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burst-of-iridescent · 1 year ago

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South Asian and Hindu Influences in ATLA (Part 1)

disclaimer: i was raised culturally and religiously hindu, and though i've tried to do my research for this post and pair it with my own cultural knowledge, i'm not an expert on hinduism by any means. should i mess up, please let me know.

please also be aware that many of the concepts discussed in this post overlap heavily with religions such as buddhism and jainism, which might have different interpretations and representations. as i'm not from those religions or cultures, i don't want to speak on them, but if anyone with that knowledge wishes to add on, please feel free.

it's well-known that atla draws from indigenous, east and southeast asian influences, but something i rarely see discussed in the fandom is the influences the show takes from hinduism and south asia, and there are actually far more than i think people are aware of.

so here's a (non-exhaustive list) of the main inspirations atla drew from south asian culture and hinduism, starting with...

The Avatar

the title of the show itself is taken from the ancient language of sanskrit, often considered the sacred tongue of the hindu religion. in sanskrit, the word "avatar" means to "descend" or "alight".

the concept of the avatar is a very old one, referring to the physical incarnation of a powerful deity or spirit. the idea of the avatar is most often linked to the god Vishnu, one of three supreme hindu gods collectively called the trimurti, or trinity. the avatar is said to manifest upon earth primarily in times of great need, when balance must be maintained between the forces of good and evil.

atla borrows heavily from this idea in having aang be the incarnation of a divine spirit who returns to the world during a time of immense strife, and is tasked with defeating a great evil to bring balance back to the world. and though i don't know if it was an intentional reference, it's interesting to note that Krishna, the most famous incarnation of Vishnu was also reborn amidst a fierce storm and carried through a raging sea to a new home where he would be protected from the king who sought to kill him. sounds a little familiar, doesn't it?

Agni Kai and the Philosophy of Firebending

the word "agni" derives from the sanskrit name Agni, the god of fire, though it can also generally mean "fire".

the concepts of lightning bending and the sun being the source of firebending are likely also taken from the idea of Agni, since he's said to exist simultaneously in three different forms on three different dimensions: as fire on earth, as lightning in the atmosphere, and as the sun in the sky.

Agni is a significant aspect of many rituals, including marriage rites, death rites, and the festivals of holi and diwali. the concept of Agni is one of duality: life and death, rebirth and destruction. hindu rituals accept and celebrate both aspects, revolving around the idea that destruction is not separate from creation, but rather necessary to facilitate it. the cremation of the dead, for instance, is seen as purification, not destruction: burning away the physical form so the soul is unencumbered, set free to continue the reincarnation cycle.

this influence can be seen in the firebending masters episode, which discusses the idea of fire being vital to life. the sun warriors safeguarding the original fire and demanding that zuko and aang bring fire to the dragons as a sacrifice could also reference the ritual of Agnihotra - the ritual of keeping a fire at the home hearth and making offerings to it. the purpose of this ritual differs depending on which text you refer to, but it is generally believed to purify the person and atmosphere in which it is performed, similar to how zuko and aang must make offerings to ran and shaw and survive their fire before being deemed worthy and pure.

Agnihotra is said to serve as a symbolic reminder of the vitality and importance of fire as the driving force of life, a lesson that zuko and aang also internalize from their encounter with the dragons.

Bumi

bumi's name is taken from the sanskrit word "bhumi", which means "earth". it's also the name of the hindu goddess of the earth, bumi or bhudevi.

one of the things the original animation didn't do and which i really enjoyed about the live action was that they made bumi indian and added desi inspiration to omashu. it makes perfect sense for a king whose name is as hindu-inspired as they come.

NWT Royal Palace

chief arnook's palace in the northern water tribe takes inspiration from the gopurams of hindu temples, massive pyramidal structures that served as entrance towers to the temple.

gopurams were built tall enough to be seen for miles around, beacons to signal tired or weary travellers who wished for a place to rest that a temple was nearby. it's a nice touch that the chief's palace is located in front of the spirit oasis, a similarly symbolic entryway to a sanctuary housing otherworldly deities.

