Indian Knowledge Systems (IKS)

The Ph.D. programme in Indian Knowledge Systems (IKS) at The Assam Royal Global University is a confluence of ancient wisdom and contemporary scholarship. Rooted in the timeless traditions of Sanskrit texts, indigenous practices, and folk knowledge systems, this course aims to engage with modern disciplines such as cultural studies, folklore, management, commerce, textile, traditional food, culinary arts, ecology, health sciences, vernacular architecture, political theory, archaeology, literature, philosophy, performing art, material culture, and cultural tourism.

This transdisciplinary doctoral programme is designed to revive, reinterpret, and reimagine Indian knowledge traditions in the context of current global challenges and opportunities. Research here is retrospective and visionary—grounded in heritage, and oriented toward innovation, sustainability, and ethical growth.

Our program emphasizes both core and applied dimensions of Indian Knowledge Systems, enabling students to contribute to academic, cultural, and policy-based discourses at the national and global levels.

Core Research Areas:

Ph.D. Guides and Research Interests:

Dr. Saswati Bordoloi

Assistant Professor & Co-Coordinator, IKS Cell

Research Interests: Indian Knowledge Systems, Folklore, Cultural Studies, Religious Studies, Cultural Anthropology, Sacred Rituals, Performing Art, and Byzantine Studies.

Dr Pranab Jyoti Sarma

Assistant Professor - IKS

Research Interests:

1. Ancient Trade Routes and Knowledge Exchange
   • Reconstruction of pre-modern trade networks, connecting Kamarupa with Southeast Asia, Tibet, and Bengal, focusing on provenance studies and documentation of archaeological sites, with the aid of textual records and oral traditions.
   • Silk and salt trade circuits, focusing on the economic and cultural role of ancient Kamarupa in the trade with Bhutan, Myanmar, and Yunnan, and eventually China.
   • Intellectual and ritual exchange, exploring how knowledge flowed along trade routes—Buddhist texts, medicinal knowledge (e.g., Tantric traditions), and artisanal skills.
2. Sacred Geography and Religious Structures
   • Archaeological and textual mapping of the temple circuits of ancient Kamarupa, by documenting the Shakti Peethas and Shaiva-Shakta sites across Assam and surrounding regions.
   • Study astronomical orientation of temples like Kamakhya and Madan Kamdev and connect with indigenous calendars and rituals.
   • Study of folk cosmologies and sacred landscapes, understanding how indigenous communities conceptualize sacred geography and relate it to their historical landscape.
3. Indigenous Knowledge Systems and Oral Traditions
   • Transmission of astronomical and calendrical knowledge through PAR studies to understand the role of Daivajna Brahmanas, Ojhas, and local astrologers in preserving astronomical knowledge.
   • Ethnography of ritual healers and artisans through documentation and analysis of traditional medicinal knowledge, weaver communities, potters, and metalworkers.
   • Work on oral epistemologies by exploring how memory, song, and story encode historical and geographical information.
4. Knowledge Generation and Dissemination in the Classical and Early Medieval Periods
   • Archaeological and textual studies of the centres of learning such as Gurukuls and Temple Schools (Tols) and thereby highlighting the intellectual tradition.
   • Exploring and preserving the manuscript cultures of Assam by studying palm-leaf and bark manuscripts—texts, transmission, preservation practices.
   • Exploring the regional contributions of Assam to Indian Philosophy and Tantra, emphasizing the study of Yogini cults, Kaula traditions, and how they shaped knowledge systems.
5. Archaeology of Political Formations and Regional Identity
   • Study the material culture, inscriptions, and spatial politics of the ancient period of Assam and finding the knowledge traditions and networks that helped build the identity.
   • Explore archaeological landscapes of the hills and their interactions with valley civilizations.
   • Linking ancient Kamarupa with Gupta, Pala, and Southeast Asian regions.
6. Environmental History and Resource Use
   • Study the impact of floods, sedimentation, and river course changes on settlement patterns.
   • Ethnographic and archaeological investigation of natural sacred sites and their cultural continuity.
   • Study of traditional water management, sacred tanks, and springs in ritual and agriculture.