Ved Patel

Ved Patel is a Visiting Assistant Professor in the Department of Religious Studies at Davidson College. His research employs an ethno-historical framework to analyze religious ethical praxis, narrative traditions, and conceptual categories in colonial/postcolonial Indian contexts, while his teaching focuses on South Asian religious traditions.

• Ph.D. in Religious Studies from Emory University
• M.St. in Theology from University of Oxford
• M.A. in Religious Studies from University of Florida
• B.A. in Religious Studies from University of California Irvine

Specializing in South Asian Religions, Ved Patel's work bridges religious ethics, lived religion, and philanthropy. His research explores moral formation processes and non-violence theories through historical lenses, emphasizing how colonial and postcolonial contexts shape religious practices and conceptual frameworks.

He currently serves as an editor for Eastern Religions in the journal Open Theology, and is developing publications for SUNY Press, the Journal of Cultural Anthropology, and the International Journal of Hindu Studies. His course offerings at Davidson include studies on lived Hinduism, Gandhian philosophy, and religion's role in philanthropy.