Betrothal Necklaces

to preface: i doubt this was an intentional reference, and this great post talks about other cultures that could have inspired the water tribe betrothal necklaces. given the desi influence in the nwt architecture however, i figured it was worth mentioning.

the idea of betrothal necklaces being given to women by their male partners is similar to the thaali, a necklace given to hindu wives by their husbands. during hindu weddings, grooms tie the thaali around their brides' necks to symbolize their marriage. once given, wives are expected to wear their thaali till the day they die, as doing so is believed to bring good luck, health and prosperity to their husbands.

Chi-Blocking

though chi-blocking takes primary inspiration from the art of Dim Mak, it is also influenced by the south indian martial arts forms of adimurai and kalaripayattu, both of which include techniques of striking vital points in the body to disable or kill an opponent.

kalaripayattu also shares parallels with firebending, being a very physically demanding, aggressive martial art that emphasises the importance of discipline and mental fortitude. control of the mind is essential to control of the body, a philosophy similar to that espoused by iroh across the show.

Wan Shi Tong's Library

the library draws inspiration partly from the taj mahal, the famous mausoleum constructed by shah jahan during the mughal empire as a monument to his beloved wife, mumtaz mahal.

i'll end this post here since it's getting too long as it is, and the following section will be even longer. for while atla treated the concepts in this post with respect, the same unfortunately cannot be said for its depiction of guru pathik and combustion man - both of which we'll be discussing next.

#atla #avatar the last airbender #atla cultural influences #hinduism in atla

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haru-dipthong · 5 months ago

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Fansub release for Utena ep 19 + Japanese culture lesson

Utena: やっぱり若葉って普通の女の子なんだね。きっといいお嫁さんになるよ。

WHAT a loaded line. Let’s look at my translation of the first part:

Utena: You’re such a normal girl, Wakaba.

I think this line shows that at this point in the story, Utena has come to terms with the fact that they’re not a “normal” girl, but despite this self-recognition, they still see normalcy as something inherently good that one should strive for. They’re still in the clutches of an idealised status quo. Now let’s look at the next part. A literal translation would be:

Utena: I'm sure you'll make a good bride. (from ohtori.nu)

But like… who says it like this in English anymore? While this phrasing sounds natural in Japanese, it sounds extremely old fashioned and weird in English. How would a native English speaker voice the same thought? I think it would be something like this:

Utena: You’ll probably make some guy very happy. (my translation)

This means the same thing, but sounds much more natural. This is another example of how to be a good translator, you need to be a good writer. You can’t just transpose words of the same meaning, you have to understand the thought behind the words, and then write a new sentence with the same thought behind it, but in the target language.

Wakaba: そうよ。ようやく気づいたの。やっぱり私はあの王子様が好きなんだって…　そして、神様のおかげで王子様もやっと私の事振り向いてくれるようになったのかなって。

Wakaba: You’re right. I finally realised. I do love that prince of mine. And maybe, somehow… Something will finally happen between us.

There are a few things I want to talk about in this passage. First of all, 神様のおかげで. This is a phrase that literally means “because of the kami-sama (/positive)”. It’s often translated as “thanks to God” or “by the grace of God” or “thanks to divine intervention”, but to translate it this way is to erase the nuances of Japanese religious custom and worse, Christianise a non-Christian character.

In Japanese culture, Shinto and Buddhism are seen by the vast majority of people not as religions, but as customs. According to several surveys, approximately 70% of Japanese people specify they have no personal faith, despite statistical research showing that about 70% of Japanese people practice Shinto rites and practices, and another 70% of Japanese people practice Buddhist practices. This is because Japanese people follow these practices as a matter of culture and custom, not of faith. Participation rates in 初詣 (hatsumode), the first shrine visit of the year, are extremely high despite many participants not truly believing in the spiritual aspect. In Japan, Shinto and Buddhism are more about tradition and participation than faith and affiliation. And this is just based on anecdotal evidence from my own life, but I think a lot of Japanese people wouldn’t be able to explain the difference between Shinto and Buddhist belief systems. They all get blended together as part of the culture. Shinto and Buddhism ARE Japanese culture. The teachings of those religions inform the Japanese way of looking at and interacting with the world, despite the spiritual elements not being directly believed by many Japanese people.

On top of that cultural background, the concept of “kami-sama” (or just “kami”) are not God, or even gods. Generally, Shinto kami are more spirit than god, with kami said to inhabit everything from ancient trees to ramen bowls. In a way, they’re like the essence of the world. One could even say they are “the universe”, in the same way that secular English speakers might say “the universe is trying to tell me something”.

