Group Topic #1 - Study of Religion

I was pleasantly surprised to see that this week's readings were from the University of Alabama, as I actually grew up in Georgia (grades 2-12)!

http://www.free2pray.info/10commandments.jpg

When I read the example about the 10 commandments being put up in the courtroom, it took me right back to the week that it happened. I remember hearing everybody in school talk about it, how it wasn't worth all of the fuss, and how they didn't see anything wrong with it at all. Granted, that's more of a political debate regarding church vs. state, but it definitely points out the blurred (or non-existant) line drawn between religion and everyday life in the southeastern US.

Whether is was the "moment of silence" clearly intended for silent prayer; the pledge of allegiance stating, "One nation, under God;" or the heartfelt prayers read over the loudspeakers at every single football game; as an "outsider" (a non-religious Canadian), it was blatantly obvious to me what was classified as religion and what wasn't. On the other hand, I noticed that my friends had a harder time making that distinction, as it was all they had ever known.

In writing this, it has become clear that my idea of "religion" is biased in the sense that my family lacks a religious (or doctrinal) background. Anything different from what I knew in Canda was ultimately classified as "religion" in my mind. In this same way, anthropologists and other scholars have, over the years, classified other cultures' practices and beliefs as "religions" or "magic" mainly due to the foreign nature of their actions.

But back to my experience in Georgia, the discussion about "essentialism" and the "family resemblance" approach really jumped out at me, as there are religious people everywhere, it's just that I was now being exposed to a different "type" of Christianity. Also, growing up in the Unitarian Universalist church, many many different traditions were combined to varying degrees, making it impossible to classify someone as "purely" Christian, Buddhist, Muslim, etc.

It is impossible to study religions as distinct, separate entities, especially when studying East Asian traditions, which makes the "dimension theory of religion" so crucial. It is difficult to tease out the distinct qualities of religious traditions into "essentialist" concept, so instead we have to study them in connection to one another, and how they interact.

Blog Post #3 - The Sogdians

I found this week's readings really interesting, as this is the first time we've really mentioned the Silk Road religions in this course. Previous weeks served as good background material, but now we're starting to see just how these traditions made their way across Asia into China.

In particular, I was intrigued by the Manichaean religion, which I hadn't heard of before. The focus on the struggle between good and evil, light and dark, must have rung particularly true during these times when the Silk Road was full of dangerous groups trying to take control of unguarded areas.

When looking for more information on Mani and his ideas, I stumbled upon this website about the New Manichaean Church:

http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Rhodes/3991/NeoManichaean.html

This group concludes that the origin of evil is not what's taught in today's religious traditions. Instead, "the creator-God is ultimately responsible for the evil and suffering in the world, because that God is itself evil."

"If you use power over another person to convert them, you have not followed the Neo-Manichaean path. 'Power' does not just mean physical force but any unfair influence, such as superior wealth, social pressure, or even taking advantge of a person's loneliness by taking them into the family of the Church."

It's interesting to see a new-age revival of such an ancient tradition (carried by the Sogdians), especially one which traveled thousands of miles, endured relentless persecution, and survived innumerable translations of its texts.

Blog Post #2 - The Hao Hanshu, etc.

First of all, I apologize for posting this entry so late. I spent the long weekend away from solid internet access, so this was my first chance to post.

As for the Hou Hanshu, I have difficulty deciding whether or not to classify it as "historical." Granted, the (mostly) accurate numbers and great detail included are persuasive, but then again we have to admit that it was compiled from one particular perspective. It is impossible to get an "outsider's" view, hence any lack of objectivity (which came up over and over with our discussion of cultural relativism). Wars and battles will no doubt be glorified for this reason, and the outcomes may very well have been skewed in their favour.

On the other hand, the whole idea of cultural relativism is to study a group from the inside, using their perspective, rather than viewing it through another's eyes. In this sense, the Hou Hanshu can easily be considered historical. In the end, it is the only real record we have of that time period, making it the closest thing to a historical document as we are going to get.

Concerning the cultural references, it was interesting to read about the different regions' practices regarding marrying off princesses and the treatment of widows. The huge disparity between "virtuous widowhood" and the practice of marrying widows off to relatives of their late husbands was just one of many examples of the causes for tension between the various regions. Everything from land disputes to women to horses was cause for violence, resulting in a very, very bloody account of the Han dynasty.

The following link gave me a better understanding of the use of women to strengthen ties between neighbouring regions:

http://china.org.cn/english/culture/63515.htm

The section called "Figures Remembered" tells the story of Xijun (the daughter of the king of Jiangdu) and her time in Wusun, as told in chapter 4 of the Wood book. It also continues by discussing the subsequent marriages (and children) and how they influenced other "ethnic states" to marry into the Han dyansty.