Rajiv Malhotra

Infobox Person
name = Rajiv Malhotra


caption = Rajiv Malhotra at a conference in IISc.
known_for = Essays on Hinduism, Philanthropy, entrepreneurship, Infinity Foundation
occupation = President of Infinity Foundation
nationality = IndianRajiv Malhotra is the President of Infinity Foundation, Princeton, New Jersey.Rajiv Malhotra serves as the Chairman for the Education Committee at the Asian American Commission for the State of New Jersey, He serves in the Advisory Board of the New Jersey Chapter of the American Red Cross. He defines himself as a "non-hindutva hindu" to emphasise his pluralistic world view."Invading the Sacred", p.473] He is USINPAC Leadership Committee Member. As a key note speaker and panelist, Rajiv Malhotra attends several conferences, at AAR [ [http://www.aar-site.org/Meetings/Annual_Meeting/Past_and_Future_Meetings/2001/programbook.asp Hinduism Group, AAR 2001 Conference] ] , IISc [ [http://www.iisc.ernet.in/prasthu/index.php?page=Photos Prasthutha at IISc] ] , IITs, World Association for Vedic Studies, etc.,

Education and Career

He graduated from St. Stephen's College, Delhi in 1971. He later pursued his higher studies in Physics and Computer Science in Syracuse University and also in University of North Carolina Chapel HillHe has worked as a senior executive in several multinational companies, as a management consultant, and as a private entrepreneur.His career has spanned the software, telecom, and the media industries.

Infinity Foundation

In 1995, he started the non-profit [ [http://infinityfoundation.com/irspg1.shtml Infinity Foundation About Us] ] organization — Infinity Foundation with his own funds to foster harmony among the diverse cultures of the world."Invading the Sacred", p.473] .In July, 1997, The Foundation submitted an additional request to the Internal Revenue Service to expand its purpose and mission to "include creating, disseminating, and expanding a body of knowledge which clarifies or integrates philosophy, religion, science, psychology and non-traditional mystical disciplines; and bridging Eastern philosophies with Western thought." [ [http://infinityfoundation.com/history.shtml History and Mission] ]

As of 2008, The Foundation has already given over 250 grants in the areas of research, education and philanthropy. The Foundation as provides grants to leading institutions of higher education such as University of Arizona, University of Hawaii, Columbia University, Harvard University etc.,, specialized research centers, and individual scholars. [ [http://infinityfoundation.com/grants.shtml Grants by Infinity Foundation] ] . It routinely organizes conferences and scholarly events in the US and India that challenge Eurocentrism to bring out a more balanced worldview. [ [http://www.indianscience.org/scholors/t_ed_rajiv_cv.shtml CV of Rajiv Malhotra] ] The Infinity Foundation also supports activities of other organizations and independent scholars. [ [http://infinityfoundation.com/index.shtml Infinity Foundation] ]

Activities related to Hindu Studies in America

Rajiv Malhotra is also noted for voicing his concerns against what he calls reductive depiction of Hinduism in America, especially by the American Academy of Religion. Rajiv Malhotra coined the term "Hinduphobia" to describe this. ["Invading the Sacred", p.3] He has written several essays related to the study of Hinduism by AAR, including "RISA Lila", [ [http://rajivmalhotra.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=30&Itemid=9 RISA LILA 1] ] [ [http://rajivmalhotra.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=35&Itemid=26 RISA Lila - 2 - Limp Scholarship and Demonology] ] , "Hinduism in American Classrooms" [ [http://rajivmalhotra.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=26&Itemid=9 Hinduism in American Classrooms] ] . Rajiv Malhotra's attempt to start a critique of academic Hinduphobia resulted in various scholarly essays ["Invading the Sacred", p.5] in the multi-author [ [http://invadingthesacred.com/content/view/25/39/ Contributors of Invading the Sacred] ] book "Invading the Sacred: An Analysis of Hinduism Studies in America" (Ramaswamy et al., 2007). [ [http://newstodaynet.com/2007sud/jul07/240707.htm News Today Article] ] . At the November 2000 AAR annual meeting, he questioned Wendy Doniger [ [http://web.archive.org/web/20020911134952/http://www.bbc.co.uk/asianlife/tv/network_east_late/biogs/wendy_doniger.shtml BBC's Article on Wendy Doniger] ] :Quote|"Since you have psychoanalyzed Hinduism and created a whole new genre of scholarship, do you think it would be a good idea for someone to psychoanalyze you, because an insight into your subconcious would make your work more interesting and understandable?" [Amy M. Braverman, [http://magazine.uchicago.edu/0412/features/index.shtml "The interpretation of gods"] "The University of Chicago Magazine" 97: 2, Dec 2004] ["Invading the Sacred", p.476]

The articles on "sulkeha" by Rajiv Malhotra and other scholars have also ben used as reading material in several courses in Hinduism Studies, South Asian Studies, History, Cultural Studies and Anthropology. ["Invading the Sacred", p.10]

External Links

* [http://rajivmalhotra.com/index.php Rajiv Malhotra's Website]
* [http://infinityfoundation.com/index.shtml Infinity Foundation]

Rajiv Malhotra's writings and discussions

* [http://www.usinpac.com/articles1.asp Was the US Senate Attack on Hinduism an isolated Instance?]
* [http://www.barnard.edu/religion/defamation/malhotra.htm Panel Discussion held at the Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Religion in Denver, Nov 17, 2001]
* [http://www.outlookindia.com/author.asp?name=Rajiv+Malhotra Outlook India]
* [http://www.rediff.com/news/malhotra.htm Rediff]

Book discussions related to his work

*cite book
last = Ramaswamy
first = Krishnan
coauthors = Antonio de Nicolas, Aditi Banerjee, S. N. Balagangadhara, Alan Roland, et al.,
title = Invading the Sacred
publisher = Rupa & Co.,
date = 2007
url = http://www.invadingthesacred.com

Footnotes