معرفی
Rodney Sebastian is an Assistant Professor in the Theology and Religious Studies Department at St. John's University's St. John's College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Florida, an M.A. from the National University of Singapore, and B.A. degrees from Curtin University of Technology (Australia) and the National University of Singapore. His research focuses on the intersection of politics, religion, and aesthetics in Manipur, India, with a particular interest in the sociopolitical origins of Manipuri Rāsalīlā dance dramas and classical Asian texts on governance. He also explores contemporary state-religion dynamics in Singapore and South/Southeast Asia.
Dr. Sebastian’s multidisciplinary approach integrates anthropological fieldwork, archival research, and textual analysis. He is affiliated with the Bhāgavata Purāṇa Research Project at the Oxford Center for Hindu Studies and advocates interfaith dialogue. His teaching emphasizes experiential learning through field trips, community engagement, and high-impact pedagogical practices.
His publications span topics such as Manipur’s sociopolitical history, Singaporean religious agency, and Hindu diaspora studies. Beyond academia, he contributes to cultural preservation initiatives and global religious discourse.
