Category: Culture and Society

Beobachtungen zu Kultur, Gemeinschaft, Gesellschaft, Alltag, Tradition und sozialen Formen zwischen Europa und Indien.

Empty

Indian Philosophy and PracticeCulture and Society·MantrasMusicLanguageSilencePerceptionTo becomeNovember 4, 20225 Min. Lesezeit

For many years now, my mind has been filled with emptiness most of the time. My memory isn't good either, and I often repeat words or sentences in my mind without knowing why. Often, it's simply experiences in a word in an endless loop, so to speak, like a mantra. This worried me for a long time. I tried to find excuses and justifications for it. For example, that I've done a lot of mental work and my mind is simply exhausted, down to...

Context

Indian Philosophy and PracticeCulture and Society·DeleuzeUpanishadsTo becomeKnowledgeOctober 5, 20223 Min. Lesezeit

Schopenhauer, der ein großer Bewunderer der Upanischaden war, schrieb ein kleines Buch „Ueber die vierfache Wurzel des Satzes vom zureichenden Grunde“ (1847). Er identifiziert 4 Formen der Kausalität, z. B. kleine Ursache – große Wirkung, oder große Ursache – kleine Wirkung etc… Mich hat das fasziniert, weil es ein breiteres Verständnis bietet als das rein naturwissenschaftliche Modell, das letztlich immer dem Energieerhaltungssatz folgt. Wenn z. B. jemand einen Krieg erklärt, so ist das ein relativ einfacher Akt (kleine Ursache) und…

Knowledge

Indian Philosophy and PracticeCulture and Society·SufferingUpanishadsTo becomeKnowledgeSeptember 18, 20224 Min. Lesezeit

There was a time in Europe when people spoke of polymaths. In Germany, that would be Alexander von Humboldt or Goethe; in France, an Enlightenment thinker; in Italy, the Renaissance man Leonardo da Vinci. In antiquity, Aristotle. Certainly, in many cultures and eras, there have been wise people whom history tells us knew everything that could have been known at the time. This is nonsense, of course. But this narrative serves a longing. We want to know everything, but we have...

Getting out is a question of perspective

Culture and SocietyArt and Perception·RelationshipTransformationPerceptionAugust 29, 20223 Min. Lesezeit

Life is so complex, and there are so many different ways to live. There is no right or wrong way to live. Life is a gift. But what do you say about the negative energies, destruction and aggression, greed and envy? All of that is part of it. There is only acceptance. But acceptance doesn't mean approving of everything, nor does it mean tolerating everything. If a community decides to establish rules and penalize the violation of those rules, then…

Moist media

Culture and SocietyTechnology and AI·MediaNatureTo becomeAugust 27, 20223 Min. Lesezeit

Our brain is not the seat of our mind, but the medium through which we can reach the spiritual. When I first heard this many years ago at a conference on media theory, I was astonished. Did they really mean it? Is that crazy or brilliant? There is this beautiful old-fashioned word, ‚subtle.‘ Our body is a medium through which we can reach this. Our media theories are generally conceived in a technological way. There is...

Carried by feelings

Culture and SocietyPhilosophy and Consciousness·RelationshipLoveDeathTransformationAugust 27, 20223 Min. Lesezeit

I live in a hypercomplex society. I notice this in political and social issues, which ultimately no one can truly grasp in their complexity anymore. We can cling to principles, such as justice, equality, freedom, consideration, sustainability, etc. but in concrete situations, it becomes difficult. Should I take one side or the other in a conflict, or is there a third way? Which of my own behaviors should I change, and how radically should I...

How do you build a city?

AurovilleCulture and Society·AurovilleNatureTransformationTo becomeAugust 24, 20223 Min. Lesezeit

I'm embarking on an experiment. A city is being built in Auroville. It is dedicated to humanity. It's about exploring consciousness, spirituality, and unity. UNESCO supports the project, the Indian state, many people around the world. There is a charter, a plan, many plans, many opinions, progress, and difficulties. Nobody is perfect... I'm going there to help, and therefore I don't want to comment before my arrival. That would be completely presumptuous. I...

Social utopia

Culture and Society·AurovilleTransformationTo becomeAugust 24, 20223 Min. Lesezeit

Eines der folgenschwersten Missverständnisse der letzten Generationen ist die Verwechslung von ökonomischen und politischer Theorie. Es scheint fast ein Konsens zu sein, dass Kapitalismus als politische Theorie verstanden wird. Es mag viele Gründe geben, warum Kapitalismus politisch verstanden werden muss. Sicher gibt es auch Gründe, warum Kapitalismus oft zusammen mit Demokratie gedacht wird. Für viele Menschen ist das sowieso das Gleiche. Demokratie ohne Kapitalismus oder Kapitalismus ohne Demokratie scheint vielen unvorstellbar. Es klingt synonym. Das ist gefährlich, weil es suggeriert,…