Catherine Robinson

Personal statement

Catherine Robinson has worked at Bath Spa University (then called Bath College of Higher Education) since 1990. A graduate of Stirling University, she gained a doctorate from Lancaster University for a study of the Indian women's movement which analysed how and why appeal was made to the Hindu tradition (later published by Curzon Press).

Her major research interests are issues of gender and sexuality in religions, as well as Indian religions in the modern period.

She has researched Sachkhand Nanak Dham, a Punjabi religious movement, and the history of scholarship of the Sikh tradition, with particular reference to the representation of Sikhism in educational contexts. A book linking interpretations of the Bhagavad-Gita, arguably the most popular Hindu scripture, with images of the Hindu tradition, including universalist and theological perspectives, was published by Routledge in 2006.

She was also a co-editor of the Routledge Encyclopedia of Hinduism which was published in 2008. She has also researched the life and work of Sir Edwin Arnold, a Victorian poet, writer and journalist, who published widely on Indian themes.

She has revisited some earlier work on Indian soldiers and the role of religion in the British Indian Army with a particular focus on the centenary of the Great War. In addition, she has worked with Denise Cush on a Higher Education Academy-funded project on fieldwork placements and experiential learning in Theology and Religious Studies. This project was given the Shap Award for 2013 for its contribution to the field of the study of/education in religions. She has continued her collaboration with Denise Cush on educational themes, including issues of gender and feminism.

Academic Qualifications 

• BA (Hons) - Stirling
• PhD - Lancaster

Professional Memberships

• Member - British Association for the Study of Religions
• Fellow - Higher Education Academy

Areas of expertise

• Hinduism
• Sikhism
• Indian Philosophy
• Religion, Gender and Sexuality
• Theory and Method in the Study of Religions