Between Sacrifice and Desire

Between Sacrifice and Desire PDF Author: Ashley Pettus
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1135945500
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 249

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Book Description
This title explores the role of women in the politics of national identity in Vietnam. Drawing on diverse primary resources--including state news media, government contests, tabloid journalism, and extensive interviews--the author examines the intimate connection between notions of Vietnamese femininity and the cultural quandaries of modernity in post-colonial Vietnam. The book covers the socialist and market reform periods (from the 1950s through the 1990s) and examines women's central place--as both symbols and disciplined subjects--in Vietnam's socialist modernization and ongoing capitalist transition.

Rituals of Fertility and the Sacrifice of Desire

Rituals of Fertility and the Sacrifice of Desire PDF Author: Carol Ann Muller
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
ISBN: 0226548201
Category : Music
Languages : en
Pages : 350

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Book Description
In this text, Muller breaks new ground in the study of this changing region and along the way she includes details of her own poignant journey, as a young, white South African woman, to the other side of a divided society.

Capitalism and Desire

Capitalism and Desire PDF Author: Todd McGowan
Publisher: Columbia University Press
ISBN: 0231542216
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 305

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Book Description
Despite creating vast inequalities and propping up reactionary world regimes, capitalism has many passionate defenders—but not because of what it withholds from some and gives to others. Capitalism dominates, Todd McGowan argues, because it mimics the structure of our desire while hiding the trauma that the system inflicts upon it. People from all backgrounds enjoy what capitalism provides, but at the same time are told more and better is yet to come. Capitalism traps us through an incomplete satisfaction that compels us after the new, the better, and the more. Capitalism's parasitic relationship to our desires gives it the illusion of corresponding to our natural impulses, which is how capitalism's defenders characterize it. By understanding this psychic strategy, McGowan hopes to divest us of our addiction to capitalist enrichment and help us rediscover enjoyment as we actually experienced it. By locating it in the present, McGowan frees us from our attachment to a better future and the belief that capitalism is an essential outgrowth of human nature. From this perspective, our economic, social, and political worlds open up to real political change. Eloquent and enlivened by examples from film, television, consumer culture, and everyday life, Capitalism and Desire brings a new, psychoanalytically grounded approach to political and social theory.

Mimetic Theory and Its Shadow

Mimetic Theory and Its Shadow PDF Author: Scott Cowdell
Publisher: MSU Press
ISBN: 1628955058
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 262

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Book Description
Leading Girardian theologian Scott Cowdell seeks to resolve a long-standing challenge to mimetic theory: that it entails a fundamental brutishness—an ontological violence. Girard’s account of scapegoating violence, seen as providing the initial stability for our species to emerge and consolidate, hardly seems compatible with Christian belief in God’s good creation, with violence only appearing after a subsequent Fall. The brilliant but controversial theologian John Milbank has long raised this concern about Girard, grounded in a remarkably sophisticated (though seldom fathomed) philosophical theology. Unpacking Milbank’s program, along with Girard’s recasting of Continental philosophy in light of mimetic theory, Cowdell finds a way between two apparently irreconcilable positions. With irenic spirit but analytic tenacity, he probes for ways through Milbank’s arguments while pressing on growth points in Girard’s. Cowdell’s proposals involve reframing divine creation in light of salvation history, reimagining divine participation by thinking Christ and evolution together, and developing a semiotic approach to mimetic theory that delivers ontological peace hermeneutically. Cowdell shows how Girard’s vision of human transformation through faith in Christ reveals a different world beyond ontological violence while preserving the divine participation that Milbank champions.

Sacrifice your love [electronic resource]

Sacrifice your love [electronic resource] PDF Author: L. O. Aranye Fradenburg
Publisher: U of Minnesota Press
ISBN: 9781452904962
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 348

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Book Description
Sacrifice Your Love develops the idea that sacrifice is a mode of enjoyment--that our willingness to sacrifice our desire is actually a way of pursuing it. Fradenburg considers the implications of this idea for various problems important in medieval studies today and beyond.

Divine Ascension: A Journey to Enlightenment via Selfless Service

Divine Ascension: A Journey to Enlightenment via Selfless Service PDF Author: Keith R Parker
Publisher: Keith R Parker
ISBN:
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 279

