Vandana Sharma

	Dr. Vandana Sharma
Born	8 June 1981, Chandigarh, India
Nationality	Indian
Occupation	Philosopher, Academician, Researcher, Animal Rights Activist
Employer	Zakir Husain Delhi College, University of Delhi
Known for	Research on Advaita Vedanta and Upanishads
Awards	Swami Pranavananda Philosophy Book Award

Dr. Vandana Sharma (born 8 June 1981), also known as Vandana Sharma "Diya", is an Indian philosopher, researcher, academician, and Animal Rights Activist. She serves as an assistant professor at Zakir Husain Delhi College, University of Delhi.

She specializes in Darśanśāstra with a focus on Advaita Vedanta and the Upanishads. Her research explores the contemporary relevance of classical Indian philosophical traditions in addressing modern intellectual, ethical, and environmental challenges.

Dr. Sharma has authored and edited several scholarly books published by academic publishers including Cambridge Scholars Publishing, Motilal Banarsidass Publishers, and Chaukhamba Sanskrit Prakashan. She has received fellowships from the Indian Council of Philosophical Research (ICPR), the Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR), and the Indian Institute of Advanced Study, Shimla.

She is a two-time recipient of the Swami Pranavananda Philosophy Book Award conferred by the Indian Philosophical Congress and the Asian Philosophical Congress. Sharma has represented India at the World Congress of Philosophy in Greece (2013), China (2018), and Rome (2024).

In addition to her academic work, she serves as an advisory member of the Central Board of Film Certification.

Early life

Dr. Vandana Sharma was born on 8 June 1981 at the Army Base Hospital in Chandigarh, India. She was born to Brahmin parents Sudha Sharma (Prashar Gotra) and Subhash Chandra Sharma (Vashishtha Gotra).

She was raised by her mother and her maternal grandparents, Colonel Tribhuvan Nath Sharma (Spolia), an army officer, and Kamla Sharma (Spolia), a journalist. Her upbringing emphasized discipline, intellectual curiosity, and social responsibility.

Education

Sharma received her early schooling in South India and later completed her matriculation and higher secondary education at Rukmani Devi Jaipuria Public School, Civil Lines, Delhi.

She initially pursued hospitality studies and earned a Bachelor of Science in Hotel Management and Tourism from Surya Institute of Hotel Management and Technology, Pondicherry.

She later shifted her academic focus to philosophy and Indian knowledge traditions and completed a Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts in Philosophy, Religion, and Culture from the Department of Philosophy at Annamalai University, Tamil Nadu.

Sharma obtained her Ph.D. in Philosophy from Annamalai University. Her doctoral thesis was titled Adi Shankaracharya’s Advaita Vedanta: A Viable Solution to Environmental Disharmony. During her doctoral research she received the Junior Research Fellowship from the Indian Council of Philosophical Research under the Ministry of Education, Government of India.

She later undertook postdoctoral research at Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri Rashtriya Sanskrit Sansthan, focusing on the Prakaran Granthas of Adi Shankaracharya. During this period she received a Post-Doctoral Fellowship from the Indian Council of Social Science Research.

In addition, she completed a Diploma in Advanced Advaita Vedanta from the Chinmaya Mission Foundation, Ernakulam. She has also received certification in the Mandukyopanishad and the Ishavasyopanishad and completed a certificate course in Yoga from the Morarji Desai National Institute of Yoga.

Career

Dr. Sharma serves as an assistant professor at Zakir Husain Delhi College, University of Delhi.

She has worked as a residential researcher for the Atharvaveda at the Indian Institute of Advanced Study, Shimla. She has also conducted research at Kedarnath under the Government of India’s Pradhan Mantri Dwadash Jyotirlingam Project.

Her scholarship focuses on Advaita Vedanta, environmental ethics, and Indian philosophical traditions.

Her book Environmental Consciousness in the Nine Schools of Indian Philosophy, published by Cambridge Scholars Publishing, has been included in the collections of institutions such as Yale University, the New York Public Library, and Hong Kong Baptist University.

Her academic profile was also featured in The Panorama of Indian Philosophers and Thinkers published by Sanchi University of Buddhist-Indic Studies in 2023.

Sharma has delivered lectures and participated in academic programs at institutions including the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, Sapienza University of Rome, and Amity University.

Awards and honours

Shri K. S. Nagar Puruskar for the book Nature’s Wisdom: Indian Philosophical Insights (2024–25)
Swami Pranavananda Best Book Award for Prashnottara Ratna Malika (2019–20)
Letter of appreciation from the Dharmic Leela Committee for contributions to Bharatiya Gyan Parampara

Fellowships

Junior Research Fellowship – Indian Council of Philosophical Research (2017)
Post-Doctoral Fellowship – Indian Council of Social Science Research (2020)
Research Fellowship – Indian Institute of Advanced Study, Shimla (2022)

Notable works

Śani: A Comprehensive Study of Saturn in Global Traditions (2025)
Environmental Consciousness in the Nine Schools of Indian Philosophy (2023)
Nature's Wisdom: Indian Philosophical Insights (2022)
Śaṅkara Vedānta for Environmental Harmony (2021)
Ādi Śaṅkarācārya’s Praśnottara Ratna Mālika (2020)

References