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Artistic, Cultural and
Literary Variations of Ramayana
worldwide
Conference
Information
September
21 - 23, 2001
Northern IIIinois University
DeKalb,
Illinois
The
Center for Southeast Asian Studies, the Office of the President
and the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at Northern Illinois University, in cooperation
with the International Ramayana Institute of North
America are sponsoring a conference, workshops, and a fair
on the artistic, cultural and literary variations of the Ramayana worldwide.
The
Ramayana, which is thought
to have originated in north India during the tenth to twelfth centuries
B.C., is one of the greatest Sanskrit epic poems ever written. Generally credited to the Indian poet
Valmiki, the Ramayana
is the story of the noble prince Rama, who forfeits his rights to
the royal throne on moral grounds and retires to the forest with
his wife, the princess Sita. Sita is later kidnapped by Ravana, a demon
king, and is held captive in his palace in Lanka. Aided by a white monkey, Hanuman, and
his monkey army, Rama frees Sita.
When Rama later succeeds to his father’s throne, people
are skeptical that Sita was able to maintain her honor during her
abduction. Rama stows her away, believing that his
own honor will be destroyed if he seems to pardon his wife’s
infidelity, even though this has not been proved.
Later interpretations of Rama claim he was an incarnation
of the god Vishnu, thus ascribing a strong religious message to
the moralities of the Ramayana.
The
story has been a powerful theme in Indian arts, literature and religion
since its inception. It
also spread throughout much of Southeast Asia in the first millennium
A.D. There is no other mythic tale that can
boast of such widespread circulation
and which has had such a stimulating impact on diverse Asian countries’
artistic and ethical traditions.
THIS PROGRAM IS MADE POSSIBLE IN PART BY A GRANT FROM
THE ILLINOIS HUMANITIES COUNCIL, the National Endowment for the
Humanities, and the Illinois General Assembly.
CONFERENCE INFORMATION
REGISTRATION I (conference
with meals and Fair):
$ 75.00 ($85.00 after August 31, 2001)
Includes conference, 1 lunch
(9/22), 2 banquet dinners (9/21 and 9/22), and Sunday Fair. The
Sunday Fair will feature workshops, displays and materials relating
to the Ramayana. A teacher’s workshop will also be included
in the conference. Teachers (K –12) may be eligible
for registration fee waivers and should contact Julia Lamb (jlamb@niu.edu).
Cut-off date to register for
conference meals is August 31, 2001.
REGISTRATION II (conference
and Fair only):
$ 25.00
Includes conference with no meals and Sunday Fair.
REGISTRATION III (individual
conference sessions only):
$ 5.00
per session
Register for individual conference
sessions only. Conference
sessions are: Session 1 - 9/21 afternoon; Session 2 - 9/22 morning
and Session 3 - 9/22 afternoon.
Registration III does not include meals or
Sunday Fair.
Conference (located in the
NIU Holmes Student Center, DeKalb, Illinois, USA) begins with registration
on Friday, September 21 at 10:30 am.
Tentative conference schedule: September 21, 1 pm - 8:30 pm, dinner included (Registration
I registrants only) - no evening program; September 22, 10 am - 9
pm, lunch and dinner included with evening performance (Registration
I registrants only); September 23, 11 am - 6 pm, Sunday Fair (located
in the Chick Evans Field House at the corner of North Annie Glidden
Road and Lucinda Avenue; parking for the Fair is free and located
next to the Field House).
LODGING (must be arranged
directly by conference registrant):
A
block of rooms has been reserved until September 14, 2001 for Ramayana
Conference participants in the hotel tower of the Holmes Student
Center, Northern Illinois University.
All conference activities will take place in the Holmes Student
Center. Rates for rooms - $61.05 for a room with
twin or double beds; $66.60 for a room with a queen bed; $7.00 each
additional person (all rates have tax included and may change without
notice). To reserve your room, you must call (815)
753-1444 or fax (815) 753-5099.
Please indicate that you are attending the Ramayana Conference. Reservations are held with a credit card.
Additional lodging located within 1 mile of NIU: Best
Western (815) 758-8661;
Howard Johnson Inn (815) 756-1451; and Travel
Lodge (815) 756-3398.
Lodging located 2 to 10 miles from NIU: Super
8 Motel (815) 748-4688; Harbor
Inn (815) 756-3552; Holiday
Inn Express (815) 748-7400; AmeriHost
Inn (Sycamore), (815) 895-4979 and Country
Inn & Suites (Sycamore), (815) 895-8686.
TRANSPORTATION ($25.00 each
way and must be arranged by conference registrant):
Northern Illinois University
is located 65 miles west of Chicago and approximately 40 miles southeast
of Rockford, Illinois. If
you need driving directions to NIU, call
(815) 753-1595 or (815) 753-1771.
O'HARE TO DEKALB: A vehicle marked NIU
will transport you from Chicago O'Hare Airport to NIU if you
reserve a space with your registration.
Pick up will be at
the lower baggage level of each terminal at the second sidewalk
outside of the exit door on the following date: Friday, September 21, between 9:00
- 9:30 am.
Please indicate your pick-up time and flight
on the registration form.
Terminal doors are listed below:
International Terminal - Door
5 - E (second sidewalk) Terminal 1 - Door
1-E (second sidewalk)
Terminal 2 - Door 2-E (second
sidewalk)
Terminal 3 - Door 3-E (second sidewalk)
DEKALB TO O'HARE: An NIU bus to O'Hare Airport will leave the
Holmes Student Center (west side, Carroll Avenue) on Sunday, September
23, 2001 at 6:30 pm. Allow
1 hour and 40 minutes travel time for the trip between DeKalb and
O'Hare Airport.
