Symposium Speakers
Dr. Ravi M. Gupta
Charles Redd Chair of Religious Studies, Utah State University
Ravi Gupta holds the Charles Redd Chair of Religious Studies at Utah State University. He is the author or editor of three books and numerous articles and book chapters. He has received three teaching awards as well as research fellowships at Linacre College and the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies. He lectures around the world on topics related to Vaishnava philosophy and Hindu devotional traditions. Dr. Gupta is currently working on an abridged, annotated translation of the Bhāgavata Purāṇa for Columbia University Press.
Dr. M.V. Krishnayya
Professor Emeritus, Philosophy and Religious Studies, Andhra University, Visakhapatnam, India
Dr. M.V. Krishnayya is professor emeritus of philosophy and religious studies at Andhra University in Visakhapatnam, India. His primary research interests include history of religions, existentialism, comparative approaches to religion and culture, and peace and non-violence in Indian traditions. A well-known ethnographer, his publications include Early Buddhism and Jean Paul Sartre: A Study in Comparative Philosophy (Andhra University Press) as well as articles titled “Man in Early Buddhism”, “Buddhism and World Peace,” and “The Human Problem of Our Era: An Existential Approach.” Krishnayya is the recipient of the Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishna Prize in Philosophy and the Gopalakrishnayya Prize in Philosophy and was a Fulbright scholar-in-residence at the University of Alabama and Shelton State Community College. He currently serves as the on-site coordinator for the BYU India Study Abroad program.
Dr. Charles Nuckolls
Professor and Chair, Department of Anthropology/Director of BYU India Study Abroad, Brigham Young University
Charles W. Nuckolls is Professor and Chair of Anthropology at Brigham Young University. Over the last forty years, he has done fieldwork among the Jalari, fishing caste people in the Telugu-speaking region of southeastern India. His research focuses on topics of kinship and religion. Nuckolls received his A.B. and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Chicago, and his M.A. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Balaji Sudabattula
President, Sri Ganesha Hindu Temple of Utah
Balaji Sudabattula holds a master’s degree in Engineering Management Science from Wichita State University. After completing his degree, Mr. Sudabattula worked in California, Texas, Kentucky and finally moved to Utah, where he is managing director of a medical device company. Balaji has been volunteering to the Sri Ganesha Hindu Temple for the last six years and currently serves as President of the Sri Ganesha Temple.
Dr. Greg Wilkinson
Assistant Professor of Church History and Doctrine, Brigham Young University
Greg Wilkinson is an assistant professor of Religious Education and teaches courses on world religion and Asian religion. Before coming to Brigham Young University, he taught for several years in the East Asian Studies department of the University of Arizona. His research focuses on the ethnographic study of contemporary Japanese religions. He holds graduate degrees in religious studies from the University of Iowa and Arizona State University. His current research projects include: New religious movements (shin-shinshukyō) in 21st century Japan, the evolution of pilgrimage practice in modern Japan, and 20th century Japanese editions of the Buddhist Canon.
This symposium is sponsored by the BYU Museum of Art with assistance from the BYU David M. Kennedy Center for International Studies and the BYU Department of Anthropology.