Nikky-Guninder Kaur Singh
Crawford Family Professor of Religious Studies
Colby College, Waterville, ME. 04901, USA
Email: phone: 207-859-4644; fax: 207-872-3802
Areas of Teaching
Religions of South Asia, Women and Religion, Film and Religion, Sikhism
Areas of Research
Sikh Scripture, Punjabi Literature, Sikh Art
Feminist Interpretation of Sacred Indian Texts
Literary and Visual Representations of South Asian Religions
Education
Ph.D. (l987) Temple University, Religion
M.A. (l982) University of Pennsylvania, Religion
B.A. (l978) Wellesley College, Religion (Honors) and Philosophy
Honors and Awards
2010Honored by the Punjabi University for contribution to Sikh scholarship
2009 Mellon Collaborative Grant (Colby-Bates-Bowdoin)
2007Kaur Foundation Leadership Award (Bethesda, Maryland)
2006Mellon Collaborative Grant (Colby-Bates-Bowdoin)
2006Professeur Invitee, Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales, Paris
2003Distinguished Achievements Award, Sikh Foundation (Asian Arts Museum,
2001Senior Fellow (Summer) Centre for the Study of World Religions, Harvard University
2001Outstanding Accomplishments Award, Sikh Association (Fresno, California)
1998Sewa Award by the Sikh-Canadian Centennial Foundation for Scholarship on Sikhism (Toronto)
1998Guru Gobind Singh Foundation Lecture and Award (Chandigarh, India)
1993-99 (Summers) Humanities Research Grant, Colby College
1992Amritsar Rotary Club Award for scholarly work on Amritsar writer Bhai Vir Singh (India)
1991Guru Gobind Singh Department of Religious Studies Award for Sikh Scholarship (Punjabi University, Patiala, India)
1990Travel and Research Grant, Colby College
1989N.E.H. Summer Institute, University of Hawaii
1988N.E.H. Summer Institute, Harvard University
1987Ph.D., with Distinction, Temple University
1985Outstanding Young Women of America Award
l981-l983University Fellow, Temple University
1978Dean's Scholarship, University of Pennsylvania
1978Phi Beta Kappa, Wellesley College
1978Durant Scholar, Wellesley College
1976Meiling-Soong Award for best research paper, Wellesley College
1974Daughters of the American Revolution Award, Stuart Hall
1973Highest average, Stuart Hall, Staunton, Virginia.
PUBLICATIONS
BOOKS
Book of the Sikh Teachers (three volumes of translation from the Guru Granth) for Harvard University Press within the Murty Classical Library of India. (Forthcoming)
Of Sacred and Secular Desire: An Anthology of Lyrical Writings from the Punjab(London:
IB Tauris) 2012
Sikhism: An Introduction (London: IB Tauris), 2011
Cosmic Symphony: The Early and Later Poems of Bhai Vir Singh (New Delhi: Sahitya Akademi — India’s National Academy of Letters) 2008; republished 2010
The Feminine Principle in the Sikh Vision of the Transcendent (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press) 1993.
———Paperback edition, 2008.
The Birth of the Khalsa: A Feminist Re-memory of Sikh Identity (Albany: State University of New York) 2005
The Name of My Beloved: Verses of the Sikh Gurus (Translations from Sikh Sacred Literature) Penguin Classics, 2001
–––––(San Francisco: HarperCollins) 1995.
Sikhism: World Religions (New York: Facts on File) 1993.
Japanese translation of Sikhism, Tokyo, 1994.
Updated edition, 2004.
The Guru Granth Sahib: Its Physics and Metaphysics (New Delhi: Sterling Publishers) 1981.
Reprinted. New Delhi: Manohar Publications, 1995.
Translation of novel Tale of the Phoenix by Dalip Kaur Tiwana (New Delhi: Unistar Books) 2008
JOURNAL ARTICLES AND CHAPTERS FOR BOOKS
1.“Corporeal Metaphysics: Guru Nanak in Early Sikh Art” in History of Religions, Vol. 53, No. 1 (August 2013), pp. 28-65.
