Dear Colleagues I appreciate if you can provide the contacts of family and friends of
Professor D.D. Kosambi and of Professor Rui de Figueiredo Yours aleways ze carlos A terça-feira, 10 de junho de 2025 à(s) 10:00:00 UTC+1, zecarlos escreveu: > Good Night > at 4 May 2024, I have been awarded Honoris Causa Doctorate at RKDF > University, Bhopal,after working on D.D.Kosambi and Rui de Figueiredo > mathematical works > Ceremony on > https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=rkdf+convocation+2024+tiago > I attach a few relevant documents > the study method has been > https://z-library.sk/s/kosambi? > Books (31) <https://z-library.sk/s/kosambi?content_type=book&page=1> Articles > (147) <https://z-library.sk/s/kosambi?content_type=article&page=1> > along with > https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Damodar-Dharmananda-Kosambi > > A segunda-feira, 24 de fevereiro de 2025 à(s) 16:45:13 UTC, Frederick > Noronha escreveu: > >> The changing focus of the D.D. Kosambi Festival of Ideas >> By Nandkumar M Kamat in The Navhind Times - >> 2025-02-23 >> Nandkumar M. Kamat >> >> Mathematician and historian Damodar Dharmanand Kosambi (popularly known >> as DDK) passed away peacefully on June 29, 1966, just weeks before his 59th >> birthday, at his residence on Bhandarkar Road in Pune. While his High >> School yearbook lists his birth date as July 31, 1907, the exact location >> remains uncertain. >> >> After Margao MLA Digambar Kamat was sworn in as the Chief Minister in >> June 2007, he retained the Department of Art and Culture. Toward the end of >> June, I phoned him to inform him that the birth centenary of DDK, the great >> son of Goa, begins on July 31, 2007, and the government should form a >> state-level committee to organise year-long programmes. He immediately >> acted, and a representative committee was formed. He brought in a very >> influential, erudite late writer Maria Aurora Couto to guide >> >> the committee. The first programme was held on July 31, 2007 at MES >> College, Zuarinagar, where a brochure I had prepared as a committee member >> on DDK was released. It is available here https://shorturl.at/WvJmg. Our >> committee came out with the plan of launching an annual DDK Festival of >> Ideas, and the first series of lectures was held in 2008. >> >> The official website of the Art and Culture Department on Festival Of >> Ideas is available at https://ddkfestivalofideas.com/index.php, but its >> contents are poor and not updated. There is no archive of the videos of >> previous lectures from 2008 to 2020. However, 15 videos from 2008 and 2009 >> were uploaded in September 2016 and are available on this link: >> http://www.youtube.com/@directorateofartculturegoa3836. One good thing >> was that the CDs of the lectures were prepared and are still available at >> nominal prices from the Department of Art and Culture. Major books by DDK >> are available at https://tinyurl.com/2p8k3b6r, his biodata can be seen >> at https://tinyurl.com/2p8k3b6r, useful blogs on him are available at >> http://ddkosambi.blogspot.com/ and https://tinyurl.com/2p8k3b6r. All >> these websites should not be missed by students, teachers, and those >> planning to attend the 14th edition. >> >> Kosambi was an intellectual polymath whose scholarship transformed Indian >> historiography. His work in Marxist historiography, rationalist inquiry, >> economic history, scientific numismatics, and archaeological analysis set a >> high intellectual standard, making him one of the most original thinkers of >> his time. The festival initially sought to honour this legacy by inviting >> speakers whose academic pursuits aligned with Kosambi’s interdisciplinary >> and critical approach to history, science, and social structures. >> >> The first edition in 2008 featured Romila Thapar speaking on ‘D. D. >> Kosambi’s Legacy to the Study of Ancient Indian History’, Meera Kosambi on >> ‘D. D. Kosambi: A Scholar and The Man’, and P. Sainath on ‘Rising >> Inequality and the Danger to Democracy’. These sessions directly engaged >> with Kosambi’s approach to historical materialism, socio-economic >> inequality, and the scientific study of history. >> >> The subsequent editions from 2009 to 2012 continued this intellectual >> engagement. Rajdeep Sardesai (2009) discussed the media’s influence. >> Ramachandra Guha (2009) analysed India’s political evolution, and Medha >> Patkar (2012) critiqued development paradigms through the lens of people’s >> movements. Other prominent figures included Girish