RELGST

Taking inspiration from the Himalayan environment and contextualizing religious experience in the mountains, this course will draw on broad ideas about the relationship between religion and ecology to understand how belief systems and ritual practices are shaped by and shape environmental consciousness.  In the philosophical traditions of southern Asia, the Himalaya represent purity, transcendence, and deep introspection associated with ascetic ideals of ethical self-perfection.  In the structure of the ritual activities of Hinduism and Tibetan Buddhism, the mountains are a place of pilgrimage where individuals, families and whole communities go in order to experience divinity.  As the designation in Sanskrit indicates the Himalaya are considered to be the “home of the gods,” and the intimacy of entering into the domestic space of this divine wilderness produces the coordinates of a profoundly moral and ethical life deeply embedded in the natural environment. 

After Israel and the USA, Germany is the most important country of migration for Jewish immigrants worldwide. Jewish migration is not just a phenomenon of recent decades but is also anchored in history. There was a strong Jewish migration from Eastern Europe to Germany as early as the late 19th century. After the Holocaust there were Eastern European displaced persons who founded new Jewish communities in Germany. With the collapse of the Eastern Bloc, Jewish migration from the former Soviet Union fundamentally changed Jewish life in Germany. In recent years there has also been an increase in migration from Israel. This seminar will address Jewish migration as a part of Germany's past and present, explore integration issues from the perspective of Jewish immigrants and the non-Jewish majority, and make relevant comparisons with the current population of refugees in Germany. Co-curricular excursions will involve a visit to Berlin’s famous Jewish Museum, historical walking tours, and visits to contemporary Jewish centers of arts and culture.

These courses can be fulfilled through Pitt-Recognized or Exchanges.