ORGANIZATIONS

a . Adyar Library and Research Center:

Located in Madras, this is a very influential center and publishing house in South India. They could also be useful to contact if one is considering research In South India.

b. American Academy of Religion:

This organization which traces its roots back to the Association of Biblical Instructors was first formed under the current title in 1964. This organization is a major contributor and formative force within the field. The south Asian portion of this group is called Religion in South Asia and is a major means of communication for scholars. This groups publishes the Journal of the American Academy of Religion which is a major sphere for the advancement of the field. They have an annual meeting which is a major occasion for the gathering of scholars and the exchange of ideas. This organization can be contacted at http://scholar.cc.emory.edu/scripts/AAR/AAR-MENU.html . This a useful website which provides information about the group, its activities, its mission, career opportunities in the field, grants and scholarships, a list of related organizations and a useful membership directory. The can also be contacted the old fashioned way at: Membership services scholars press P.O. Box 15399 Atlanta, Ga 3033-0399 Phone: 404-727-2345

c. American Oriental Society:

This society is one of the central modes of communications for scholars in the field. They publish a newsletter and regularly have conferences. Information on this organization can be reached through the Internet at http://www-personal.umich.edu/~jrodgers/index.html or at: American Oriental Society Harlan Hatcher Graduate Library University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1205

d. Association for Asian Studies:

The Association for Asian Studies was founded in 1941, originally as the publisher of the Far Eastern Quarterly. Since its inception, it has gone through numerous changes and is now comprised of four main sub-divisions. These are: South Asia, Southeast Asia, China and inner Asia, and Northeast Asia. The society holds an annual three day conference which is a major gathering of scholars as they participate in round table discussions, the readings of papers, and other specific panels. This is also a major opportunity for job placement. It has an endowment fund which provides research funds for projects within the scope of their organization. They publish numerous Journals and newsletters including: Journal of Asian Studies, Bibliography of Asian studies, Education about Asia, Asian Studies Newsletter, Journal of Asian Business, occasional monographs and other papers, and abstracts of the Annual Meetings. They can be contacted on-line at http://www.easc.indiana.edu/~aas/

e. Council of Societies for the Study of Religion:

This group is located at Mercer University and can be reached at (912) 752-2376. The main work of this group seems to be the coordination of the activities of other organizations. They publish a bulletin which is a societal newsletter with activity dates, grant information, and other miscellaneous tidbits of important information. The also publish the Religious Studies Review and the Directory of Departments of Religion which is an incredible useful tool for surveying the graduate programs in religious studies across the US and Canada.

f. Harvard University Center for the Study of World Religions:

This center is comprised primarily of Harvard Faculty, graduate students, and other researchers and can be reached at (912) 752-2376. They support conferences, lectures at the University, some of which are accessible through the Magical Internet. They also publish an interesting newsletter.

g. International Institute of Sanskrit Research:

Located in Malakote South India, this is a very interesting group which is devoted to preserving ancient palm leaf manuscripts.

h. North American Association for the Study of Religion:

As I understand it, this group is a splinter (more like a splinter in their side than a piece of their academic tree) organization of the AAR coordinated by Gary Lease at the History of Consciousness program at the University of California at Santa Cruz. It is comprised mainly of scholars fed up with the academic status quo. They can be reached at (802)656-3080. A fundamental goal of the group seems to be the facilitation of discourse between academic programs and scholars . They also publish an interesting newsletter.

i. Society for Indian Philosophy and Religion:

This group regularly hold conferences, one of which is coming up in Calcutta August 1-4 1997. They are also beginning publication on a journal which should be extremely interesting, yet it had not come out at the time of this projects completion. They can be reached at chakraba@numen.elon.edu or at: Dr. Chandana Chakrabarti CB 2336, Elon College Elon College, NC 27244.

j. The Society of Pilgrimage Studies:

Located at: 4A/2/1 Muirabad, Allahabad 211 002 India This society is primarily multi-disciplinary collection of scholars who are interested in the phenomena of pilgrimage. They are also a publishing house, producing such important works as the piece on pilgrimage which was edited by Gopal.