2.“Contesting Subjectivities: Feminist Hermeneutics of Sikh Scripture" book chapter in N. Reilly and S. Scriver (eds.) Religion, Gender, and the Public Sphere (Routledge NY and UK, 2013), pp. 83-96.
3. “My Dinner in Calgary: Sikh Diaspora in the Making” in Michael Hawley (ed.) Sikh Diaspora: Theory, Agency, and Experience (Brill, 2013), pp. 89-101.
4.“In the Language of Love: Reflections on the Milwaukee massacre” in Sikh Formations (2013)
5.“God IS Diversity and Justice: A Feminist Sikh Perspective” book chapter in Susanne Sholz (ed.) God Loves Diversity and Justice: Progressive Scholars Speak about Faith, Politics, and the World (Lexington Books, 2013), pp. 13-32.
6.“Sikh Theology” in Charles Taliaferro (ed.)The Routledge Companion to Theism (Routledge, 2012), pp. 88-101.
7. “Sikhism” with Todd Curcuru in Lawrence Sullivan (ed.)Religions of the World (Fortress Press, 2013), pp. 109-127.
8.The Guru Granth Sahib: A Global Reservoir” in Pashaura Singh (ed.)Sikhism In Global Context (Oxford University Press, 2011), pp. 39-61.
9.“Guru Granth: The Quintessential Sikh Metaphor” in Postscripts: The Journal of Sacred Texts & Contemporary Worlds (London: Equinox), Vol. 4, # 2, 2008, pp. 157-176.
10.“The Sikhs” in Graham Harvey(ed.)Religions in Focus: New approaches to Tradition and Contemporary Practices (London, UK & Oakville, CT: Equinox Pub. Ltd., 2009), pp. 33-53.
11.“The Kanjak and the Broken Bangles” in South Asian Review (University of Pittsburgh) 29/2 (2008), pp. 109-32.
12.“Female Feticide in the Punjab” in Vanessa Sasson (ed.)Imagining the Fetus (American Academy of Religion: Oxford University, 2009), pp.120-136.
13.Republished: “Why did I not light the Pyre? Refeminization of Ritual in Sikhism” in Doris Jakobsh (editor), Sikhism and Women(Oxford University, 2010), pp. 205-233.
14.“Thinking Differently in the Context of Sikh Religion,” in David Cheetham and Rolfe King (eds.),Contemporary Practice and Method in the Philosophy of Religion: New Essays. (Continuum: London and New York, 2008), pp. 117-132.
15.“The Guru Granth Sahib: A Magical Planetarium” in Sach ki Bani
(Institute for Conflict and Peace Studies, 2008), pp. 27-34.
16.“RE-Imagining the Divine in Sikhism” in Feminist Theology (Sage, United Kingdom) Vol. 16 (3) May 2008, pp. 332-349
17.“Intersection of Religion and Literature: The Sikh Perspective” in The Journal of Sikh Studies (Amritsar: Guru Nanak Dev University) Vol. XXXI, 2007, pp. 153-168.
18.“Translating Sikh Scripture into English” in Sikh Formations (Routledge, United Kingdom) Vol. 3, No. 1, June 2007, pp. 1-17
19.“Jesus Through Sikh Eyes” in Interreligious Insight: A Journal of Dialogue and Engagement (UK) Volume 4, No. 3, July 2006, pp. 36-41
20.“Re-membering the Body of the Transcendent One: Kristeva’s Semiotics and Sikh scripture” in Sikh Formations: Religion, Culture, Theory, volume 1, number 2, December 2005, pp. 201-216.
21.Stories Are Not Told for the Telling, But for the Teaching” A Sikh Feminist Reading of What the Body Remembers” for Chakra 3. 2005 (Lunds University), pp. 153-164.
22.“Remembering the Surge of the Tsunami” in Interreligious Insight: A Journal of Dialogue and Engagement,volume 4, no. 1, January 2006, pp. 49-53.
Also published in The Sikh Review, April 2007, pp. 22-25
23. “Dharam in the Sikh Tradition” in Rita Sherma and A Deepak (eds.) Contemporary Issues in Construction Dharma Volume II: Epistemology and Hermeneutics(Hampton, Virginia: Deepak Heritage Books, 2005), pp. 199-215.
