Past Projects

Fellowships and Scholarships

Muktabodha's Fellowship and Scholarship Programs began in 1998 and provided support to students from around the world to undertake field research in India, including, in some cases, study with traditional pandits, particularly in the field of Hindu Tantra. These programs focused primarily on PhD-level dissertation research projects. In addition, some scholarships provided support to postgraduate students of Kashmir Śaivism and Sanskrit in India.

Marcy Braverman-Goldstein	Adjunct Lecturer in Religious Studies University of North Carolina Kashmir Śaivism, Sanskrit, Yoga, Hatha Yoga
Mark Elmore	Assistant Professor of Religious Studies University of California at Davis Modern Hinduism Theory and Method in the Study of Religion Tantric Traditions; Religion and Colonialism
Alberta Ferrario	Visiting Assistant Professor Swarthmore College Tantric Śaivism - Grace and Devotion in the Doctrines of the Kashmiri Polymath Abhinavagupta
Ernst Fuerlinger	Professor of Religious Studies Head of the Center for Religion and Globalization Danube University, Austria Inter-religious dialogue, Spirituality in a Globalizing World Islam in Europe Promoting peace
Shaman Hatley	Associate Professor of Asian Studies and Religious Studies University of Massachusetts Asian Religions, Hinduism Sanskrit, Tantric Studies, Śaivism, Yoga, Hindu Goddess Traditions, Medieval India
Mrinal Kaul	Faculty/Lecturer Manipal Center for Philosophy and Humanities, India Abhinavagupta, Trika Śaivism Tantric literatures Kashmirian Islamic and Sufi Traditions Kashmiri and Indo-Persian literary cultures
Jeffrey Lidke	Associate Professor of Religious Studies Chair, Dept. of Religion & Philosophy Berry College Sarvāmnāya Śākta Tantra in Nepal Śākta Tantra - Chaṅgu Nārāyaṇa Kashmir Śaivism - Abhinavagupta
John Nemec	Associate Professor of Religious Studies University of Virginia Classical Sanskrit, Vedic Sanskrit, Pali, and the Prakrits Kashmir Śaivism, Tantric literature
Carlos Pomeda	Private Educator Yoga Sūtras, Vijñāna Bhairava, Spanda Kārikās Bhagavad Gītā, Yoga for Modern Life
Deven Patel	Associate Professor of South Asian Studies University of Pennsylvania Śrīharṣa’s Naiṣadhīyacarita Sanskrit, Intersection of Language, Literature, and Culture in South Asia
Nihar Purohit	Guest lecturer Benares Hindu University Scriptures of Kashmir Śaivāgama
Travis Smith	Professor of Asian Languages and Civilizations Seoul National University, South Korea Tantric Studies; Kashmir Śaivism the Kāśīkhaṇḍa and Śaiva Vārāṇasī Purāṇas; Purāṇic Māhātmyas Kāma Sūtras; Śāstra
Maxim Voroshilov	PhD candidate in Buddhist Studies Mahidol University, Thailand Researcher, Writer, Interpreter, Educator Ba Gua Zhang practitioner
Christopher Wallis	Founder and Head Mattamayūra Institute, California Teacher of meditation, Yoga Darśana, Tantrik philosophy, Sanskrit, and mantra-science
Alex Watson	Professor of Indian Philosophy Ashoka University, India Teaches courses in Sanskrit and Indian philosophies

Vedashala

In 1998, the Muktabodha Indological Research Institute founded a vedaśāla in Satara, India, to help ensure that the knowledge and chanting of the Kṛṣṇa Yajur Veda mantras, and the wisdom they embody, would be preserved for future generations as a living oral tradition. The vedaśāla has grown into a respected institution, honored by Vedic authorities for the quality of its teaching and the accomplishments of its students.

The vedaśāla is credited with preserving the Taittirīya Hiraṇyakeśin school of the Kṛṣṇa Yajur Veda, an especially endangered element of Vedic tradition. Now, as senior students graduate, they themselves are becoming teachers, as well as practitioners, thus re-establishing and preserving the living tradition in which they have been trained.

With the vedaśāla project attaining this point of maturity, MIRI’s vision for the project had been fulfilled, and responsibility for the vedaśāla was passed to the Krishna Yajur Veda Trust. It now functions as an independent organization.