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Book Description
"Divine Ascension: A Journey to Enlightenment via Selfless Service" by Keith R. Parker offers a transformative perspective on spiritual practice, drawing from ancient Vedic teachings and presenting them through a modern lens. This work invites readers to move beyond traditional paths that emphasize suppressing desires, restraining actions and detaching from outcomes. Instead, it proposes a vibrant, engaged approach to spirituality through selfless service. Parker's revival of Krishna’s teaching on Karma Yoga highlights the profound spiritual growth from serving others’ desires. By placing the desires of others at the forefront, we align with a divine force, leading to personal and spiritual evolution. This practice of selfless service is not merely an act of kindness but a profound spiritual practice that leads to the renunciation of selfish desires, fostering true spiritual growth and fulfillment. Each chapter of "Divine Ascension" delves into the practical application of these principles. The book emphasizes living a life of ordered harmony and divine increase, where spiritual and material wellbeing are interconnected. Parker draws from the Bhagavad Gita, providing insightful commentary on its teachings and showing how they apply to achieve higher consciousness. The journey towards enlightenment in "Divine Ascension" is framed as an active, integrated practice where the self and service to others merge seamlessly. This approach dissolves the traditional dichotomy between self-interest and self-sacrifice, presenting a path where personal fulfillment and spiritual growth are achieved through selfless service. The practice of Karma Yoga is a powerful tool for transforming one's life, leading to a deeper understanding and experience of one's divine potential. Through the alchemy of gratitude and the practice of Karma Yoga, "Divine Ascension" encourages readers to unlock their divine potential and experience God's presence in the everyday. This book is a call to action, urging readers to participate in their spiritual journey and find fulfillment through dynamic service to others. By embracing these teachings, readers transform their lives and touch the infinite, experiencing a deeper connection with the divine in their daily lives. Key Themes: - Redefining Karma Yoga: Parker challenges traditional Karma Yoga, emphasizing serving others’ desires as the means to innocently renouncing their own. - Active Engagement: The path to spiritual and material wellbeing favors the householder engaged in serving the desires of those they honor and love. - Integration of Physical and Cognitive Realms: The book shows how aligning physical actions with cognitive understanding leads to a harmonious and fulfilling life. - Practical Application of Vedic Teachings: Each chapter provides insights into how ancient teachings apply to active lives, achieving spiritual and material wellbeing. - Self-sacrifice as a Path to Enlightenment: The practice of selfless service dissolves the separation between self and others, leading to personal and spiritual fulfillment. - Gratitude and Divine Potential: The book emphasizes the transformative power of gratitude to God and its role in unlocking one's divine potential. Conclusion: "Divine Ascension" invites readers to transform their lives through selfless service and experience the divine in the everyday. Parker's commentary on the Bhagavad Gita and his modern reinterpretation of ancient Vedic teachings provide a compelling guide for those seeking deeper understanding on their spiritual journey. This book encourages readers to accelerate their spiritual evolution by embracing a life of selfless service, harmonizing their physical and cognitive realms, and unlocking their divine potential through Karma Yoga.

Sacrifice

Sacrifice PDF Author: René Girard
Publisher: MSU Press
ISBN:
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 124

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Book Description
In Sacrifice, René Girard interrogates the Brahmanas of Vedic India, exploring coincidences with mimetic theory that are too numerous and striking to be accidental. Even that which appears to be dissimilar fails to contradict mimetic theory, but instead corresponds to the minimum of illusion without which sacrifice becomes impossible. The Bible reveals collective violence, similar to that which generates sacrifice everywhere, but instead of making victims guilty, the Bible and the Gospels reveal the persecutors of a single victim. Instead of elaborating myths, they tell the truth absolutely contrary to the archaic sense. Once exposed, the single victim mechanism can no longer function as the model for would-be sacrificers. Recognizing that the Vedic tradition also converges on a revelation that discredits sacrifice, mimetic theory locates within sacrifice itself a paradoxical power of quiet reflection that leads, in the long run, to the eclipse of this institution which is violent but nevertheless fundamental to the development of human culture. Far from unduly privileging the Western tradition and awarding it a monopoly on the knowledge and repudiation of blood sacrifice, mimetic analysis recognizes comparable, but never truly identical, traits in the Vedic tradition.

On Sacrifice

On Sacrifice PDF Author: Moshe Halbertal
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 1400842352
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 147

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Book Description
The idea and practice of sacrifice play a profound role in religion, ethics, and politics. In this brief book, philosopher Moshe Halbertal explores the meaning and implications of sacrifice, developing a theory of sacrifice as an offering and examining the relationship between sacrifice, ritual, violence, and love. On Sacrifice also looks at the place of self-sacrifice within ethical life and at the complex role of sacrifice as both a noble and destructive political ideal. In the religious domain, Halbertal argues, sacrifice is an offering, a gift given in the context of a hierarchical relationship. As such it is vulnerable to rejection, a trauma at the root of both ritual and violence. An offering is also an ambiguous gesture torn between a genuine expression of gratitude and love and an instrument of exchange, a tension that haunts the practice of sacrifice. In the moral and political domains, sacrifice is tied to the idea of self-transcendence, in which an individual sacrifices his or her self-interest for the sake of higher values and commitments. While self-sacrifice has great potential moral value, it can also be used to justify the most brutal acts. Halbertal attempts to unravel the relationship between self-sacrifice and violence, arguing that misguided self-sacrifice is far more problematic than exaggerated self-love. In his exploration of the positive and negative dimensions of self-sacrifice, Halbertal also addresses the role of past sacrifice in obligating future generations and in creating a bond for political associations, and considers the function of the modern state as a sacrificial community.

The Ring of Representation

The Ring of Representation PDF Author: Stephen David Ross
Publisher: SUNY Press
ISBN: 9780791411094
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 274

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Book Description
This book asks how we may undertake to represent representation.

Between Human and Divine

Between Human and Divine PDF Author: Mary Reichardt
Publisher: CUA Press
ISBN: 0813217393
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 313

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Book Description
Between Human and Divine is the first collection of scholarly essays published on a wide variety of contemporary (post 1980) Catholic literary works and artists. Its aim is to introduce readers to recent and emerging writers and texts in the tradition.