Comparative studies allow us to explore what is both familiar and foreign, to deepen understanding of our own and others’ traditions through their similarities and differences. Juxtaposing Hindu and Jewish indigeneity reveals two civilizations whose beliefs and practices emerge from sacred geography, peoplehood, and sovereignty. Examining their parallels and distinctions illuminates questions of identity, belonging, and diaspora, showing how ancient beginnings remain central to current concerns about indigeneity. For instance, this framework refutes the settler colonial state libel that targets Jews. More broadly, this approach also challenges the Western category of “religion” by foregrounding two non-colonial root traditions with enduring relationships to their ancestral homelands.
Spring 2026
Online
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March 18, March 25, April 8, April 15 2026
Wednesdays, 12:30 - 2:00PM
Dr. Marcy Braverman Goldstein is Director of Academic Engagement at The Institute for the Study of Global Antisemitism and Policy (ISGAP). Her doctoral research in Religious Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara focused on Hindu traditions in India and America. For twenty years Marcy taught world religions at UNC Charlotte, UC Riverside, American Jewish University, and Davidson College. She was a Scholar-in-Residence at the 2025 ISGAP-Oxford Summer Institute for Curriculum Development in Critical Contemporary Antisemitism Studies. She is Founder of Sanskrit Revolution, through which she teaches the language of yoga and history of religions at yoga schools nationwide. Marcy is committed to deepening people’s knowledge, sharpening critical thinking, and inspiring personal growth to foster constructive public discourse and a strengthened civil society.
