Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY – Balbinder Singh Bhogal, Ph.D., will be formally installed as the Sardarni Kuljit Kaur Bindra Chair in Sikh Studies at Hofstra University at a convocation on Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2008 from 3-5 p.m. at the Hofstra University Club, David S. Mack Hall, North Campus. There will be a reception immediately following the convocation.

Dr. Bhogal arrived at Hofstra at the start of the fall 2007 semester and his appointment to the chair was effective as of that date. Wednesday’s ceremony marks the formal installation of the endowed chair.

"I am delighted to be the next holder of this important chair that has done so much to reinvigorate the field of Sikh Studies," said Dr. Bhogal. "This position shows the continued commitment Hofstra University and the Bindra family have towards a true renaissance in the academic study of Sikh religion, philosophy, history, literature, culture and aesthetics. I am honored to be given an opportunity to explore, broaden and further develop this vision in partnership with other Sikh Chairs and related scholars."

Hofstra’s Department of Religion also includes the Msgr. Thomas J. Hartman Chair for Catholic Studies and an endowed chair in Jewish studies. For more information please contact the Department of Religion, at (516) 463-6023.

Dr. Bhogal was previously associate professor in South Asian religions and cultures, Division of Humanities, Faculty of Arts at York University in Toronto. He received his Ph.D. from London University, School of Oriental and African Studies, 2001, and his B.A. (hons) from Lancaster University. He has served as a professor in departments of religion, philosophy and humanities in universities in England, the United States and Canada.  Dr. Bhogal’s interests include South Asian religions and cultures, specializing in Sikh Studies, particularly the philosophy and critical interpretation of the Guru Granth Sahib; scriptural interpretation and translation theory and its radicalization through deconstruction; the relationship and interaction between Indian philosophy and Western/Continental philosophy; and the study of mysticism, orientalist and postcolonial discourses. 

He has authored two articles in the Routledge journal Sikh Formations: "Religion, Culture, Theory: 'Ghostly Disorientations: Translating the Adi Granth as the Guru Granth’” (2006), and "Questioning Hermeneutics with Freud: How to Interpret Dreams and Mute-Speech in Sikh
Scripture" (2005). He has also published three chapters in the following books: "Text as Sword: Sikh Religious Violence Taken for Wonder," in King and Hinnells edited volume on Religion and Violence in South Asia: Theory and Practice, Routledge 2006, "Cross-Cultural Dialogues with Western Fictions: There is no Hindu nor Muslim – nor Sikh," in Hart’s edited volume Multifaith Britain: An Experiment in Worship, O Books 2002, and "On the Hermeneutics of Sikh Thought and Praxis," in Shackle, Singh and Mandair’s edited volume Sikh Religion, Culture and Ethnicity, Curzon 2001.

Dr. Bhogal has also engaged with public outreach, being invited to speak as an expert in South Asian religions. In this regard he was invited to present a paper on Sikh Scripture and Authority at a conference on Authority in the World’s Religious Scriptures, at McGill University, Montreal (October 2008), and wrote a popular Internet article, "My Guru and I: Mind Voices" for SikhChic.com website (August 2008). He has also organized two 1-credit courses on Sikh Sacred Music (Fall 08) open to the general public by inviting expert performers and researchers in the field of Gurmat Sangeet and Gurshabad Kirtan from India to Hofstra University. The two individuals Bhai Baldeep Singh and Dr. Gurnam Singh were brought over from India along with their groups to teach these courses but also perform the first Hofstra University concerts of Sikh Sacred Music for the public in celebration of the tercentenary of the Adi Granth’s installation as Guru Granth Sahib. Dr. Bhogal has also served as a judge in the fourth annual Spinning Wheel Art and Literature Competition in Toronto, and has made six television appearances for the 3D Dialogue program on OMNI Television, Toronto. Dr. Bhogal participated in "The Politics of Religion-Making" conference at Hofstra University, sponsored by the Hofstra Cultural Center and the Department of Religion, October 4, 5 and 6, 2007, and presented "Questioning Secularism from the standpoint of Religion – Or, How to Encounter Cultural Difference" at the American Academy of Religion in San Diego, November 2007.

The Sardarni Kuljit Kaur Bindra Chair in Sikh Studies is endowed by Ishar Singh Bindra and his family in honor of Mr. Bindra's wife and family matriarch, Sardarni Kuljit Kaur Bindra. The chair was established to promote the academic study of Sikh religion, culture and history. The endowment supports the appointment of a faculty member in Sikh Studies, helps build the University Library's holdings in Sikhism, provides scholarship assistance to students interested in Sikh religion and culture, and funds annual conferences and lectures directed toward the academic community as well as the general public.

Hofstra University is a dynamic private institution where students can choose from about 140 undergraduate and 155 graduate programs in liberal arts and sciences, business, communication, education and allied human services, and honors studies, as well as a School of Law. With a student-faculty ratio of 14-to-1, our professors teach small classes averaging 22 students that emphasize interaction, critical thinking and analysis. Hofstra offers a faculty whose highest priority is teaching excellence, cutting edge technology, extensive library resources, internships and special educational programs that appeal to their interests and abilities.  The Hofstra community is driven, dynamic and energetic, helping students find and focus their strengths to prepare them for a successful future.