24.“The Body of the Gurus: Sikh Scripture from a Contemporary Feminist Perspective” for Religious Studies and Theology, Volume 23, no. 2 (2004), pp. 27-52.
25.“Sacred Fabric and Sacred Stitches” for History of Religions (University of Chicago) 43 no. 4 (2004), pp. 284–302
26.“Twice Oppressed: The Case of Ondaatje's Kip” for the Journal of Religion and Film.Vol. 8 No. 1 April 2004
27.The Mahatma and the Sikhs," chapter for Indian Critiques of Gandhi (edited by Harold Coward), SUNY, 2003, pp. 171-191.
28.“Mythic Inheritance and the Drink of the Khalsa” in Sikhism and History (edited by Pashaura Singh and N. Gerald Barrier), New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 2004) pp. 51-76
29.“The Mirror and the Sikh: The Transformation of Ondaatje’s Kip” chapter for Sikh Religion, Culture and Ethnicity (ed: Christopher Shackle) (Richmond, Surrey, UK: Curzon Press, 2001), pp. 118-141.
30."Why did I not Light up the Pyre? The Refeminization of Ritual in Sikhism" Journal of Feminist Studies in Religionvol. 16, no. 1 (Spring 2000), pp.63-85.
31.“Infigurations and Configurations of India: Anandamoyi in Tagore's Gora"in Journal of South Asian LiteratureVols. 31 (1996)-32 (1997), pp. 1-31.
32."The Sikh Religion" (chapter 2) for The Arts of the Sikh Kingdoms (ed: Susan Stronge) (London: Victoria and Albert Museum, 1999), pp. 33-45.
33."Poetry Urges Poetry: From the Guru Granth to Bhai Vir Singh" chapter for Sikh Art and Literature (ed: Kerry Brown) (New York: Routledge, 1999),pp. 143-154.
34."Poetic Rhythm and Historical Account: the Portrait of Guru Nanak through Bhai Gurdas" for International Journal of Punjab Studies 5, 2 (1998), pp. 127-158.
35."Text and Praxis: Sikh Manifesto and the End of Discord" for "Research in Human Social Conflict (Series editor: Joseph Gittler) (Greenwich: Jai Publishers, 1999)
36."The Spiritual Experience in Sikhism" in K.R. Sundararajan and Bithika Mukerji (editors), Hindu Spirituality: Postclassical and Modern World Spirituality (New York: Crossroad Publications 1997), pp. 530-561.
37."Crossing the Razor's Edge: Somerset Maugham and Hindu Philosophy" in Durham University Journal, July 1995, pp. 329-342.
38."From Flesh to Stone: The Divine Metamorphosis in Satyajit Ray's Devi" in Journal of South Asian Literature (Michigan State University) Vol. XXVIII, pp. 227-250.
39."The Cosmic Role of Man in the Doctrine of al-Insan al-Kamil" in Islamic Culture (Hyderabad) Volume LXVIII, No 4, October 1994, pp. 1-20.
40."Guru Nanak's Vision of Ultimate Reality" in Dharam Singh (editor), Sikhism and Secularism: Essays in Honor of Professor Harbans Singh New Delhi: Harman Publishers, 1994), pp. 111-133.
41."Bhai Vir Singh—Hermeneute of Sikh Scripture" in The Journal of Religious Studies, (Punjabi University, Patiala) Vol XX1, No. 2 pp. 136-157.
42."The Sikh Bridal Symbol: An Epiphany of Interconnections" Journal of Feminist Studies in Religion (Fall 1992, Vol 8, no. 2) pp. 41-64.
43."Recent Scholarship on Sikhism" Religious Studies Review (Vol. 19, no: 1)
44."Sikh Existentialism and the Feminine Experience" in Gender and LiteratureNew World Literature Series-60 (New Delhi: B.R. Publishing Corporation) pp.113-129.
45."The Myth of the Founder: The Janamsakhis and Sikh Tradition" in History of Religions (University of Chicago, 1992) pp. 329-343.
