Harvard University - Sanskrit Dept. - Links

 
The Asia Center has sanctioned a three-year collaborative and interdisciplinary research project on comparative Pan-Asian mythology, organized by M. Puett and M. Witzel. Fifteen local colleagues (so far) are joining in the effort: E. Cranston, R. Gimello, L. van der Kuijp, F. Marlowe, O. Skjaervo, P.-A. Beaulieu, P. Steinkeller, P. Machinist, W. Heinrichs, G. Nagy, K. Patton, J. Harris, Frank Marlowe, Hal Fleming, and L. Sullivan.

Aims

* comparison of complete systems of local and regional mythologies, not --as customary-- a comparison of individual myths.

* establishing the underlying patterns of Pan-Asian mythology, especially those of cosmogony.

Plan

This is a three year project:

*1st year: a pilot program in comparative mythology. We will concentrate on establishing some baselines, starting from a proposal made in Mother Tongue VI, 2001 that provides the outline of reconstructed, early pan-(Eur)Asian mythology.

* 2nd, 3rd year: extensive interdisciplinary work with geneticists, linguists and archaeologists. Ongoing work indicates emerging regional and pan-continental patterns, connections and exchanges reflecting the early settlement of Eurasia and patterns of early mythical thought, before and after the African exodus.

Procedure

Cooperation by specialists in various languages and cultures is absolutely necessary as to avoid the numerous mistakes commonly made due to lack of background in the fields involved. We envision regular cooperation, and substantiation by repeated testing.

Conference

We plan a small conference each year, in conjunction with the yearly interdisciplinary Round Tables on Ethnogenesis in South & Central Asia, held in mid May since 1999. We will gradually expand our "audience" beyond the Harvard/Boston area and will invite international colleagues in the special areas that we will focus on, from philology to genetics.