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Nevada (US), Dec 31 (ANI): Texas Christian University (TCU) in USA, affiliated with Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), offers a course titled “Many Faces of Krishna”, which “considers the many images of the god Krishna”, according to reports.

It (RELI 30753) gives background of Hindu thought and practice and looks into Krishna’s appearance in Mahabharata, including Bhagavad-Gita, and later in devotional literature and poetry in Sanskrit, etc.

TCU also offers courses titled “Hindu Religious Perspectives” and “India: Texts and Traditions”; exploring the ritual, philosophical, and devotional strands of Hindu religious tradition; and examining the Hindu epics Mahabharata and Ramayana.

It is offering five yoga classes starting January 12, involving Hatha Yoga, Vinyasa style yoga, etc., and one of these claims to cultivate “peace of mind”.

TCU has developed a “Meditation Primer” which provides with basic instructions for silent sitting meditation and says that “motivation for meditation is the abiding sense of inner peace and harmony it typically engenders”. It quotes Sri Krishna: “When meditation is mastered, the mind is unwavering like the flame of a lamp in a windless place”. It conducts “Weekly Meditation” on Mondays and Fridays. Its “Themed Meditation Series” in the past included Kundalini Yoga.

Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada (USA) today, described TCU’s approach as “a step in the right direction”.

Zed, who is president of Universal Society of Hinduism, argued that religion was a complex element of our lives and religion comprised much more than one’s own individual experience or specific tradition. God, as a sign of God’s munificence and benevolence, constructively wished presence of different faiths.

Rajan Zed urged the schools/departments of religion and philosophy of major world universities to strengthen their Hinduism sections. Hinduism being the oldest religion with rich philosophical thought and a vast array of scriptures needed more exploration. Zed especially asked the Harvard, Cambridge, Yale, Princeton, Oxford, Stanford, Columbia, McGill, Australian National, Tokyo, Copenhagen, Heidelberg, Uppsala, and Utrecht universities to further enrich their Hinduism resources.

Founded in 1873, TCU in Fort Worth (Texas) with over 9,100 students, offers 21 doctoral, 56 master’s and 118 undergraduate programs. Its total investments are over $1.12 billion and 2011 budget is $381 million. Estimated annual cost for a student to study here is $41,000. J. Luther King Junior is the Chairman of Board of Trustees, Dr. Victor J. Boschini Junior is the Chancellor and C. David Grant is the Chair of Religion Department of TCU.

Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), founded on American soil in the early 1800s and headquartered in Indianapolis (Indiana, USA), claims to have 691,160 members in 3,754 congregations, part of whose Vision/Mission is “to share the Good News of Jesus Christ”. Reverend Sharon E. Watkins is General Minister and President.

Hinduism is the oldest and third largest religion of the world with about a billion adherents and moksh (liberation) is its ultimate goal. (ANI)