Modis’ $1.5 Million Donation Launches Chair For Jain Studies At UCLA

India-West Staff Reporter

LOS ANGELES, CA – Jasvant and Meera Modi emphasized the importance of fostering peaceful dialogue in today’s polarized society while making their $1.5 million pledge to the University of California, Los Angeles.

“The principles of Jainism offer a unique lens through which to view such pressing challenges and opportunities,” Jasvant Modi said. “By raising awareness of these and related traditions in an academic setting, we can help the next generation to shape a better world. At UCLA, a university at the pinnacle of academic achievement, establishing this chair will enhance such work in a significant way.”

Their generous commitment, combined with an additional $500,000 from other members of the Jain community, supports the establishment of the Bhagawan Abhinandan Endowed Chair for Jain Studies and Religions of South Asia—the first endowed professorship in this field at UCLA.

This chair will fund the research, teaching, and public service of a distinguished faculty member affiliated with the interdepartmental program in the study of religion within UCLA’s Division of Humanities.

This effort builds on earlier initiatives, including a three-year lectureship launched in 2020 with support from the Modis and other donors.

While the chair holder has not yet been announced, the endowment will initially support a lecturer specializing in Jain studies and South Asian religions, alongside programming and curricular development, UCLA said.

Alexandra Minna Stern, dean of humanities, highlighted the significance of this expansion: “The opportunity to expand research and scholarship in this vital yet underrepresented field is particularly meaningful as UCLA seeks to shape a more connected and pluralistic community on campus and beyond. We are immensely grateful to Jasvant and Meera Modi and the Jain community for their generous support, which will allow our scholars to uncover key insights into the human condition and empower our students as global citizens and future leaders.”

Carol Bakhos, Robert E. Archer Chair in the Study of Religion and director of the UCLA Center for the Study of Religion, added, “It is a milestone for the program to house this chair, serving to put the religious dimensions of Jainism and other South Asian traditions in greater focus. There is no denying the importance of understanding the history of religious traditions and how they are shaped by social and cultural exigencies, often in reaction to other religious traditions — but at the same time, we want to understand them as lived religions.”

 Modi, a retired gastroenterologist and philanthropist based in Los Angeles, was born in Gujarat and moved to the US in 1975 after his medical education in Ahmedabad. He is deeply rooted in his Jain faith, which emphasizes nonviolence and respect for all living beings.

Since opening his private medical practice in Los Angeles in 1983 and later managing a long-term care facility, Modi’s commitment to service and supporting others has remained a defining aspect of his life. Education has been a singular cause for him and his wife Meera, who have in a short span of time spread their wealth in several academic campuses to further Jain studies and its humanistic principles