About the Journal
Aims and Scope
Prajñā Vihāra: Journal of Philosophy and Religion is a multicultural and pluralistic journal of ethics, philosophy and religious studies dedicated to the promotion of mutual understanding among the diverse peoples of the world. In the spirit of the Sanskrit words “Prajñā Vihāra” meaning “temple of wisdom,” the editors encourage creative academic work that promotes a sharing of wisdom among scholars and readers.
It welcomes specialized articles in Ethics, Philosophy, Religion and Cultural Studies that seek to promote harmony between various philosophical and religious traditions while respecting cultural and religious difference.
Philosophy: The journal has always welcomed a wide variety of philosophical articles. It gives special consideration to philosophical work by Southeast Asian philosophers, and scholars outside the region who write about comparative, cultural and indigenous philosophy.
Religion: The program in Philosophy and Religion at Assumption University has always followed a pluralistic outlook. As a result, the journal has always tried to balance publications in Buddhism, Christianity, Islam and other local religions and indigenous practices. It especially welcomes artilces that engage with religious issues in the Southeast Asian region.
Ethics: Assumption University has always emphasized Ethics as one of its main identities. The journal welcomes articles in Ethics that address pressing local issues in the Southeast Asian region and articles by local scholars that engage global ethical problems.
Prajñā Vihāra: Journal of Philosophy and Religion has always been an arena for dissemination of interesting and original research from the Southeast Asian region and the Asian region as a whole. It's mission has traditionally been to promote research by scholars who use English as a second language. It is very attentive to promoting local research and improving submissions while balancing this with a commitment to ethics and best practices.
Publication Frequency
Prajñā Vihāra is a semiannual journal published two times a year (January to June, and July to December) by the faculty of the Graduate Program in Philosophy and Religion at Assumption University of Thailand.
Language
All articles in Prajñā Vihāra are published in english. The journal was created to provide a venue for quality research in Philosophy and Religion by scholars for whom english is often a second language. The task of the editorial team and the peer reviewers are directed to improving the quality of the articles. For this reason we ask that the author does not rely on AI to improve the english.
Publication Charges (APC)
Prajñā Vihāra asks authors to pay a processing charge of $50.00 USD or 1,650 THB. This charge is used for editing, proofreading, and typesetting. Under certain situations the processing charge can be waived.
Open Access Policy
This journal provides immediate open access to its content on the principle that making research freely available to the public supports a greater global exchange of knowledge.
Ownership and Management
Prajñā Vihāra is owned by the Graduate Program in Philosophy and Religion, School of Human Sciences, Assumption University of Thailand. The journal reflects the program's commitment to a pluralistic approach to philosophy and relgious studies.
Publisher
Prajñā Vihāra is pubished by Assumption University of Thailand. Huamak campus. D. Building, 5th Floor. Ramkhamhaeng 24 Rd. Bang Kapi, Bangkok 10240, Thailand
Copyright and Licensing
Both the authors and Assumption University maintain ownership of the copyright. This arrangement is designed to shield both parties from the repercussions of unauthorized usage. Any partial or complete publication of an article elsewhere necessitates the consent of both parties. Prajñā Vihāra follows a Creative Commons (CC) Copyright License, which permits sharing, adaptation, and proper attribution. Under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike (CC BY-NC-SA) license, readers can download and share the published articles, provided they appropriately cite them. However, any alterations to the articles or commercial use are not permitted.
Access and Archiving
The journal is managed through the OJS system (openjournalsystems.com) and is made available online through the website of Assumption University of Thailand. Data preservation under the OJS system is done through the PKP Preservation Network (PKP PN) and also through the database of the Assumption University Library.
Advertising and Direct Marketing
The journal does not implement advertising and direct marketing policies.
Journal History
Since the year 2000, Prajñā Vihāra: Journal of Philosophy and Religion, has been devoted to giving regional scholars an opportunity to publish their research in the fields of philosophy, religion, culture and other topics within the humanities. It was established at Assumption University of Thailand. As an international Catholic university, Assumption University recognized the importance of the role of philosophy and religion in supporting and complementing its other academic programs. It also recognized the role of research in philosophy and religion for uniting the various Catholic universities in the region.
Because of this mission, the journal has had a close relationship with two organizations. The first is 'The Asian Association of Christian Philosophers' (which is now inactive), and the other is the 'Council for Research and Values in Philosophy' (RVP), the latter of which was created by the late Father George McLean. These two organizations provided the original pool of regional and international scholars which are still represented in our Editorial Consultants.
The journal began as the ABAC Journal of Philosophy and Religion in 1994. It was renamed The Journal of Philosophy, Culture and Religion in January 1996. The first editor-in-chief was Dr. Kirti Bunchua. The journal was promoted by the then president of the university Brother Martin Komolmas with the following words:
"Materialistic concepts and not spiritual values, self-adulation and not self-abnegation, savagery and not compassion appear to be transforming the human psyche, and to check and reverse this dangerous and nefarious trend, we must have recourse to philosophy and metaphysics, to old values and to religion, before we are doomed to annihilation and extinction from the earth."
The early issues of the journal featured essays by the famous American philosopher John Caputo, Paul F. Knitter, and our mentor, the late Fr. George McLean, who always held a special place in the editorial board.
In the year 2000, the journal's name was changed to Prajñā Vihāra: Journal of Philosophy and Religion. This reflected the renewed emphasis on its role as a promoter of pluralist thought and its role as the major English language journal devoted to philosophy and religion within mainland South East Asia. This mission is reflected the statement of its Aims and Scope.