46."Symbol as Universal Construction: Towards a Deconstruction of Syncretism," in Journal of Ecumenical Studies (Philadelphia, 28:2, Spring 1991) pp. 299-323.
47.“Barah Maha” in Khera: Journal of Religious Understanding (New Delhi, Jan-June, 1992) pp. 11-19.
48."Poetics as a Hermeneutic Technique in Sikhism" in Texts in Context: Traditional Hermeneutics in South Asia (State University of New York Press, 1991) pp. 243-268.
49."The Other World in This World: An Indian Interpretation of the Yamamba" in Japanese Religions (Kyoto, January 1991) pp. 46-59.
50."Guru Gobind Singh's Idea of Durga in His Poetry: the Unfathomable Woman as the Image of the Unfathomable Transcendent One: A Further Contribution to URAM Sikh Studies," in Journal of Ultimate Reality and Meaning (University of Toronto Press, Vol 13, 1990) pp. 243-267.
51."Sundari: The Paradigm of Sikh Ethics," in The Toronto South Asian Review (Volume 9, Number 1) pp. 73-79.
52.——— Also published as Working Paper (209) by the Women in International Development (Michigan State University, August 1990) pp. 1-11.
53."Guru Nanak's Vision of Ultimate Reality: Presentation of the Primal Paradox in the Puratan Janamsakhi" in Khera: Journal of Religious Understanding (New Delhi, Jan-March, 1990) pp. 16-41.
54.Preface to Michel Delahoutre's Fils D'Abraham: Les Sikhs (Belgium: Editions Brepolis) 1989.
55."Durga Recalled by the Tenth Guru" in The Journal of Religious Studies (Patiala, Spring-Autumn 1988) pp. 63-76.
56."Nur and Jyoti: A Comparative Analysis" in The Journal of Religious Studies (Patiala, Autumn, 1987) pp. 8-37.
57."En Route to a Cosmic Existence: An Essay on Jalal ud-din Rumi," in Studies in Sikhism and Comparative Religion (New Delhi, October 1986) pp. 86-97.
58."Tao and 1 Oan Kar: A Comparison Between Two Powers," in The Sikh Concept of The Divine. Pritam Singh (ed.), Amritsar: Guru Nanak Dev University Press, 1985, pp. 200-214.
59."Al-Biruni and Comparative Study of Religions" in Studies in Sikhism and Comparative Religion (New Delhi, October 1982) pp. 135-148.
60."Al-Biruni: An Early Student of Comparative Religion," in Islamic Culture (Hyderabad), April 1982.
61."Shaikh Farid: Poet and Mystic" in The Spokesman (Calcutta, 30th Annual Number, 1981).
62."Emile Durkheim's Critique of Max Muller," in The Journal of Religious Studies (Patiala, Fall 1980) pp. 79-96.
63."Wilfred Cantwell Smith's approach to the Study of Religion," in The Journal of Religious Studies (Patiala, Fall 1979), pp. 50-65.
64."Shaikh Farid" in Journal of Medieval Indian Literature (Chandigarh, Fall l979) pp. 17-34.
65."Metaphysics of the Guru Granth Sahib," in The Journal of Sikh Studies (Amritsar, February 1979) pp. 79-99.
66."Aesthetics of the Guru Granth Sahib," in The Journal of Religious Studies (Patiala, Fall 1978) pp. 83-102.
67."Tao and 1 Oan Kar: A Comparison Between Two Powers," in Journal of Medieval Indian Literature (Punjab University, Chandigarh, March-Sept, 1978) pp. 53-66.
Publications in Newspapers and Popular Journals
1.“Fifty Shades of Maine” in Portland Magazine, Summer 2012, pp. 135-6.
2.“Going Home: Far and Near” in Colby, Winter 2012, pp. 12-3.
3.“ Professor Harbans Singh: A Daughter’s Homage” in The Sikh Review, August 2008, pp. 60-61
— first published in the book section of The Tribune, July 20, 2008.
4.Spotlight on teaching (Asian scripture at Colby College) in Religious Studies News (American Academy of Religion) May 2008, p. vi.
