SRINAGAR: A two-day National seminar being organized by the Department of History, the University of Kashmir on ‘Syncretism in Indian History with Special Reference to Kashmir’ began today at the varsity’s Gandhi Bhawan here.
The event is funded by the Indian Council for Historical Research (I.C.H.R), New Delhi.
The seminar is intended to debate the idea of syncretism in Indian history with special attention to the reflections from Kashmir’s past.
The seminar has attracted a diverse group of attendees, including academics, experts, students and scholars from various fields to debate and move forward the frontiers of scholarly conversation on the theme. More than forty papers were selected from scholars across the country to present their cross-disciplinary ways of making sense of the theme.
The event was formally inaugurated by a keynote address presented by a reputed historian of the field, Professor Raziuddin Aquil, Professor of History at the Department of History, University of Delhi.
The key highlight of the address was Professor Aquil’s attempt to historicize syncretism in a larger South Asian context by presenting reflections from Medieval India. He underscored cross-cultural interactions in Medieval India by looking at intersections between communities, cultures and people in India’s medieval past.
The presidential address was followed by the remarks presented by Dr. Nisar Ahmad Mir, Registrar of the University, who briefly touched upon the sociological perspective on Kashmir’s syncretic past.
The Registrar additionally hailed the University’s progress and achievements in national and international spheres.
The inaugural session was presided over by the Vice Chancellor of the University, Prof. Nilofer Khan, who commented on Aquil’s scholarship while highlighting reflections on Kashmir’s syncretism from, among other areas, art, architecture and cuisine in her presidential address. She congratulated the department for choosing such an important theme.
Prof. M. Y. Ganai, Head of the Department and Dean of the School of Social Sciences, detailed to the audience the profile of the Department besides presenting his informed opinion of the theme.
The convener of the seminar Dr Younus Rashid (Assistant Professor) in the department while highlighting the significance of the seminar remarked that the overall idea of conducting the seminar is to provide a platform for academic debate and evolve a meaningful discussion on Kashmir’s syncretic past and present.
Papers selected for the seminar will be presented in several technical sessions aimed at fostering and informing knowledge exchange.
