Dr. Jean Arzoumanov is the Ludo and Rosane Rocher Foundation postdoctoral fellow at the Department of South Asian Languages & Civilizations at the University of Chicago. As a historian of early modern and modern Persianate intellectual history in South Asia, Jean works on textual encounters between Islamicate and Indic cultures. In 2021, he obtained his PhD in South Asian Studies from the Université Sorbonne Nouvelle – Paris 3 with a dissertation on the representation of Indian sects and ascetics in Indo-Persian literature between the Mughal and colonial periods (16th-19th centuries). Building on this research for a forthcoming book, he studies the involvement of non-Muslim literati in Persian literary production, and more particularly in the development of Hindu devotional literature in Persian. In a forthcoming article with the Journal of Persianate Studies, he analyzes in depth the only known two Persian translations of Jain texts, dating from 1796. His other areas of interest include the history of astral sciences in early modern South Asia, and he has published several articles on the astronomical and astrological works of Mullā Farīd and Mullā Ṭayyib, two brothers active in the early 17th century.

Venu Mehta, an Assistant Professor of Jainism & Comparative Spiritualities at the Claremont School of Theology, specializes in Jainism with a primary focus on Jain regional-vernacular devotional literature, narratives, and practices. Her PhD dissertation investigates the devotion to the Jain goddess Padmāvatī among the Śvetāmbar Mūrtipūjak Jains in Gujarat. Additionally, her work explores the Jain concept of forgiveness, and the various ways in which the Jain practice of aparigraha’s co-relates with human dignity, sustainability, and Gandhian approach to economy. Her recent research and publication also delve into Jain-Hindu comparative theologies/spiritualities, particularly regarding goddesses. In addition to teaching specialist courses on Jainism, she also instructs courses on South Asian traditions, comparative spiritualities, and gender and women in spiritual practices. Mehta’s research approach often integrates ethnography with textual study, but considers prioritizing the practices, experiences, and expressions of Jains.