5..“Tarlochan Singh: A Bridge with the Past” in The Day After (An International Illustrated News Magazine of India) 16-31 May 2008
——This article was also published in Merinews
6.“Guru Arjan’s Aesthetic Legacy” in Khalsa Samachar, (New Delhi, India) February 22, 2007, pp. 7-10.
7.“Remembering Amrita Pritam from Afar” in The Sikh Review (Calcutta, India) January 2007, vol. 55: 1 pp. 66-68
8.“Remembering the Surge of the Tsunami” inThe Sikh Review, April 2007, pp. 22-25. (Formerly published in Interreligious Insight: A Journal of Dialogue and Engagement,volume 4, no. 1, January 2006, pp. 49-53).
9.“Aesthetics of the Guru Granth” in Panchbati Sandesh Special Anniversary Issue, Volume 26 (2-3), pp. 51-68.
10.“Gurbani in English: Translating Celestial Poetry" in The Sikh Review (Calcutta, June 2000) Vol. 48:6, pp. 15-21.
11.“From East to West" in Sikh Bulletin (UK: Chichester) No:13, 1996,pp. 5-10.
12."Sikh Existentialism: A Poetic Restatement by Bhai Vir Singh" in The Sikh Courier International Quarterly (London, Autumn-Winter 1989) pp. 28-35.
ENCYCLOPEDIA ARTICLES
"Sikhism" for the Encyclopedia of Applied Ethics, 2nd Edition, pp. 105-113.
“Sikhism” for the Encyclopedia of Sex and Gender (Macmillan, Gale Group, 2008)
Emotion in Sikhism” for the Encyclopedia of Love in World Religions (SantaBarbara: ABC-CLIO, 2008), pp, 178-182.
“Sikhism,” “Guru Nanak,” “Dasam Granth” and “Sikhism and Gender” for the second edition of the Encyclopedia of Religion (Macmillan, 2005)
“Sikh Women in North America” for the Encyclopedia of Women and Religion in North America (Indiana University Press,) pp. 693-703.
Sikh Folklore” and “Sikhism” in South Asian Folklore: An Encyclopedia (edited by M. Mills, P. Claus and S. Diamond (New York: Routledge, 2003), pp. 550-555.
“Dharma in Hinduism,” ”Sikhism,” and with H. J. Walker “Saints” for the Encyclopedia of Women and World Religion (Macmillan, 1999), pp. 251-254, 904-907, and 864-866.
"Sikhism" in the Encyclopaedia of Applied Ethics, Volume 3, (Academic Press, A Division of Harcourt Brace and Company, 1998), pp. 109-118.
Barah Maha" in The Encyclopedia of Sikhism (Patiala: Punjabi University, 1992) pp. 282-288.
Book reviews have not been included here
LECTURES, PAPERS, AND TALKS (MOSTLY INVITED)
1.“Feminist Hermeneutics of Sikh Scripture” key note speech for Conference on Women in Dharma Traditions, Claremont Lincoln University, August 23, 2013
2.Presentations given at McGill University, May 2013:
“Reciting Sikh Melodies: Paradise on Earth” (May 27)
“Pilgrimage to the Golden Temple” (May 28)
“The Punjab: Homeland of the Sikhs?” (May 30)
3.Visual Phenomenology: Seeing-in Guru Nanak at the Asian Arts Museum SFO" at the University of California, Riverside, May 11, 2013
4.“M.A. Macauliffe and the Angst of the Translator” at University College Cork, Ireland, March 15, 2013
5.“Feminist Hermeneutics of Sikh Scripture,” at the University of Santa Cruz, California, January 26, 2013
6.“Sikhism” for the American Academy of Religion Chaplaincy Session, Chicago, Nov. 17, 2012
7.“Guru Granth Sahib: Physics and Metaphysics” for the conference on Guru Granth Sahib, San Jose, August 25, 2012
8.“Sikhism and Suffering: Understanding and Healing after the Milwaukee tragedy” at Drake University, September 27, 2012
9.“Contesting Subjectivities” at the National University of Ireland in Galway, June 27, 2012
10.“Forming Arabesques: The work of a Colby Professor” for Colby Staff Retreat, June 13, 2012
11. “RE” the Intensive Prefix,”reunion address toColby Class of 1997, June 2, 2012
12.Gave three lectures forReligious Studies 2012 summer program McGill University:“The Institution of Langar and the Origins of Sikhism” (May 14),“Sikh Scripture and the Language of Food” (May 15),“Food in Sikh Ritual Performance” (May 17)
