Humanities and Languages

Manomohini Dutta is Assistant Professor in the Humanities and Languages division of the School of Arts and Sciences. She received her PhD in Asian Cultures and Languages from the University of Texas at Austin.

Her areas of research are rooted in pre-modern Indian history and span the fields of law and religion, Dharmaśāstra, and Sanskrit. Her current research focuses on inheritance, property, and women’s conceptual positions in the Dāyabhāga, an influential specialized treatise on inheritance, from medieval Bengal located within the Brahmanical legal tradition of the Dharmaśāstras. Manomohini has published her research in international peer-reviewed journals like the Journal of Indian Philosophy and The Journal of Hindu Studies.

At Ahmedabad, Manomohini enjoys teaching courses that revolve around pre-modern Indian history, world religions with a focus on Hindu religious traditions in the BA Major in History along with being a part of the interdisciplinary Foundation Programme.

Dutta, Manomohini. 2019. “Dāya: The Conceptual Understanding of Inheritance and Gift in the Dāyabhāga.” Journal of Indian Philosophy, 47.1, 111–131.

Dutta, Manomohini. 2018. “Upakāra: The Theory of Spiritual Service and Women’s Inheritance in the Dāyabhāga.” The Journal of Hindu Studies, 11.3, 260–284.

The Birth and Development of Civilisations in the Indian Subcontinent, HST 115, Ahmedabad University, Bi-semester 2020-2021.

Foundation Programme Neighbourhood Studio, FDP 103, Ahmedabad University, Winter 2020, Winter 2021.

Introduction to World Religions, SAS 101, Ahmedabad University, Winter 2018 – Monsoon 2019, Winter 2021.

World Religions, REL 2300-0004, University of Central Florida, Fall 2016.

Introduction to India, ANS 302 K/ ANT 310 L, University of Texas at Austin, Spring 2014.

“Upakāra: The Theory of Spiritual Service and Women’s Inheritance in the Dāyabhāga.” Dialogues, Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, IIT Gandhinagar, Gujarat, August 2019.

“The Theory, Structure, and Degrees of Svatva in the Dāyabhāga.” 229th Annual Meeting of the American Oriental Society, Chicago, Illinois, March 2019.

“(In)Visible Women: A Study on Women’s Property Rights in Pre-modern Bengal.” Philosophy Colloquium, Department of Philosophy, University of Central Florida, Orlando, Florida, April 2015.

“Women's Proprietary Rights in the Dāyabhāga.” 224th Annual Meeting of the American Oriental Society, Phoenix, Arizona, March 2014.

“(In)Visible Women: A Study on Women’s Property in Precolonial Bengal.” Association for Asian Studies, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, March 2014.

“Interpretation of an Interpretation: Understanding Jīmūtavāhana’s dāya through dāna.” 223rd Annual Meeting of the American Oriental Society, Portland, Oregon, March 2013.

“The Strange Case of Chinnamastā: A Sacrificial Perspective.” Texas Asia Conference, Austin, Texas, February 2011.

“Disorder within Order: A Study of the Āpaddharmaparvan.” 38th Annual Conference on South Asia, Wisconsin, Madison, October 2009.

“Kings in Distress: A Study based on the Āpaddharmaparvan of the Mahābhārata.” Southwest Conference on Asian Studies, Austin, Texas, October 2009.

“Pieces from the Early Indian Past.” Virtual Summer School, Ahmedabad University (online on Zoom), June 2021.

“Making the Past come to Life: History, Texts and Performance.” Session delivered jointly with Aparajita Basu at Liberal Arts Pedagogy in New India: The Relevance of Humanities and Social Sciences – A Workshop for School Teachers / Counsellors. School of Arts and Sciences, Ahmedabad University (online on Zoom), April 2021.

“What are the Classics? Ancient Languages in a Modern World.” Convened jointly with Patrick French (Speakers: Simon Goldhill, David Shulman, and Shishir Saxena). School of Arts and Sciences, Ahmedabad University (online on Zoom), October 2020.