Karnad (2010) on >> ‘Colonialism and Culture’, Nandan Nilekani (2009) on ‘Imagining India: >> Future Challenges’, and Muhammad Yunus (2012) on social entrepreneurship. >> These discussions were intellectually rigorous and relevant, staying true >> to Kosambi’s principles of rationalism historical materialism and >> socio-economic analysis. >> >> From 2013 onward, the festival broadened its themes, introducing >> corporate leaders, motivational speakers, and spiritual figures, signalling >> a noticeable departure from Kosambi’s core areas of inquiry. This edition >> included a panel discussion on the portrayal of women in media with current >> finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman as a speaker; and Bhikhu Parekh >> discussing ‘The Indian Tradition of Public Debate’. The significant themes >> reflected a shift away from historical materialism and rationalist inquiry. >> The 2014–2015 editions included figures such as Narayan Murthy from >> Infosys, environmental activist Vandana Shiva, media expert Alyque >> Padamsee, and economist Raghuram Rajan. While some discussions maintained >> academic depth, others veered into broad leadership governance and >> development discourses, moving away from Kosambi’s materialist approach to >> history and economic systems. >> >> By 2017–2020 the festival saw a near-total shift toward personal >> inspiration, adventure and corporate philosophy with speakers such as Sudha >> Murthy (2016) on ‘The Circle of Life’, George Papandreou (2016) on global >> dialogue, Sandesh Kadur (2017) on environmental conservation and Deepa >> Malik (2020) on overcoming disabilities. While these topics were >> undoubtedly valuable, they bore little direct connection to Kosambi’s >> academic focus. >> >> The 2025 edition continues this trend, featuring motivational talks, >> personal stories of resilience, adventure sports, and spiritual guidance. >> >> Gaur Gopal Das is a popular motivational speaker and spiritual guide from >> ISKCON known for his talks on personal growth philosophy and >> self-improvement. Alka Sarogi is a Hindi novelist. Sarogi’s discussion on >> mental health through literature is undoubtedly essential, but it does not >> engage with Kosambi’s areas of research. A session exploring historical >> narratives in literature class struggle in fiction or the materialist >> interpretation of literature might have been more relevant. Aditya Gupta is >> a mountaineer and entrepreneur. Gupta’s discussion on personal resilience >> and leadership through mountaineering is inspiring but far removed from >> Kosambi’s focus on scientific methodology, historical critique, and >> economic history. Nivedita Bhide, associated with Vivekananda Kendra, >> represents a school of thought emphasising cultural revivalism. Abhilash >> Tomy is a naval officer and solo circumnavigator. Tomy’s discussion on >> maritime adventure and resilience is an inspiring story of human endurance. >> However, its connection to Kosambi’s historical materialism and scientific >> historiography is again tenuous. >> >> While the line-up reflects a broadening of intellectual engagement, it no >> longer serves as a tribute to Kosambi’s specific academic and philosophical >> contributions. This raises an important question: Should the festival be >> restructured to return to its original intellectual vision or be >> repositioned as a more general discourse on ideas? To continue bearing >> Kosambi’s name, a more deliberate effort must be made to integrate >> discussions on historiography, rationalism, scientific temper, and economic >> history. >> >> Future editions could include a balanced mix of scholars and contemporary >> voices, ensuring that at least some sessions engage with Kosambi’s >> intellectual domains. Potential speakers might include indologist Michel >> Danino, Sanjay Subrahmanyam, Arvind Sharma, Jean Drèze, Dipankar Gupta, K. >> K. Muhammed, et al. These scholars could explore themes such as materialist >> interpretations of history, the impact of economic forces on civilisations, >> and the scientific study of ancient societies, ensuring a connection to >> Kosambi’s academic vision. >> http://www.navhindtimes.in/2025/02/23/magazines/panorama/the-changing-focus-of-the-d-d-kosambi-festival-of-ideas/ >> > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Goa-Research-Net" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion, visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/goa-research-net/1019f608-5575-4565-9d01-89fdfb8c12a9n%40googlegroups.com.
