Monthly Archives: July 2010

Revolutions in Thought (complete and final)

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I’m pleased to present the complete and final version of Revolutions in Thought.

Download the PDF here.

I had an amazing and challenging time working on this one. Traditionally, I teach the Asian philosophies and religions regionally — I only touched on Confucianism and Daoism when I discussed the history of China, for example. Until this year, I haven’t really done them all together. Thankfully I was able to frame them all in the context of the Axial Age. In the end, I believe I managed to make more out of this topic than I usually do.

I’ll write down my thoughts on all of this soon. For now, good luck to everyone in the coming exam! It’s going to be a doozy.

Some books to jump start your philosophy bookshelf!

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Interested to learn more about Eastern philosophy? Here are three must reads to get you started! All three are very, very readable and nice to read if you want to take a break from all the academics and just go with the flow.

All are available at Fully Booked. Just check for stocks. (The store I frequent, Fully Booked Bonifacio High Street, has multiple copies available.)

Clicking on the covers will lead you to some sites where you can learn more about them.

If you want to explore some of the references I used, here is a sample of my bibliography.

The following two books were most central in developing my approach to teaching religion and philosophy in the social sciences. These books helped me frame the discussions in terms of The Axial Age and the ethos of the various societies.

About that First Long Test

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Hey guys!

So your first ever LT is coming up really soon. Nervous? Here are some things that will help you to know.

1. Bring two sheets of yellow pad paper. Yes, yellow pad paper. Class officers of Dahlia and Ilang, tell your classmates now so you can prepare by Friday.

2. Bring your Analects and Tao Te Ching. You will need the primary sources for your exam. You can write your notes on them, I don’t mind. This exam isn’t about how well you memorize facts.

3. This will be your first real test in my class. The quizzes and questions in the past? They’re all warm up. Those who have been reading, listening, and working hard will be rewarded.

4. You’ll be reading some primary sources for Hinduism and Buddhism. How to prepare for them? Be as confident as you can with the Analects and Tao Te Ching. Sounds weird? You’ll see.

One thing you guys will realize about my class is that I’m not here to teach you how to take a test. I am here to teach you how to think. The test is going to be very tough. But here’s a final riddle: When there is difficult, there is easy. One causes the other. But how do we get there?

You show me.

Good luck!

In lieu of my absence today, July 19

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To my dear Champaca, Camia, and Jasmin,

I regret to inform everyone that I will not be able to join you today, July 19. I am recovering from viral tonsilitis (inflammation of the tonsils). This explains my loss of voice last Friday and why I can still hardly speak today. I also have flu-like symptoms that make it difficult for me to move around. I hope to be recovered well enough for work by July 20, Tuesday. See you then.

For now, I’d like everyone to work with the Annotated Lecture I’ve prepared below. This is my lecture in written form, complete with slide-by-slide commentaries and notes. I hope you find it useful in preparing for our discussions on Hinduism and Buddhism.

Regarding the schedule of the Long Tests, kindly make the following adjustments. Class Monitor, please –

  • For Camia, delete the entry for July 22. Make it July 26.
  • For Champaca, delete the entry for July 23. Make it July 26.
  • For Jasmin, delete the entry for July 22. Make it July 26.

Thanks for making the necessary changes; I will sign when I get back.

There is no change planned for the Long Tests for Dahlia and Ilang-Ilang. If everything goes well, we’ll have it on July 23 as scheduled.

Speaking of Dahlia and Ilang-Ilang, it will help me tons if you read up on the annotated lecture as well. :)

That’s it. Thanks very much and I hope to see you all very soon!

Best,

Sir Martin

Annotated Lecture: Ethos of Indian Religion

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DOWNLOAD THIS LECTURE IN PDF FORM (CLICK HERE)

This post is my annotated lecture on the Ethos of Indian Religion. In this lecture I discuss the context in which the Hindu and Buddhist traditions arose. We begin from the earliest traces of Indian civilization, touch on the impact of the Aryans’ arrival into the subcontinent, and discuss the shifting spiritual landscape that led to the rise of Indian religion. Continue reading →

From the unreal to the real

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Here are some interesting renditions of those popular lines from the Upanishads — Asato ma sad gamaya Tamaso Ma Jyotir Gamaya Mrityor Ma Amritam Gamaya Om Shanti Shanti Shanti.

Here is a traditional rendition of the chant:

The chant is also used prominently in the cinematic magnum opus, Navras, from Matrix Revolutions. Thus music itself is also laced with a lot of Hindu themes.

OFFICIAL: Facts and Myths on Pisay’s “New Rules”

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This is the official fact sheet from the CISD office given to the different academic units for dissemination during today’s faculty meeting. We have been instructed by our unit head to circulate this, and here’s me doing my part.

Statement #1: There are so many new rules.
Status: MYTH
Explanation: FACT is, only 3 things were changed from previous handbook. (1) Submission of excuse letter for being absent is on the day itself. No more 10-days grace period. (2) Parking is limited at the back area is no longer allowed for parents and visitors. (sic)

Statement #2: No guitar rule
Status: MYTH
Explanation: There is no such rule.

Statement #3: No ice cream rule
Status: FACT
Explanation: Students are not allowed to buy from the vendor outside the school fence. Even if the ice cream is Selecta or Nestle we cannot allow them to buy through the fence for safety and health reasons.

Statement #4: No walk out rule
Status: MYTH, but this has been modified
Rule: Students have to wait for their teacher but if the teacher is not around the students can leave after 10 minutes.
Modification: The CISD has instructed the class monitors to have the class wait, then after 10 minutes the class monitor will go to the CISD office (they can call) to ask if there are any instructions left for the students by their teacher. If no special instructions were given then the CISD will inform the monitor that the class is free to go. Therefore, teachers should inform the CISD if they will be late or absent.
Reason for the modification: Some teachers unavoidably come late and would like their class to wait for them. (Note: There have been instances of misbehaviour by students during the absence of a teacher. If the CISD and/or the DO are informed that the class is not doing anything then we will be able to check on them or direct them to do something productive.)

Statement #5: Unattended bags will be confiscated.
Status: FACT
Explanation: This has been in the DO primer and the handbook for several years now. Definition of unattended: the owner is not around for a long period of time. This is being implemented by the DO with the help of the janitors and the CAT officers. Strict implementation has lowered the number of losses.

Statement #6: Students cannot go home before 3:30
Status: MYTH
Explanation: The guards have a copy of the class schedules. Students can leave if they have no more classes. If they want to go home early because the class has been dismissed or the teacher is not around they have to secure a permit from the SSD. Only those who have classes up to 4:10 are required to attend the flag retreat.

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Again, thank you very much to the CISD for coming out with this. I hope this clears everything up for everyone. May we now go back to working hard at making Pisay the fun and fulfilling place it can be!