About ISSJS

The International Summer School for Jain studies (ISSJS) provides an important link between the Jain community and the academic world. The Jain community has, and continues to have, a large impact on Indian religious and cultural life, despite the small numbers. The academic study of Jainism is still an undeveloped area of research. The spirit of the ISSJS is to work towards rectifying this omission in scholarly inquiry by fostering an interest in Jainism in universities around the world.

ISSJS is a program run by the International School for Jain Studies (ISJS), a sub­committee of the Mahavir Vision Inc. a non-profit, tax exempt, 501   C-3 organization. ISJS works in collaboration with the Committee on the Academic Studies of Jainism in North America (ASJNA), Federation of Jain Associations in North America (JAINA), World Council of Jain Academies (WCJA), and Jain Academic Foundation of North America (JAFNA) the Pluralism Project at Harvard University, University of Ottawa, American Institute of Indian studies (AIIS) and Shastri Indo Canadian Institute (SICI).

The entire program in India is run and administered by an independent India registered Indian organization, ISJS New Delhi, India.

ISSJS was started in 2005. Since then four ISSJS programs have been conducted and attended by over 80 students and scholars from USA, Canada, Thailand, Russia and Cuba.