Monks, Meditation, and Mummies

In honor of Halloween (which is actually also the anniversary of Martin Luther pounding his 95 theses on the door of the church in Wittenberg in 1517), I have dedicated a post to the mysterious mummified monks of Japan. While we are all familiar with the mummies of Egyptian acclaim, I argue that these mummies of northern Japan are more remarkable. Why? Because they didn't wait to die to be mummified; they did it themselves as the ultimate expression of devotion.

#2 - Talking to an Academic Professional

During my research on the Phoenicians, I had the opportunity to explore several aspects of their culture and understanding. My interview with Professor Hamblin here at BYU confirmed a lot of my knowledge about the culture and their educational practices, and also brought to light a few of the details that I missed.  Overall, it was an interesting experience to meet with him, because I didn't know him at all, and he didn't know me, (I don't think he even learned my name) and the first time we talked I called him and asked if I could interview him (after doing my research on different professors' specialties).  So picture this, well, awkward setting, when I show up to speak to him during his office hours, though it is an appointment, and he is late because of a department staff meeting, and we finally sit down and I start asking questions and he gives answers and I take some very messy notes.  Below is basically what I learned from our discussion about the Phoenicians and their culture and oral tradition.  

A) True B) False C) Other

The last few weeks I have posted a bit about the Hopi and their oral history.  First I gave a bit of an overview of their beliefs and then I posted more about their story and legends of how the Hopi people came to arrive here.  This week I want to talk a little more about how these stories are passed on and may evolve over time.  The picture below is of some Hopi kachina dolls.  Kachina in the Hopi tradition are spirit beings that represent anything in the natural world or in the cosmos.  They are said to have power over the many elements.

Hopi Kachina Dolls

Aspara and the Churning Sea as performance

Last week, I introduced the Khmer both as an ancient and a modern civilization. This week in class we have had rich discussions on myth and ritual. Our discussions reminded me of what I experienced visiting Cambodia in 2006. In preparation for the trip, we studied the myths that we would see repeatedly in the country, sort of like brushing up on the best hits of the Bible before touring cathedrals. We each were assigned several myths by my mother and subsequently relayed them for the enlightenment and education of our family. Once we arrived in Cambodia we found the myths everywhere and expressed much more eloquently than our home spun attempts.