If
you choose to stay later or if the above times do not fit your flight
schedule, the DEKALB O'HARE LIMOUSINE SERVICE is available by
advance appointment. Call (815) 758-0631 or toll free (877)
367-5522. The one-way
single passenger cost is $45 ($55 for two passengers, $65 for three
passengers; 4 passenger maximum- prices subject to change) and must
be paid directly to the Limousine Service.
Direct public transportation is currently not available between
Chicago O'Hare Airport and Northern
Illinois University.
If
you need further information, please call Julie Lamb at the Center
for Southeast Asian Studies at (815) 753-1595 or (815) 753-1771;
FAX (815) 753-1776; EMAIL: jlamb@niu.edu.
Registration
Form
International
Ramayana Conference
Activity # 5568
September 21 - 23,
200
NAME (Last
name/First name) Please print clearly for name badge information.
UNIVERSITY/INSTITUTION
STREET ADDRESS (Home “ Business
“)
CITY
STATE
ZIP COUNTRY
DAY PHONE
EVENING PHONE
E-MAIL ADDRESS
FAX NUMBER
Registration I
(with meals and Fair) ($75.00) ($85.00 after 8/31/01)
____________
Registration II
(Fair and no meals) ($25.00)
____________
Registration III
($5.00 per session) (please check)
____ Session 1 (9/21; 1 - 6:00 pm),
____ Session 2 (9/22; 8 - 12:30 pm), ____Session 3 (9/22; 2 - 6:00 pm)
____________
Transportation Fees ($25.00
each way)
____________
Extra
Lunch Tickets ($7.00 each)
___________
Extra Banquet Tickets
($20.00 each)
____________
Extra Sunday Fair Tickets
($10.00 each/ $5.00 students/teachers)
____________
TOTAL
$
Please check or indicate number and add totals
above:
Transportation to Northern Illinois University:
FRIDAY, 9/21/01, 9:00 - 9:30 pm: Airline ___________, Flight #_______, Arrival
Date & Time_________
#____@ ($25)_____
Transportation
to O’Hare Airport, Chicago:
SUNDAY, 9/23/01; 6:30 pm:
Airline ___________, Flight #_______, Departure Time___________
#____@ ($25)_____
I will arrange my
own transportation.
YES_____
I am a full-time
student or teacher. (
Name of school ____________________________________) YES_____
I would prefer a vegetarian choice for my
meals.
YES_____
EXTRA Lunch Tickets ONLY ($7.00 each)
#_____Friday (9/21)
$ ________
EXTRA Banquet Tickets ONLY ($20.00 each) #_____Friday (9/21)
#_____Saturday (9/22) $ ________
EXTRA Sunday Fair Tickets ONLY ($10.00 each; $5.00 students/teachers)
#_____Fair (9/23)
$ ________
All
registrations are confirmed with payment. Payment should be received by August 31,
2001.
[ ] Check for $_______________ is enclosed,
payable to Northern Illinois University.
[ ] Please charge my payment of $____________
to my credit card [ ] VISA
[ ] MasterCard [
] Discover [ ] American
Express
Account
# ______________________________________________
Exp.
Date_______________________________________
Signature ______________________________________________
Name of card holder______________________________
You
may also register by phone using a credit card by calling 1-800-345-9472.
Special Accessibility
Request(s). Please respond on the line below before
August 31, 2001:
Cancellations
& Refunds: Requests for refunds must be made in writing
prior to September 7, 2001.
A full refund, minus a $15 service charge, will be issued
for each request. No refunds will be made for requests postmarked
after September 7, 2001.
Mail or fax this
form and payment by August 31, 2001 to: International Ramayana Conference,
Division of Continuing Education, Northern Illinois University,
DeKalb, Illinois 60115-2860.
FAX 815-753-6900 or call 1-800-345-9472.
Center for Southeast Asian Studies
Adams
Hall 412
Northern
Illinois University
DeKalb,
Illinois 60115-2854
USA
Center
for Southeast Asian Studies
The Center for Southeast Asian Studies at
Northern Illinois University facilitates research, teaching, learning,
and public programming related to Southeast Asia. The countries of Southeast Asia are among
the most diverse in all of Asia and include Burma (Myanmar), Thailand,
Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, the Philippines,
and Indonesia. In addition,
the Center is responsible for addressing student needs, coordinating
undergraduate and graduate courses dealing with Southeast Asia,
administering the undergraduate minor and the graduate concentration
in Southeast Asian studies, and awarding and administering U.S.
Department of Education Foreign Language and Area Scholarships to
students (see www.niu.edu/cseas/). The Center publishes two journals: Crossroads:
An Interdisciplinary Journal of Southeast Asian Studies, The Journal of Burma Studies, as well as a monograph series and language
text books and materials on Vietnamese, Burmese, Thai, and Indonesian.
It also designs and coordinates SEAsite,
a Southeast Asian Language and Culture Resource website (www.seasite.niu.edu), and generates external
grants for its many activities.
International Ramayana Institute of North
America
The
cooperating and co-sponsoring non-profit organization for this conference
is the International Ramayana Institute of North America, which
was formed by the following sponsoring groups that represent a broad
range of Asian heritages: the Thai Cultural and Fine Arts Institute,
the Thai Association of Illinois, the Consulate General of Indonesia
(in Chicago), the Hindu Satsang, the Indonesian Students Association
in Chicago (Permias), the Indonesian Women’s Association (Dharma
Wanita), and the Natya Dance Theatre (see www.ramayanainstitute.org). The International Ramayana Institute was
created as a result of two very successful years of presenting the
multicultural International Ramayana Dance Drama in the Chicago
area.
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