Bessenger to speak at Institute for Asian Cultural and Religious History in Austria

Suzanne Bessenger

On Thursday, June 22, religious studies professor Suzanne Bessenger will give the talk, “Independent Dakini or Yab Yum Duo? Sönam Peldren, Rinchen Pel, and the Role of Life Writing in Tibetan Sainthood” at the Austrian Academy of Sciences’ Institute for Asian Cultural and Religious History in Vienna, Austria.

Bessenger was approved for tenure at Randolph earlier this year, and recently published the book, Echoes of Enlightenment: The Life and Legacy of the Tibetan Female Saint Sonam Peldren. In addition, her article, “I am a god, I am a god, I am definitely a god: Deity Emanation and the Legitimation of Sonam Peldren,” was published in the February issue of the journal, Revue d’Etudes Tibetaines.