 20: HISTORY:
300 BCE to 1000 CE
The Story of India:
Ages of Gold
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·
Wood, Ch. 4 |
Oct 22: Mahabharata and
The
Bhagavad Gita
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·
Koller, Ch. 9 |
Oct 27: The Ramayana
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Oct 29: Bhakti (1)
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· Koller, Ch. 10 QUIZ 4 |
Week 10
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Nov 3: No Class: All Day Advising |
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Nov 5:
Bhakti (2)
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·
Koller, Ch. 11 |
ISLAM IN INDIA
Week 11
Nov 10: History:
1100 CE to 1700 CE
The Story of India:
The Meeting of Two
Oceans
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·
Wood, Ch.
5 QUIZ 5 |
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Nov 12: The Coming of
Islam to India |
·
Koller, Ch. 14 |
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Nov 17: Sufism |
·
Handouts |
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Nov 19: The Sufi
Traditions in India
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Week
13
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Nov 24: Discussion |
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Happy
Thanksgiving!
THE SIKHS
Week
14
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Dec 1: Sikh History
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·
Koller, Ch. 15 QUIZ 6 |
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Dec 3: Sikh Doctrine and Practice |
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COLONIALISM AND FREEDOM
Week 15
Dec 8: History:
1700 CE to 2009 CE
The Story of India:
Freedom
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·
Wood, Ch. 6 QUIZ 7 |
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Dec 10: The British Presence and India’s Response |
·
Koller, Ch. 16 |
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FINAL
EXAM December 16, 7:00 PM -9:15 PM
Bring Blue Books |
Midterm Exam........................................................................................... 250
Final........................................................................................... 250
Map Exercises........................................................................................... 100
(50+25+25)
Video Worksheets........................................................................................... 30
Quizzes........................................................................................... 200 (top 5, 40 pts each)
Field Essays........................................................................................... 100
Participation........................................................................................... 100
Final Grade Values
1000 Points Possible
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900 to 919 = A- 880 to 899 = B+ 820 to 879 = B 800 to 819 = B- 780 to 799 = C+
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700 to 719 = C- 680 to 699 = D+ 620 to 679 = D 600 to 619 = D- 599 and below = F |
Track your progress in the class on Blackboard
Please Note:
v The combined scores for self- and graded-quizzes will
be worth 15% of your final grade. Thus
your final grade will be influenced by how faithful you are to the reading
assignments and to the review of your readings and notes from class.
v A comment on grading: If ever I find that a particular question on a test or quiz is missed
by almost everyone, I will assume that it was unfair or too difficult and throw
it out. If ever you disagree with a
grade, you can always come to me and
protest, complain, persuade, etc. I may
or may not be convinced, but I will always listen.
v Participation: “Participation”
means (1) wakeful presence, (2) preparation of reading assignments, (3) active
involvement in class interactions, (4) punctual arrival at the beginning of
class, and (5) completion of all in-class writing assignments. Lack of any of these will affect the grade, excessive lack is reason for dismissal from the
class.
Descriptions of Assignments:
Self-Quizzes: these are in-class writing exercises for the purpose of anchoring your
knowledge through active use of the information that you get from lectures,
films and readings. They will always
receive full credit so long as they show that you are taking advantage of the
opportunity and using them to learn. I
use these exercises and the graded quizzes (see below) because of research that
shows convincingly that frequent quizzes are very effective in helping with
recall. Also, they give me a chance to
see how and whether each student is grasping the material. Each student begins the semester with full
points for the in-class exercises (60 points, 2 per exercise) and I deduct two
points if the assignment is either not done or dramatically incomplete.
Graded Quizzes:
There will be seven 15-minute graded quizzes. At the end of
the semester I will average only the top 5 quiz grades at 20 points each. Questions on a quiz can cover anything from
the reading assignments, video, discussion, and lectures that followed the
previous quiz, and from the readings for
the day of the quiz. Graded quizzes
will usually consist of short answers and definitions. Several quizzes will include image
identification. My own lecture notes and lists of terms will be posted on the
“study aids” page of the web site to help you stay prepared for class
discussions, quizzes and exams. Missed
quizzes receive no points. A quiz cannot be made up at any other time,
regardless of the reasons for missing it.
Map Exercise: This assignment requires you
to get familiar with the geography of the Indian sub-continent, including its
especially sacred locations and features.
It will be graded for accuracy and elements of the exercise might show
up on an exam.
Video Worksheets: You fill these out in class, after a video. Again, I am looking here for you to use the
opportunity to watch/listen actively and anchor your knowledge through
writing. Worksheets gain full points so
long as the student gives a much as s/he can in responding to the question(s).
Midterm and Final Exams: The content of these exams
and my criteria in grading them are described on pages linked to the
“Assignments” page of the course website.
Other Info:
My Attendance Policy: Attendance is
required. Without regular attendance,
students do not tend to do well in the class.
If a student misses more than a couple of classes, I begin to register
unexcused absences. Each unexcused
absence results in a 20 point reduction. A note from a doctor, dentist,
coach, or funeral director will render any absence excused. Without such
a note, the absence will not be excused.
Please note that a phone call or email message saying that you are ill
is not sufficient, nor is a note from the health center confirming an
appointment. I usually keep track of
attendance through the in-class writing assignments (quizzes, video
worksheets). When I see that one is
missing, I count it as an absence.
Office Hours: My office
number and hours are listed above.
Please make an appointment if you can, but feel completely free to drop
by with your concerns, ideas, questions, etc.
I will always make time if I can.
If need be, we can certainly communicate by email, but in-person is
always best.
Website, Online
Syllabus, Email Communications, and Computer Failure.
This
online syllabus can be accessed through
the Blackboard course page but I recommend that you bookmark it so as to bypass
BB when it goes down. Students are
responsible for checking the online syllabus and their email every day. I will announce any and all changes via email
-- e.g., a changed deadline or altered reading assignment Computer failure is not a valid excuse for
a late assignment. Broken
or unreliable computer? Use the
computers at the college. The syllabus
is my best projection of how our time will be organized. I might well alter the assignment schedule as
seems appropriate or necessary; but I will not change the grading policies.
Academic dishonesty in any form -- including plagiarism of self or others,
falsified documentation of a doctor’s note, etc. -- will not be tolerated. Cheating of any kind
results, without exception, in an “F” for the course.
Food in class: Drinks and snacks of
the very quiet variety are allowed in class (e.g., poi, rasgula,
duck pate), nothing else.
No activated cell phones in the
classroom (so please turn them off).