13.“Of Desire Sacred and Secular: Translating poetry from the Punjab,” Noontime Talk for Colby faculty and staff, April 25, 2012
14.Poetry from the Punjab: A Connective Ligament,” Public Lecture delivered at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, April 3, 2012
15.“Divided World, Global Poetry” for Colby College Alumnae,Boston, January 31, 2012
16.Graduation Address to Mid-Year Seniors, Colby College, December 9, 2011
17."Corporeal Mnemonics: Guru Nanak in the B-40 Manuscript" at the Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Religion, San Francisco, November 21, 2011
18."Sikh Philosophy: A Dialectic between Physics and Metaphysics" also at the Sikh and Punjabi Studies Conference, University of Santa Cruz, November 11, 2011
19."Gender issues in Sikh Theology and Praxis" at the Sikh and Punjabi Studies Conference, University of Santa Cruz, November 11, 2011
20."Sikhism and Women: Sacred and Secular Interpretations" Public lecture delivered at Mount Royal University, Calgary, Canada, October 3, 2011
21."A Thealogical Exploration of Sikhism" inaugural address for the launching of the First Sikh Feminist Research Conference, OISE, University of Toronto, October 1, 2011
22."Teaching of Sikhism in North America: Achievements and Challenges" Keynote address delivered at McGill University, (hosted by the President of the University, Principal Heather Munroe-Blum), Sept. 19, 2011
23.“Symbiosis of Sacred Text and Material Symbols" Public lecture delivered at the Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, India, July,19, 2011
24.Sikhism: An Introduction (UK: IB Tauris, 2011) at its launch at the Bhai Vir singh Sahitya Sadan, New Delhi, July 21, 2011
25.“Sikh Theism: Intersection of Timeless and Time," delivered at the Institute of Sikh Studies, Chandigarh, India, July 17, 2011
26.B-40 manuscript delivered at the Punjabi University, Patiala, India, (hosted by the Vice Chancellor of the University), July 15, 2011
27.Gave four lectures forReligious Studies 2011 summer program McGill University:
“Ritual Violence and the Birth of the Khalsa” (May16),“Themes of peace and violence in Sikh sacred literature” (May 17),“Martyrdom in the Sikh religion”(May 19), “The Bloody Partition of 1947 and the Balm of Poetry” (May 20)
28.“Scriptural Elements of the Five Sikh Symbols of Faith,”inaugural lecture at the Manhattan Sikh Center, NYC, April 16, 2011
29.“Relevance of the Guru Granth Sahib in global world,” for the Sikh Symposium, Richmond, Virginia, April 9, 2011
30.“Poetry from the Punjab,” for the Mathew Memorial Lecture, Inverness, California, February 19, 2011
31.“Translating Sikh Scripture without His Masters Voice,”at the Attic, New Delhi,Dec 21, 2010
32.“The Guru Granth Sahib for a Global Society” at the Punjabi University, Patiala, December 20, 2010
33.“Bhai Vir Singh’s Poetry: Nothing Short of Rocket Fuel for the Soul” at the international conference inaugurated by the President of India, New Delhi, December 17, 2010
34.“Feminist Perspectives from Sikh Dharma” for Dharma Academy of North America in conjunction with the Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Religion, Atlanta,October 29, 2010
35.“Sikh Paintings from Early Eighteenth Century” at the Chester Beatty in Dublin, Ireland (in conjunction with the exhibition Sikh faces in Ireland) August 12, 2010
36.Gave three lectures at the Department of Religious Studies Summer Programat McGill: “Reflections on the Origins of the Cosmos in Sikh Scripture,” (May 18), “Birth Narratives of the Founder Guru: Visual and Literary Representations”(May 19), “The Origins of Sikhism: Tradition vs. Scholarship”(May 20)