I don’t believe this line is showing that Wakaba is a believer in Shinto. It’s just showing that she believes that the universe is rotating in a favourable way for her. The “kami-sama” that she mentions are not literal kami or gods, but simply an indication that, through no direct action of her own, something good is happening to her (I have confirmed this interpretation with my dad, who is Japanese and was raised in Japan).

Wew… okay. Onto the second thing I wanted to talk about in this passage LOL

王子様もやっと私の事振り向いてくれるようになった

The final translation for this line was:

Something will finally happen between us.

But a more literal translation would be:

He’s finally looking my way.

In fact, I actually liked this more. I thought the imagery from the original Japanese was nice, and it translated directly quite well. The only problem was that pesky pronoun…

As Anya rightfully pointed out, you could read this as a setup for Utena being Wakaba’s prince. Certainly it’s all there in the text — Wakaba did repeatedly insist that “it’s not like that” between her and Tatsuya, she often treats Utena like a boyfriend, and it would even explain her getting flustered after Utena pressures her to reveal who her “prince” is at the lunch table. And let’s not forget Tatsuya’s line “I noticed that she looks the happiest when she's with you, Utena.”

Some of this exchange had to be rewritten to completely avoid using any singular pronouns, lest we spoil the reveal at the end. For example, this line had to be changed from a focus on the prince to an indirect line about the both of them. I think the line still captures the general sentiment, but it’s a shame it had to change so much from the original phrasing!

Thanks to @dontbe-lasanya for the amazing editing, especially for picking up the pronoun issue when talking about the prince!

Follow my blog if you'd like to stay up to date with new episode releases! You can see all episodes released so far here:

Rose divider taken from this post

#revolutionary girl utena #rgu #shoujo kakumei utena #sku #utena #translation #japanese culture #japan #japanese language #langblr #utena fansub #official blog post

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newkatzkafe2023 · 4 months ago

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So remember how a while back I requested a yonder monkey King, X, real world, reader? Well, do you mind doing that but with legend of monkey King Wukong 1999?

You don’t have to do that if you don’t want to I just thought I’d ask

Your character is sorta of a mix between Kuriko from Junji Ito's the bully and clay puppington from moral orel

(Lotmk Wukong) God everything about this cartoon annoyed the hell out of you as a child. You remember this show clear as day and let me ask you this, do you know how frustrating it is to watch someone get mistreated so badly and just lay there and takes it. Well those were your thoughts on Wukong when you watched him take so much bullsh*t from the pilgrims and heaven as you watched every Saturday morning😡 you loved Wukong's character but if he didn't do something about his doormat nature you sure as hell will. Which leads us up to here where you went to bed and woke up as in the legend of the monkey king 1999, As a female monkey with a magic gun that never runs out of bullets. When Wukong and the rest found you, it was love at first sight for Wukong and Secretly you as well though they were clearly some obstacles. You didn't care for tripikata's noticeably jaded nature and would have no issues undermining him when he teaches Wukong about some Buddhism because it's always clashing with your own lessons Mocking and obviously contradicts his. You always tell him "It's fun to be immature about somethings Wukong" "when you make mistakes it's not always your fault Wukong" "why do you let them take you for granted so much Wukong". When your not Making Wukong go over his life situation your terrorizing pigsy and sandy and harshly bullying monk, You would often pull on tripikata's long ear lobes and streek in Sandy's ears every time he tries to concentrate or sleep. Pigsy was treated the worst by you having to endure his flirting and whining you had attempted to drown him in swamp water, beat him with a large stick, push him off short but painful cliffs the final terrible thing was pushing Pigsy towards a wild beast and watch him run from it for two hours before shooting it with your gun all of this behind Wukong's back. You knew you would go home after the journey however you had miscalculated on a few things, like how Wukong would grow attached to you and your sadistic and immature personality. Granted you treated him way better then anybody ever did, spoiling him and even enabling him on the questionable things he would do. when your got to the end you were still where you were, looking around for an exit it's when you learn that Wukong had made a pack with you as his wife making sure you both stay together forever. This pissed you off like never before as you took out your entire frustrating situation out on the pilgrims behind Wukong's back, and if Wukong wants a wife he's gonna get a loving, controlling, and strict motherly wife.

