Dr. Akshay Gupta

Assistant Chaplain for Hindu Life and Religious Engagement

Dr. Akshay Gupta joined the Chaplain Office’s team in August 2024. He has years of experience serving the diverse needs of various religious communities, including college students, families, youth, and both Hindus and non-Hindus. Akshay is excited to offer compassionate care and spiritual guidance to both Hindus and non-Hindus in the Wake Forest community. Akshay’s approach to compassionate care and spirituality is informed by various perspectives. He believes in the importance of recognizing the impact that loss and grief has on our lives and that such loss and grief can come in various forms – both little and big. He also believes that we often have the insight and wisdom needed to tackle our problems already within us, and he strives to empower others to realize this potential within them.

Akshay’s approach to spirituality is also pluralistic. He believes that the world’s major religions ultimately have at a common aim – to connect with the Divine and others in the most intimate way possible. Thus, Akshay is committed to building bridges among different religious traditions and has an interest in interfaith dialogue.

Akshay also believes that a mature approach to spirituality requires both the head and the heart. The head side of his spirituality is informed by his academic training in Religious Studies at the University of Cambridge (Ph.D), Duke University (M.A.), and UNC-Chapel Hill. His research has focused largely on the Hindu tradition known as Vaishnavism and has spanned topics ranging from the problem of evil, social justice, and environmentalism. The heart side of his spirituality is informed by his chaplaincy training with Karuna Care, a Vaishnava chaplaincy initiative spearheaded by Rev. Robin Brinkmann.

Get Involved

If you’re looking to get involved with Hindu Life at Wake Forest University, you can sign up to get notified of any updates and events here.

Education

• Ph.D. in Religious Studies, Cambridge University
• M.A. in Religious Studies, Duke University
• B.A. in Religious Studies and Economics (double major), UNC-Chapel Hill