December 06, 2022
Meghan O'Toole
Professors, alumna attend American Academy of Religion meeting in Colorado
Rawlings (left) and Zeller at the conference.
Assistant Professor of Religion Anya Golovkova, Professor of Religion and Chair of Religion Benjamin Zeller, and alumna Kristin Rawlings ’19 found a sense of reunion and community at the American Academy of Religion annual meeting in Denver, Colorado, November 19–22.
“Reconnecting with other experts in my field after the disruption of the pandemic was valuable,” Zeller said. “It was the first large in-person conference we've had since 2019.”
Zeller presented on two panels and led a book discussion. At one of the panels, which examined the intersection of religion and intellectual property, Zeller shared his research on the uses of intellectual property protections and marketing practices in the Trappist beer industry.
“It is interesting to see how the monks create a product that brings together religion, law, and marketing,” he said.
Making the most of the opportunity to connect with colleagues, Golovkova presided over a panel and a business meeting of the Tantric Studies Unit, which she co-chairs, and also presented a paper on non-dual philosophy in a Tantric Goddess tradition called Śrīvidyā.
“The people in our community have not seen each other in person for several years due to the pandemic. It was a joyful time for scholars coming together to collaborate, connect, and be supportive of each other's work and research,” Golovkova said. “Spending this time with colleagues from across the country and the globe again felt like a celebration.”
Golovkova also met with editors for her upcoming book projects: a scholarly monograph, an edited volume, and a translation. Her monograph, The Goddess for the Second Millennium: the Making of the Tradition of Auspicious Mantra, is based on her research of the historical development of a Tantric Goddess tradition through her close reading of medieval Sanskrit scriptures and commentaries.
“It's a great time for Tantric Studies,” Golovkova said. “We are growing as a discipline, and the fact that publishers are interested in supporting these book projects is outstanding news.”
They were joined by Rawlings, who attended in her role as Editorial Associate in Religious Studies, Philosophy, and Music at the University of Chicago Press.
“Since I majored in religious studies at Lake Forest, I was thrilled to attend AAR 2022 in Denver for my job,” Rawlings said. “While staffing the University of Chicago Press's booth in the exhibit hall, I greatly enjoyed seeing our recently published books—including many that I had personally shepherded into production—out in the wild as visitors to our booth expressed their excitement for this or that title.”
Rawlings met with current and prospective authors on behalf of the Press and also enjoyed the opportunity to reconnect with Lake Forest College professors.