FEEL FREE TO REBLOG

#monkey king reborn #monkey king x reader #monkey king netflix #nezha reborn #lmk monkey king #monkey king hero is back #x female y/n #black myth wukong #the destined one x reader #lotmk 1999 #yandere writing #yandere #yandere x yandere

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talonabraxas · 2 days ago

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Archaeon Haniel and Archeia Maryllisa, the Lady Radiant. Talon Abraxas

Archaeon Haniel is Chief of the Virtues and Chief of the Principalities. He may also be known as Aniel, Hamiel, Anafiel or Anael. His name means "He who sees God". Haniel is a master of the lessons of polarity and duality and of synchronicity, who brings together friends and lovers and then supports them in their relationships. He also rules all matters of peace, beauty, grace and art and brings harmony and inspiration to our lives. He is ruler of the month of December, the astrological sign of Capricorn, and thus may be associated with Saturn. He is closely connected with the planet Venus from where he and his twin flame originate, which is illustrated by their luminescent white skin and hair. They came to Earth long ago with a large team of Ascended Beings and Angels to serve with Sanat Kumara and Lady Venus Kumara in their endeavours to return Earth to the Path of Light. Gautama Buddha and Sananda (Jesus) both also originate from Venus and it is said too that Venusians were early Earth settlers in the times of Lemuria.

Depicted by some as wearing an emerald green robe and carrying a lantern, he showed himself to us wearing a ceremonial cloak of feathers in the Aztec style. This brings out his associations with the Aztec ruler and God, Quetzalcoatl, as whom he incarnated many years ago in what we know as South America. He has had other incarnations, another one of which was as one of Gautama Buddha's first pupils and his affinity with the principles of Buddhism remain an important aspect of his teachings now. Haniel also works closely with Sanat Kumara, the Maha Chohan, Hilarion, Uriel and Metatron. He helps us utilise star energies, especially when we use them to make or charge healing remedies or energise crystals. His Archeia, the Lady Radiant, is known as Maryllisa for the flower "Amaryllis Belladonna" — a play on the words meaning "a Mary lily: beautiful lady". They have a retreat on Earth called ETAE, which means "and always". This is situated both on the surface and in the ethers of the highest of the mountain ranges of Puno, north / north-east of Lake Titicaca in Peru.

Haniel works with the White ray of Purity and the Orange Ray of Logic, Reason and Knowledge. This ray has the depth and thrust to get right to the "heart of the matter" and is the ray to move us away from living life solely through our emotional body where we are constantly reacting to events that have already happened in our lives, to a life where we are taking the initiative and actively shaping the life we want to have. It is the ray of the researcher and the scientist, but on a personal level it encourages new ways of thinking, supports expansion of all our senses and challenges us to extend our boundaries or change our perceptions. Haniel is also a teacher of the theme of illusion and expectations — he shows us what our expectations are (of ourselves, others or situations we find ourselves in) and then shows us which expectations are justified and appropriate and which are not. He thus teaches us to have realistic expectations of ourselves and others. This guidance may help us recognise our inner feelings and identify patterns of behaviour more clearly. Haniel said: "In order to stand for your truth and speak your truth, you need to know your truth. And to know your truth you need to know yourself. And that means looking within, to examine and question each and every part of your existence — to truly understand your own feelings. Many peoples' issues are clouded with the beliefs they have about themselves that they hold to be true, but which simply are not! Those beliefs may have been given to them through others' opinions or words; or from their own emotional reactions to things that have happened in their life; or the belief systems that have been an integral part of their lives — past and present. Few people have the ability to see through to their very core: to see themselves as they truly are. Find yourself first — and then find your truths." Haniel also helps us to live in the present — to be consciously living each and every waking minute, without wasting time and energy over what has happened / is going to happen. Living in the present helps us flow through life, with faith and trust.

