Dr. Swati Goel
Dr. Swati Goel has served at prestigious organizations in various capacities as a Curator, Academic Counsellor, Research Consultant, Convener, Doctoral fellow and an Assistant Professor (Guest) alongside her academic engagements. She earned a Ph.D. from the Centre for Historical Studies, JNU (2023). She also holds an M.Phil. in History from the School of Liberal Studies, Ambedkar University, Delhi, an M.A in History from CHS, JNU and a B.A (hons.) in History from Sri Venkateswara College, University of Delhi. Her core area of research is medieval Indian history, with special emphasis on the dynamics of the medieval Braj region. The title of her doctoral study is 'The Development of the Region of Braj: Bhakti Sects, Political Groups and the Merchants (16th to mid-18th Century). The work brings to the fore a history of sacred space intertwined with the themes of patronage, religion, commercial networks, mobilities, the exodus of deities, and environmental consciousness in its understanding of a region. She started her academic career as a Curator in 2016 at the American Institute of Indian Studies, where she worked on a project for Google Cultural Research Institute, curating Virtual Exhibition on various subjects consulting Catherin B. Asher archives. The exhibitions are published on GCI website. In 2017 she joined Aga Khan Trust for Culture, Delhi as a Research Consultant on a project where she became a part of a team constituting historians and architects, working on a publication and an exhibition on project ‘Celebrating Rahim-Khan-I Khanan’. The volume constitutes articles by academicians from around the world and diverse fields. She also had an opportunity to serve as a National Doctoral Fellow at ICSSR, Delhi, under a Centrally administered Full-time Doctoral Fellowship for 2019-2021. She worked as an Assistant Professor (Guest) at various colleges of University of Delhi and simultaneously as an Academic Counsellor at IGNOU for both Undergraduate and Postgraduate courses. She is a committed professional demonstrating a record for publishing excellence, conference presentations and research papers at various national and international conferences. Recently, a part of her research was released at the Sangam talk, under the aegis of the Ministry of Education. An annual International Conference is convened and organized by her since 2019 in Vrindavan and is thus widely covered in media and local newspapers of the region. She therefore is a recipient of ‘Braj Adhyeta Samman’ award given by NGO ‘Braj Sanskriti Shodh Sansthan’, 2018. She continues to engage herself in organizing academic conferences, cultural programmes and heritage walks in her research area
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Papers by Dr. Swati Goel
Region of Braj: Rajput Patronage, Exodus of Deities and the Recreation of Braj in Rajputana (16th to early 18th century)
The paper examines the role of the Rajput Kings, belonging to various principalities, in patronising the sects and temples of Braj region during the Mughal period. Many prominent temples, ghats and even new settlements were established in medieval Braj through the efforts and patronage of the Rajput houses such as Kachwahas of Amber , Shekhawati Kachawahas of Shekhawati, Sisodias of Mewar et. all. The affiliations of the religious communities with the Rajputana brought them wealth, power, rights and security in their efforts to reconstrue Braj during the medieval times.
After the exodus of the deities from the region of Braj during the latter half of the 17th century, the images found patronage and residence with many regional kingdoms of the subcontinent. The paper thus explores the support of Rajput principalities to the deities and the religious communities in the event of their exodus from the Braj region during the later half of the 17th century to the respective Rajput kingdoms. The itinerary of the svarupas( deities) from Braj to Raputana and post exodus mobility of the deities from one Rajput principality to the other will be discussed in detail. These itineraries bring to the fore the significance of relations between the religious communities of Braj and the rulers of Rajputana.
With the shift of the deities and religious communities to these Rajput kingdoms, a process of recreation of Braj started in these kingdoms. The creation of Kanak Vrindavan in Jaipur during the reign of Sawai Jai Singh and emergence of Nathdwara as the prototypes of Braj calls for an exploration. These recreated sacred spaces drew on Braj region as a prototype in order to replicate a similar built and natural environment for the rehabilitation of the deities. Hence, a process for creating new pilgrimage centers for these deities on the prototype of Braj ensued. The aim is to led emphasis on the fact that Braj has always been connected very closely to Rajputana and its political concerns.
The paper discusses the role of Rajputana in bringing development of the region of medieval Braj. The art and architectural construction of Braj thus drew upon the Rajput political realities of the times. On the other hand, the Vaishnava imagery and literary culture got disseminated to various Rajput courts, which came into contact with the Braj. It started to become visible in forms of visual arts and architecture at various regional courts.
In this way the pilgrimage centers like Braj became sites for the transmission of the imagery and ideas. Braj and Rajputana should be studied together in order to understand the development of the two regions during medieval times.
Keywords: Rajput Bhakti, Braj region, Krishna, Patronage, Exodus, Bhakti sects
Region of Braj: Rajput Patronage, Exodus of Deities and the Recreation of Braj in Rajputana (16th to early 18th century)
The paper examines the role of the Rajput Kings, belonging to various principalities, in patronising the sects and temples of Braj region during the Mughal period. Many prominent temples, ghats and even new settlements were established in medieval Braj through the efforts and patronage of the Rajput houses such as Kachwahas of Amber , Shekhawati Kachawahas of Shekhawati, Sisodias of Mewar et. all. The affiliations of the religious communities with the Rajputana brought them wealth, power, rights and security in their efforts to reconstrue Braj during the medieval times.
After the exodus of the deities from the region of Braj during the latter half of the 17th century, the images found patronage and residence with many regional kingdoms of the subcontinent. The paper thus explores the support of Rajput principalities to the deities and the religious communities in the event of their exodus from the Braj region during the later half of the 17th century to the respective Rajput kingdoms. The itinerary of the svarupas( deities) from Braj to Raputana and post exodus mobility of the deities from one Rajput principality to the other will be discussed in detail. These itineraries bring to the fore the significance of relations between the religious communities of Braj and the rulers of Rajputana.
With the shift of the deities and religious communities to these Rajput kingdoms, a process of recreation of Braj started in these kingdoms. The creation of Kanak Vrindavan in Jaipur during the reign of Sawai Jai Singh and emergence of Nathdwara as the prototypes of Braj calls for an exploration. These recreated sacred spaces drew on Braj region as a prototype in order to replicate a similar built and natural environment for the rehabilitation of the deities. Hence, a process for creating new pilgrimage centers for these deities on the prototype of Braj ensued. The aim is to led emphasis on the fact that Braj has always been connected very closely to Rajputana and its political concerns.
The paper discusses the role of Rajputana in bringing development of the region of medieval Braj. The art and architectural construction of Braj thus drew upon the Rajput political realities of the times. On the other hand, the Vaishnava imagery and literary culture got disseminated to various Rajput courts, which came into contact with the Braj. It started to become visible in forms of visual arts and architecture at various regional courts.
In this way the pilgrimage centers like Braj became sites for the transmission of the imagery and ideas. Braj and Rajputana should be studied together in order to understand the development of the two regions during medieval times.
Keywords: Rajput Bhakti, Braj region, Krishna, Patronage, Exodus, Bhakti sects