Laika jēdziena izpratnei veltīta konference

On November 19-20, 2025, the Department of Asian Studies at the Faculty of Philosophy of the University of Latvia invites you to a conference to promote interdisciplinary academic dialogue on the understanding of the concept of time in different cultures, spiritual-philosophical traditions, and social practices.

We are pleased to invite you to contribute a paper to the upcoming international conference, The Grammar of Time: Ontologies and Practices Across Cultures.

How do various cultures conceptualise and experience time? This conference seeks to explore a wide spectrum of temporal frameworks as expressed through religious, philosophical, and socio-cultural traditions. These include, among others, the cyclical rhythms characteristic of Hindu cosmology, the contemplative insights into the illusory nature of time in Buddhism, dialectical approaches that emphasise dynamic balance and continual transformation, Taoist notions rooted in natural flow and spontaneity, and relational or progressive temporalities articulated within the Abrahamic traditions. We are particularly interested in how these diverse models — whether emphasising recurrence, transcendence, emergence, or linear progression — inform lived experience, ritual, ethics, and worldview.

We also welcome explorations of modern temporalities — such as time conceptualised as externally regulated, goal-oriented, or technologically mediated — alongside more situational, process-oriented, or existential approaches found in traditions that emphasise self-cultivation, ancestral continuity, or non-linear cosmologies. In an increasingly interconnected world, societies engage with distinct yet overlapping “grammars of time” that shape communication, governance, and the rhythms of everyday life. We invite scholars to examine how these frameworks converge, diverge, and evolve, fostering intercultural dialogue and mutual understanding, while also attending to the complexities and tensions that emerge at their intersections.

We invite young researchers and scholars to offer their perspective on any aspect of time by completing the online application form by October 1st of this year.

For more information about applying and opportunities to publish, please visit the conference website or email ULconf.asianstudies@gmail.com .