CALL ME MAGGIE

Introduction to Great Religions

  • The coming schism

    An op, Ed from the Los Angeles Times that speaks to the growing rift between the highly conservative United States. Bishops conference for the Catholic Church here, and the Vatican, specifically, Pope Francis. While the pontiff makes every effort to… Continue reading

    The coming schism

  • Previously undiscovered neolithic circle of deep shafts near Stonehenge

    As the area around Stonehenge is among the world’s most-studied archaeological landscapes, the discovery is all the more unexpected. Having filled naturally over millennia, the shafts – although enormous – had been dismissed as natural sinkholes and dew ponds. The… Continue reading

    Previously undiscovered neolithic circle of deep shafts near Stonehenge

  • ‘One of a kind’ Egyptian tomb discovery revealed

    The tomb, found in the Saqqara pyramid complex near Cairo, is filled with colourful hieroglyphs and statues of pharaohs. Decorative scenes show the owner, a royal priest named Wahtye, with his mother, wife and other relatives. Archaeologists will start excavating… Continue reading

    ‘One of a kind’ Egyptian tomb discovery revealed

  • Of the usefulness of propriety and the uselessness of superheroes

    Started off the day asking about why we have such a big proliferation in the stories of superheroes. Finished the day by talking about Dào 38 and touching on a lot of the problems with professional education in the USA. Continue reading

    Of the usefulness of propriety and the uselessness of superheroes

  • Dyadic not dualistic

    It’s difficult to break out of the Western habitude of dualism. But it is especially important to make the effort when thinking of the Chinese notion of Yin Yang. Rather than another form of dualism in the history of philosophy, it… Continue reading

    Dyadic not dualistic

  • Prayer and Thinking

    We began with me sharing some ideas about the connection between prayer and thinking. We discussed Poem 27 of the Dào Dé Jing along with some forays into Poem 1. Continue reading

    Prayer and Thinking

  • Reverence Ritual Worship Worldview

    For this class, we took a step back to explore a few concepts before we move from India to China. Continue reading

    Reverence Ritual Worship Worldview

  • There is no one here

    After my good brother Andrew Teeter shared his experiences living in Korea and learning about the sacred traditions of the Korean people, we took a brief break. On our return, I lectured on the basic points of the Buddha Dharma… Continue reading

    There is no one here

  • Non-violence, non-attachment, non-singularity

    Because we were behind in our class readings/lectures, I spent the day making sure we focused on Jain Dharma. Continue reading

    Non-violence, non-attachment, non-singularity

  • Bhakti Redux

    Today’s class we went over the concept of Bhakti for a little while before we spent the majority of time in a circle discussing the purpose of education: devotion to learning, coming to knowledge, bettering our situation in the world… Continue reading

    Bhakti Redux

  • Diversity of worship, unity of thought

    Because we had roamed around in and out of a few topics yesterday, I decided to mostly lecture today with the hope that we would catch up a bit but that there would still be a lot of good questions… Continue reading

    Diversity of worship, unity of thought

  • Coordination, Subordination, and Exordination

    Yesterday in our class, the discussion led me to talk for a little bit about a distinction originally made by Marcuse, I believe, regarding soft versus hard totalitarianism. I extended this description out to all manner of group structures that lead… Continue reading

    Coordination, Subordination, and Exordination

  • Ordering expectations

    In Tuesday’s class, we touched on the diverse story traditions from ancient India. My colleagues spent time at the beginning of our meeting talking with each other about what they had discovered about Indian sacred traditions, and what questions this… Continue reading

    Ordering expectations

  • Introducing the Reality of Reality

    Beginning our section on Hinduism today. So I decided to do two lecture sessions. Continue reading

    Introducing the Reality of Reality

  • Ultimate Concern

    For our Thursday class, we began by everyone sitting in a circle on the floor. We stretched out our legs so that our feet touched each other completing the circle. Then we went around the circle and each named a… Continue reading

    Ultimate Concern

  • Explanations of religion

    Below my lecture from 13 July 2016. Before I addressed the students, we had more discussion on what we take for granted in the everyday world, and then we shared a few things we take for granted about religion. Our questions… Continue reading

    Explanations of religion