Rethinking Svaraj - Conference Call for Papers

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Date: Thu, 19 Jun 2014 12:24:12 +0530

*Rethinking Svaraj*



*Conference Call for Papers*



*To be held at: *Manipal Centre for Philosophy and Humanities (MCPH),

Manipal, Karnataka, India, 15-17 January, 2015



*Invited Speakers*


Akeel Bilgrami, Professor of Philosophy, Columbia University, USA

Mrinal Miri, Chairperson, Indian Council of Philosophical Research

A. Raghuramaraju, Professor of Philosophy, University of Hyderabad

Sanil V., Professor of Philosophy, Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi

Probal Dasgupta, Professor, Indian Statistical Institute, Calcutta

Bijoy Boruah, Professor of Philosophy, Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi

Gopal Guru, Professor of Political Science, JNU, Delhi



*Description*


In a seminal lecture presented sometime between 1928 and 1930 [the lecture
can be found at http://www.unipune.ac.in/snc/cssh/ipq/english/vol11_4.htm],
the philosopher K. C. Bhattacharyya* discusses the question of intellectual
self-determination, or what he calls 'svaraj in ideas'. In the process, he
offers an account of what the lack of such a determination, or 'cultural
subjection', might mean. In addition, he also offers some positive insights
into what is entailed in the concept of intellectual self-determination.
Barring an issue of the *Indian Philosophical Quarterly*, published in
1984, in which several well-known commentators like Ramchandra Gandhi,
Ashis Nandy and Probal Dasgupta engaged with this lecture, philosophers
have not examined this text in any significant way. In the context of
Arvind Kejriwal's recent political appropriation of the term 'svaraj', and
given that it is now almost 25 years since India was liberalized, we think
this might be a good time to re-examine the concept of svaraj through an
ontological rather than a political lens.



Although this conference takes its point of departure from Bhattacharyya's
essay on svaraj, our aim is more broadly to explore the possibility of
creating new philosophical knowledge regarding the notion of svaraj. It is
our view that Bhattacharyya's essay offers several suggestive claims that
could serve as the starting point for articulating new ways of thinking
about svaraj. However, we also welcome essays dealing with the concept of
svaraj in conversation with thinkers other than Bhattacharyya, and/or
dealing with aspects of svaraj not covered by Bhattacharyya's essay.



Possible topics that elucidate, develop or critique some of the ideas in
Bhattacharyya's essay could include (but are not restricted to):



· Kant's notion of autonomy (and its reception among the German
idealists), and Bhattacharyya's concept of self-determination

· How Bhattacharyya's notion of svaraj may have been influenced by
ideas in Indian philosophy, including both classical and modern Indian
philosophers (by employing Western hermeneutical methods, etc.)

· Comparison between Bhattacharyya's and Gandhi's notions of svaraj
(one of the aims of this conference is to explore the possibility of
decentring Gandhi's characterization of svaraj)

· The notion of the self, and the relationship between self and
other implicit in Bhattacharyya's notion of self-determination (or any
other conceptualization of 'svaraj') in conversation with classical or
contemporary Western philosophy

· Bhattacharyya's notion of 'assimilating' an alien culture

· Bhattacharyya on the 'hybridization' of ideas, and the conflict
of ideals, especially in conversation with the contemporary hermeneutical
tradition (Gadamer, Ricouer)

· The criterion (or criteria) for the surrender of individuality

· Exploring the middle ground between 'rootless universalism' and
'clinging particularism'

· What Bhattacharyya's plea for a 'genuine translation of foreign
ideas into our native ideas before we accept or reject them' might mean;
etc.



Other potential topics may include, among others:



· Svaraj and the notion of self-creation in the Western
philosophical tradition (e.g. Nietzsche)

· Ramchandra Gandhi's notion of svaraj as self-realization

· The implicit notion of svaraj in thinkers of the Bengal
Renaissance, and in the writings of Nehru or Ambedkar

· The very idea of the call for an 'Indian' contribution to the
culture and thought of the modern (for us, also globalized) world



We invite 3,000-word papers (excluding footnotes) that critically examine
any of the themes relating to the notion of svaraj along the lines of the
themes listed above. The ideal paper *must* make an original philosophical
contribution to the topic; and must be explicitly situated within the
Western tradition of philosophy. All contemporary philosophical approaches
- hermeneutical, phenomenological, historical, deconstructive,
psychoanalytical, pragmatist, etc. - are welcome.



Submissions will be reviewed using a DOUBLE-BLIND REVIEW process: the
identity of authors and referees will not be revealed to each other. To
ensure blind reviewing, authors' names and affiliations should not appear
in the paper; author names should be deleted from the document properties;
and bibliographic entries should be made so as to preserve author anonymity.
Submissions must be made electronically to the following email address:
svara...@gmail.com. Contributions from PhD scholars are encouraged, but
will be evaluated on the same basis as regular submissions.



Please contact Apaar Kumar (apaarku...@gmail.com) if you have any
questions. The last date for submissions is *15 October, 2014*.



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* Spelled 'Bhattacharya' in the version of the lecture to be found at the
website mentioned above.