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2:00 PM - 2:00 PM (UTC+5.5)
IKS Meta Retreat: Shakti – The Power Of Indic Feminine
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INDICA is pleased to organise a Meta-Retreat “Shakti: The Power of Indic Feminine” with Sh. Sumedha Ojha Verma as the Lead Faculty at Bilvam Foundation, Tiruvannamalai from 22-Aug to 25 Aug 2024.
IKS Meta-Retreats are immersive intellectual explorations spanning 2-3 days, led by an Acharya in the ambience of a Gurukula and conducted with an attitude of Shraddha. Acharya, is the subject matter expert (SME), seeking to explore a specific topic, discipline, or domain along with a cohort. 9-12 participants who possess shradda and the right experience in the chosen theme form the cohort. This cohort then comes together with an upanishadic attitude of learning through immersion at a location that echoes the ambience of a Gurukula.
Bharat is Shakti. From ancient times to our freedom movement our ancestors, seers, luminaries have viewed Bharat as the Mother Shakti. Shiva-Shakti as Ardhanareeshwara has always been the defining principle of Sanatana Dharma. From ancient times to modern times, the Tatva of Shakti has guided us through our glory and fall alike. Every rejuvenation is with the guidance and power of Shakti – The Indic Feminine.
The time for rejuvenation, reimagination and renaissance has come again. Time for us to invoke Shakti.
It is time to focus, to introspect. The voice of Indic women with their own paradigm is showing incipient signs of progress. The stranglehold of Western Feminism, however, continues.
It is necessary, therefore, to take stock of the efforts to give ourselves voice and agency and to see if we are being drowned out by the feminist chorus.
For this we need to dig deep, go back to the roots of our ideas of Shakti, parse the Vedic corpus, Itihasa and Puranas as also folk stories and daily practices.
We have to fiercely critique the toxic effects of Feminism and lay out the pathway of Shakti to our future generations.
Diving into the past we need a blueprint for the future; from a medley of brilliant minds working in this area who can bring their energies together to move forward with formulating the modern conceptualisation of Shakti.
This Meta-Retreat is being organised in this context. Sh. Sumedha Ojha Verma – Member, Academic Council, INDICA will lead this Meta-Retreat which seeks to understand the true Bharata Shakti and the Tapasyaa we must perform to let it flow its grace upon us and shape a new Ardhanareeshwara civilization.
The Plan
22-August 2PM Arrival of the Cohort
22-25 August The Meta Retreat
25 August 2PM Departure of the Cohort
The Program Structure
|
Sr. No.
|
Session | Time |
| 1 | Introduction | Day-1 |
| 2PM-4PM | ||
| 2 | Vedic Source of Shakti | Day-1 |
| 4-30 to 6-30 | ||
| 7PM to 8-30PM | ||
| 3 | The Principle of Ardhanareeshwara | Day 2 |
| First Session | ||
| 4 | Itihasa Purana Women Academic Analysis | Day-2 |
| Second Session | ||
| 5 | Itihasa Purana Women and their Impact | Day-2 |
| Third Session | ||
| 6 | Critiquing Feminism | Day 3 |
| First Session | ||
| 7 | Folk Stories and the Principle of Shakti | Day-3 |
| Second Session | ||
| 8 | The Role of Education – Bringing Modern Women into the fold of Shakti | Day-3 |
| Third Session | ||
| 9 | Meta Retreat Synthesis | Day-4 |
| Final Session |
As an outcome, we seek to create a Vision Paper to be produced and published in 2024-25 along with another focused Group Project of immediate impact.
INDICA is pleased to invite applications civilization design thinkers to be part of this Meta-Retreat cohort. The cohort will be carefully selected by the SME and INDICA consisting of practitioners, academics, thinkers, and activists. Please register for the program using the register button below and filling this form.
Travel, logistics, and accommodation at the Retreat will be hosted and managed by INDICA.
Speakers
Ms.Sumedha Verma Ojha
Member - Academic Council INDICA
Sumedha Verma Ojha is an author, columnist and speaker, was born in Patna and educated in Delhi, graduating in Economics (Lady Sriram College) and post-graduating in Sociology (Delhi School of economics). After 15 years in the Indian Revenue Service she switched careers to research and write a book set in the Mauryan period based on the Arthashastra of Chanakya. ‘Urnabhih’ then expanded into a book series on the Mauryan Empire. Sumedha is a Member of the Editorial Advisory Board at Indic Today. She works in the area of translating and explaining the epics and bringing ancient Sanskrit/Prakrit literature to the English speaking Indian as also in the area of a gendered analysis of ancient India. She lives with her husband near Geneva and has two children both studying in the US.