Media Advisory: Pitt’s Asian Studies Center to Celebrate Indian Culture, Gandhi’s Teachings Oct. 2

PITTSBURGH— The University of Pittsburgh will host a celebration of Indian culture from 3 to 5 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 2, in the Frick Fine Arts Auditorium, 650 Schenley Dr., Oakland. The event will feature activities honoring Mahatma Gandhi’s birth, which took place on Oct. 2, 1869.

In addition to cultural performances and interfaith presentations, there will be a keynote speech by Uma Majmudar, a Gandhi scholar and author based in Atlanta, Ga.

In a talk titled “Gandhi’s Legacy of ‘Satyagraha’ in the Modern World,” Majmudar will examine Gandhi’s choice of the Sanskrit term Satyagraha, which can be translated to mean “insisting on truth” or “taking a stand for truth.”  Majmudar will discuss what the term meant to Gandhi and why it reflects his philosophy of nonviolence. 

The event is sponsored by Pitt’s Asian Studies Center within the University Center of International Studies; Carnegie Mellon University’s Multicultural and Diversity Initiative; the Alliance for Humanitarian Initiatives, Nonviolence, and Spiritual Advancement; and numerous local churches, temples, and community groups.

For more information, visit www.ucis.pitt.edu/asc/gandhi.html.

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9/27/11/mab/lks/jdh