Within the broader study of religion, he has a particular interest in Sanskrit literature. His first book, “The Grammar of Sacrifice”, examines the ancient intuition that sacrificial rituals, like languages, are governed by “grammars.” His research interests include ancient models for the “science of ritual”; systems of pollution and purification; and mechanisms of double entendre in Wisdom Literature. He previously taught at the Moscow State University for the Humanities and at Princeton University.

 

She studies Javanese and Malay manuscripts, translation traditions in Asia, and the history of Islam and its relationship to earlier religions in the region. Ronit teaches Bahasa Indonesia at the beginning and advanced levels, and courses on Islam in Southeast Asia, the history and culture of Indonesia, translation traditions in South and Southeast Asia, and methodologies in the study of religion. In her teaching she strives to challenge the pervading perception that links Islam almost exclusively to the Middle East by exposing students to the diverse Islamic cultures in the regions that stretch from India to the Philippines. Research fields: Islam in Southeast Asia, Islamic literature in Javanese and Malay, Translation Studies, Indonesian Studies, history and literature of the Sri Lankan Malays, exile in colonial Asia.