Vraja Institute

Dr. Satyanarayana Dasa is the Founder of the Vraja Institute and holds a Ph.D. in Sanskrit from Agra University. His dissertation focused on Jiva Gosvami’s Bhakti Sandarbha. He has a graduate degree in mechanical engineering (B. Tech) and a postgraduate degree in industrial engineering (M. Tech) from the Indian Institute of Technology in Delhi. He has also earned a law degree from Agra University and four shastric degrees.

He has authored several books and is currently translating and commenting on the remaining texts of the Sat Sandarbha. He lectures widely in India, Europe, and the United States and is a visiting professor at Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey.

In 1994 Satyanarayana Dasa was honored by Dr. Shankar Dayal Sharma, the President of India, for his translation of Tattva Sandarbha. He has also been honored by the IIT Delhi Alumni Association for his outstanding contribution to social welfare. He was selected by The Research and Advisory Board of the International Biographical Centre of Cambridge, England, to receive the international accolade, “International Educator of the Year 2004.” In 2013 he was honored by the president of India, Pranab Mukherjee, for his extraordinary contribution in presenting Indian culture and philosophy to students and audiences in India and abroad.

Courses taught: Hinduism, Sanskrit, Nyaya, Sankhya, Vedanta, Bhagavad Gita, Yoga

Dr. Jan Brzezinski graduated with top honors from McGill University in Canada while majoring in religious studies. He was awarded the Commonwealth Scholarship for his doctorate study at the School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London. He received a Ph.D. in Sanskrit Literature where his dissertation focused on the Gopal-campu of Jiva Gosvami.

In addition to his formal studies at McGill and University of London, he has studied Sanskrit, Bengali, Hindi, and Yoga during extended stays in India. He was given the title Bhakti-shastri in 1982. He has been living in India full-time since 2007 and is currently working with Satyanarayana Dasa by editing the Sat Sandarbhas.

Dr. Brzezinski has held academic appointments at the University of Toronto and the University of Manitoba. He is the editor of the Gaudiya Grantha Mandir, on-line repository of Sanskrit texts (www.granthamandira.com) and of the online magazine Vrindavan Today (news.vrindavantoday.org).

Courses taught: Sanskrit, Vedanta, Yoga

Edwin Bryant received his Ph.D in Indic languages and Cultures from Columbia University.

He taught Hinduism at Harvard University for three years, and is presently the professor of Hinduism at Rutgers University where he teaches course on Hindu philosophy and religion.

He has received numerous awards and fellowships, published eight books and authored a number of articles on Vedic history, yoga, and the Krishna tradition.

Course Taught: Yoga Sutras of Patanjali

Mathew Dasti received his MA/PhD in philosophy from the University of Texas at Austin.

He is an Associate Professor in the Philosophy Department of Bridgewater State University. He is also a moderator for the Indian Philosophy Blog and a book review editor for Philosophy East and West.

His main research interest is the early phase of the Nyāya (“Logic”) school of classical Hindu philosophy. He has published a book, an edited volume, and numerous articles within the field of Indian philosophy.

Course Taught: Nyāya Sūtras