The GTU’s Center for Dharma Studies (CDS) represents the leading edge in interdisciplinary and rigorous academic programs in Hindu Studies and Dharma Studies. Highlighting theology, applied ethics, contemplative paths, ritual studies, and the in-depth study of ancient, classical, and contemporary Hindu texts, thought, and practice, the CDS offers the rich diversity of the Hindu world to scholars and students of these and other traditions.
The CDS was established with a ground-breaking gift from Mira & Ajay Shingal of the Bay Area. The CDS is a programmatic Center through which the GTU offers its MA and expansive PhD programs in Hindu Studies, Jain Studies, and Yoga Studies. CDS is the first such center in the nation, and is also a hub for Dharma & Sustainability Studies, promotes interdisciplinary scholarship, and supports interreligious interchange and understanding. In its Hindu Studies programs, CDS seeks to understand the lived experience of the Hindu world and explore Hindu Theology, Indian Philosophy, Ethics, Culture, and Praxis through Indian systematic knowledge systems and traditions of inquiry in dialogue with the contemporary theories and methods of the field of Religious Studies.
The CDS sponsors conferences, symposia, cultural events, art exhibits, lectures, and research projects as well as liturgical music and dance performances to promote and enrich scholarly collaboration and to foster understanding across the boundaries of faiths and cultures. The Center also engages in community outreach with local Dharma-heritage communities and centers in order to provide students with the context of lived experience of these traditions in America.