Skip to main content
Religious Studies, UC Santa Barbara
  • Home
    • About The Department
    • History of The Department
    • Archive of Sponsored Programs
  • Academics
    • Undergraduate
      • Religious Studies, B.A.
      • Middle East Studies, B.A.
      • Jewish Studies, Minor
      • American Indian and Indigenous Studies, Minor
      • Language Courses
      • Study Abroad Program for Religious Studies Majors
    • Graduate
      • Areas of Study
      • Admissions Information
      • Program Statistics
      • Department Guidelines
    • Courses
  • People
    • Faculty
    • Affiliated Faculty
    • Visiting Faculty and Scholars
    • Emeriti
    • In Memoriam
    • Graduate Students
    • Alumni
    • Staff
  • News
  • Calendar
  • Centers
    • Catholic Studies
    • Center for Middle East Studies
    • East Asia Center
    • Interdisciplinary Humanities Center
    • Iranian Studies Initiative
    • Persian Studies
    • Religion, Experience and Mind (REM) Lab Group
    • Walter H. Capps Center
  • Giving
  • UCSB aerial image with campus point as lower center point

Archive of Department-Sponsored Programs

  • The Taubman Symposia (2006-2010)
  • Tibetan Buddhist Art (2008-2010)
  • The Sacred Art of Tibet
  • UCSB Reads (2009)
  • The Visit of His Holiness the Dalai Lama (2009)
  • Expanding Horizons: Sikh Studies at the Turn of the 21st Century (2009)
  • A Glimpse of Another World: A Journey Through Western Tibet (2008)
  • Irreconcilable Differences? Jacques Derrida and the Question of Religion (2003)

Tweets

Tweets by @UCSBReligion

Upcoming Events

Mar
3
Fri
2023
9:00 am Exhibition: Lifting the Veil, or... @ Special Research Collections, UCSB Library
Exhibition: Lifting the Veil, or... @ Special Research Collections, UCSB Library
Mar 3 @ 9:00 am – Mar 26 @ 5:00 pm
Exhibition: Lifting the Veil, or, How the Stars Aligned for Isis, Hermes, and Diana to Vanquish Satan and Usher in the Aquarian Age @ Special Research Collections, UCSB Library
Mar
6
Mon
2023
9:00 am Exhibition: Lifting the Veil, or... @ Special Research Collections, UCSB Library
Exhibition: Lifting the Veil, or... @ Special Research Collections, UCSB Library
Mar 6 @ 9:00 am – Mar 29 @ 5:00 pm
Exhibition: Lifting the Veil, or, How the Stars Aligned for Isis, Hermes, and Diana to Vanquish Satan and Usher in the Aquarian Age @ Special Research Collections, UCSB Library
Mar
7
Tue
2023
9:00 am Exhibition: Lifting the Veil, or... @ Special Research Collections, UCSB Library
Exhibition: Lifting the Veil, or... @ Special Research Collections, UCSB Library
Mar 7 @ 9:00 am – Mar 30 @ 5:00 pm
Exhibition: Lifting the Veil, or, How the Stars Aligned for Isis, Hermes, and Diana to Vanquish Satan and Usher in the Aquarian Age @ Special Research Collections, UCSB Library
Mar
8
Wed
2023
9:00 am Exhibition: Lifting the Veil, or... @ Special Research Collections, UCSB Library
Exhibition: Lifting the Veil, or... @ Special Research Collections, UCSB Library
Mar 8 @ 9:00 am – Mar 31 @ 5:00 pm
Exhibition: Lifting the Veil, or, How the Stars Aligned for Isis, Hermes, and Diana to Vanquish Satan and Usher in the Aquarian Age @ Special Research Collections, UCSB Library
Mar
9
Thu
2023
9:00 am Exhibition: Lifting the Veil, or... @ Special Research Collections, UCSB Library
Exhibition: Lifting the Veil, or... @ Special Research Collections, UCSB Library
Mar 9 @ 9:00 am – Apr 1 @ 5:00 pm
Exhibition: Lifting the Veil, or, How the Stars Aligned for Isis, Hermes, and Diana to Vanquish Satan and Usher in the Aquarian Age @ Special Research Collections, UCSB Library
View Calendar
Add
  • Add to Timely Calendar
  • Add to Google
  • Add to Outlook
  • Add to Apple Calendar
  • Add to other calendar
  • Export to XML

Statement

The Department of Religious Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara stands in support of the protests for racial justice and police reform. Black lives matter.

We commonly hear that “The death of one man is a tragedy. The death of millions is a statistic.” This sentiment echoes in the national response to the current health crisis, where thousands and thousands have died and continue to die daily.

Our expertise lies in the academic study of the world’s religions. Each emphasizes the sanctity of life. In Jewish, Christian, and Islamic traditions, human life is holy because God is holy (Lev 19:4; Qur’an 5:32, 6:131; 1 Corinthians 3:16). In the Buddhist tradition, the first and foremost precept is the prohibition against taking life (any life, not only human); at the same time, the human condition is unique and precious because Buddhas can only appear in human form. In religious traditions of the African Diaspora, Black gods and ancestors rise up to defend Black and Latinx lives in historical rebellions and revolutions. The most well-known of these is the Haitian Revolution that began with the invocation Vodou deities in 1791 at Bwa Kayiman.

Racially motivated killings are often processed as a statistic, notwithstanding the well-known killings of Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, Eric Garner, Freddie Gray, Sandra Bland, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, and Ahmaud Arbery, among many others. In the violent taking of George Floyd’s life, witnessed by the world, we have not a statistic but a tragedy. It is both a reminder of the anti-Blackness embedded in our society and an example of the systemic institutional brutality directed towards minoritized communities.

Read more...

Recent News

  • Flyer for "Obstacle Illusion: A Multimedia Performance" on Feb 8, 2023 from 6:30-7:30PM in Hatlen TheaterObstacle Illusion: A Multimedia Performance by ACVilla and Thollem on Feb 8, at 6:30 pm at Hatlen Theatre, UCSB
    In Announcement
    February 2, 2023
  • Screenshot of "Woman, Life, Freedom: The Origins of the Uprising in Iron" article by Janet Afary and Kevin B. AndersonAn Article by Professor Janet Afary in the renowned New York Magazine ‘Dissent’.
    In Announcement
    December 6, 2022
  • Job Posting: Bhagvan Vimalnath Endowed Chair in Jain Studies and South Asian Religions at UC Santa Barbara
    In Job Posting
    November 3, 2022

Search:

Facebook IconLinkedIn Icon Twitter Icon

Department of Religious Studies
Mail Code 3130
University of California
Santa Barbara, CA 93106-3130
© 2021 Regents of the University of California,
All Rights Reserved

Site Administration

  • Log in
  • Entries RSS
  • Contact Us
  • Resources & Links
  • Website Demo Videos
  • Giving
  • Terms of Use
X

Newsletter 2016-2017- Persian Language and Literature

Newsletter 2016-2017- Persian Language and Literature in the Department of Religious Studies