DK Award

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DK Award

DK Award for the outstanding doctoral thesis on Sanskrit

This award will be given every three years to a scholar of Sanskrit, who is based outside South Asia (India, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and the Maldives), since its purpose is to encourage scholarly study of Sanskrit beyond the subcontinent, and it will consist of DK books to the value of US$ 1000.

It will be awarded on the basis of the first doctoral dissertation of a postgraduate student on a Sanskrit topic, provided that the dissertation has been accepted and the degree awarded by a university or institution of comparable status outside South Asia during the three calendar years preceding the year in which each World Sanskrit Conference (WSC) is held.

The International Association of Sanskrit Studies (IASS) will form an adjudication panel of three to four members to evaluate the dissertations received and to announce its decision at the next WSC.


CONDITIONS FOR THE DK AWARD

  • Scholars interested in this award should first give notice of intention to compete and will then be required to submit one copy of their thesis, together with a photocopy of the degree document and a letter of support from their main supervisor, to the screening panel before the deadline of 31st January of the year in which the WSC will take place; in addition to the paper copy, candidates for the award should also submit the thesis in electronic form, if possible, and should send all documentation to the Secretary General of the IASS. Candidates shall also send their CVs to D.K. Agencies (P) Ltd., New Delhi for their information.
  • A Sanskrit topic is to be understood as one concerned primarily with the Sanskrit language, Sanskrit literature or the subject matter of a text or texts composed in Sanskrit.
  • The IASS will decide and announce the membership of the adjudication panel at each WSC. The adjudication panel will examine all theses so received and decide the name of the award winner before the conference. The decision of the panel shall be treated as final. The name of the award winner will be announced during the conference and a certificate issued to the winner. In the event of the panel deciding that two dissertations tie for first place, there may be a maximum of two joint award winners. The panel (either directly or through the Secretary General of the IASS) will inform D.K. Agencies (P) Ltd., New Delhi about the name and address of the award winner(s).
  • The award will be in the form of books worth US$ 1000.00 (inclusive of postage) to be selected by the awardee either from the DK website http://www.dkagencies.com or their catalogues at the prices stated therein. The amount of the award cannot be converted or reimbursed in cash or any other form except books and the postage thereon. In the event of a tie, this amount will be divided equally among the two award winners.
  • D.K. Agencies (P) Ltd. do not take responsibility for any expenditures other than the books worth $ 1000.00 (inclusive of postage) to be made available to the award winner(s). D.K. Agencies are simply the sponsors of this award in the form of books. D.K. Agencies (P) Ltd. reserve the right to withdraw this award with effect from a subsequent conference by announcing its withdrawal during any WSC.

The DK Award for the outstanding doctoral thesis on Sanskrit was inaugurated in 2006 at the WSC in Edinburgh.

In the years 2006 to 2008 it was conferred on Dr Wendy J. Phillips-Rodríguez for her dissertation submitted to the University of Cambridge:

"Electronic Techniques of Textual Analysis and Edition for Ancient Texts: an Exploration of the Phylogeny of the Dyūtaparvan" In the years 2009 to 2011 it was conferred on Dr Himal Trikha for his dissertation submitted to the University of Vienna:

"Schluss mit ungultigen Perspektiven! Polemik gegen das Vaiśeṣika in der Satyaśāsanaparīkṣā des Digambara Vidyānandin vor dem Hintergrund des kritischen Perspektivismus der Jainas". (Published as Perspektivismus und Kritik. Das pluralistische Erkenntnismodell der Jainas angesichts der Polemik gegen das Vaiśeṣika in Vidyānandins Satyaśāsanaparīkṣā, Publications of the De Nobili Research Library edited by Gerhard Oberhammer, Utz Podzeit and Karin Preisendanz, Volume XXXVI. Wien: Sammlung de Nobili ... Universität Wien, 2012.)