Seton Hall University's Core Curriculum Explores Diverse Religious Texts, not just Bhagavad Gita - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
June 19, 2023
A post circulating on social media claims that all students studying Business Management at Seton Hall University in the USA are obligated to study the ancient Hindu Scripture Bhagavad Gita. Further, the post also questions the absence of a similar course within the Indian educational system. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: All students studying Business Management at Seton Hall University in the USA are obligated to study Bhagavad Gita.
Fact: ‘The Journey of Transformation,’ the first course in Seton Hall University’s core curriculum, includes not only the Bhagavad Gita but also religious texts from diverse traditions such as Christianity, Hebrew, Greek, and others. Furthermore, it is evident that the Bhagavad Gita has been integrated into the curriculum of various Indian universities and is also referenced in NCERT textbooks at the school level. Hence the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
Upon conducting an internet search to gather more information, we discovered media reports (here & here) regarding this matter. According to these reports, Seton Hall University, a prominent Catholic university located in New Jersey, made the study of the Bhagavad Gita compulsory for all students starting in 2008. The university aimed to introduce a transformative course that would profoundly impact the character and lives of its students.
During this process, a member of the core curriculum committee, Professor A. D. Amar, an Indian American, advocated for the inclusion of ancient philosophies alongside biblical teachings. Professor Amar proposed incorporating the Vedas and the Bhagavad Gita into the curriculum. After considering various suggestions, the university decided to integrate the study of the Bible (specifically the Gospels), the Bhagavad Gita, and Dante’s The Divine Comedy into the core course.
Presently known as ‘The Journey of Transformation,’ this course serves as the inaugural component of Seton Hall University’s core curriculum. It encompasses religious texts from multiple traditions, including Christianity, Hinduism, Hebrew, Greek, and others.
Contrary to the claim made in the post, it is worth noting that several Indian universities have already introduced the Bhagavad Gita into their curriculum, offering diploma courses, certificate programs, and more. Additionally, the Government of India informed Parliament in 2021 that references and content from the Bhagavad Gita were already included in various textbooks published by the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) at the school level.
To sum it up, ‘The Journey of Transformation,’ the first course in Seton Hall University’s core curriculum, includes not only the Bhagavad Gita but also religious texts from diverse traditions such as Christianity, Hebrew, Greek, and others.