About Frits Staal
Johan Frederik "Frits" Staal was the department founder and Emeritus Professor of Philosophy and South/Southeast Asian Studies at the University of California, Berkeley. Staal specialized in the study of Vedic ritual and mantras, and the scientific exploration of ritual and mysticism. He was also a scholar of Greek and Indian logic and philosophy and Sanskrit grammar. In 1979, Staal became a corresponding member of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences.
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