Haniel helps us accept our true Light and know that we function on many levels of consciousness, even those we may not yet be aware of. He can accordingly help strengthen our perceptions on the etheric (psychic) levels. By truly knowing ourselves, our talents and abilities and seeing and understanding our true Light we are encouraged to live our lives fully, trusting in ourselves and what we can accomplish. His pure and clarifying light falls on us to help us see the truth and reality at the heart of ourselves, showing us without artifice or illusions so that we know who we truly are. His energy puts us into the spotlight, enabling us to see what our true abilities and talents are. Once we accept our qualities and value ourselves and our capabilities Haniel then gives us the courage to live them and walk our path in the Light of Truth. He gives us the self-belief and strength to show others what we do, how we live, and what our ideals are — and to be proud of it. He will help us dissolve any feelings we may have of not being worthy and give us the confidence to "walk our walk" and "talk our talk". This frees us up to show ourselves and others exactly what we can do and not be embarrassed by it, ashamed of it or be troubled about others reactions to it. By living our truths openly and by being seen to do so, we may hopefully encourage others to do the same. Haniel had this to say: "In these days there is a need for people who are prepared to stand up and say 'This is what I believe in: This is what I find works', even at the risk of feeling foolish, and even if what you say goes against what is regarded as conventional truths or wisdom. Throughout history there are always forerunners; those who have perhaps brought ridicule upon themselves for their strange concepts and new ideas. But in the end those new ideas have been accepted as truth, and believed, understood and accepted by others as a consequence. And that is also what we need today — more people prepared to stand up for their truths and to be counted and who are prepared to make a difference in the world as she moves forwards toward the end-times."

MESSAGE FROM HANIEL:

If you could see yourselves through my eyes, you would know how beautiful and wondrous you truly are. Ever changing and evolving patterns of Light, constantly moving and rearranging in the language which spells out exactly who and what you are. In your pure energetic forms, the forms you have for most of your existence, your story may be read. No masks or artifice - simply YOU as you ARE. And there is no shame in this exposure, no need to hide, no need for excuses or apologies. For all is revealed, and all IS as it IS. And as such you see all others too as they are. And in this way all exist openly and proudly, knowing "This is ME" "This is who I AM". There is no judgement, no competition. Each one of you is as important as the next, and each one is loved for what they ARE, and not what they think others want them to be.

In truth there is no such thing as imperfection, for all of you at heart are pure sparks of energy. So be not afraid to stand up for yourself as who you are, as how you look, and as what you do and what you stand for. Those who matter will see past the surface to the truth that is you, and some may be impelled to take a closer look, to find within you that which they have been seeking for themselves.

It takes but one voice to make a difference and one torch bearer to light a path for the many to follow. Take my hand, and take that step.

I salute you all for your courage and companionship as fellow travellers on the path back to God.

May many Blessings light your ways.

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rorah · 8 months ago

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Dimitriverse here. And I'll use it as pretext to talk about Hopes. 'In this essay I will ☝️...'/j I must be one of the few - if not, the only one- (who's not on board with the anti-church propaganda |Just in case: I grew up in an atheist house| and not a Byleth hater either) who actually liked hopes because it supports and enhances houses narrative view (contrary to the common belief that it's the opposite).

Hopes shows a constant comparison between both games. And we know that this universe plays a lot with the parallels between different characters, and relationships. Both similarities and contrasts. Hopes is a contrast, seen from Shez's perspective.

It is established from the beginning that they only see the superficial positive qualities of the leaders, just like general tone presented of this game.

Here I'm going to focus mostly on AM's goal and its contrast in AG.

In AM Dimitri achieves redemption and benevolence through forgiveness and acceptance. These lessons he learns from Byleth - the teacher/ the guide/ the enlightened one (the class enlightened one is mea to alude that who have more knowledge and greater understanding of something, who also aludes to the original aspect of the game. Nirvana. The JP Byleth class) in an indirect way. Byleth in turn gets it from the goddess herself but also their life lessons/experience from GM, and the people surrounding them. WC is an important and crucial stage in Byleth's development, as is the interaction they have with the diverse students they tutor.

The role of Byleth goes beyond a mundane "self-insertion" of the player. Byleth is meant to be a bridge between that goddess and humans: the path to Nirvana.

Both forgiveness and acceptance are mentioned in the game but can go unnoticed due to the level of subtlety they are mentioned, but they are core elements in Buddhism such as compassion and wisdom that serve as a path to inner peace and freedom (specially for the leaders who rule over big factions of people), and breaks the chain/cycle of suffering, anger, revenge, resentment, among others.

And that reminds me of Arval's constant words: "the cycle of this world". What does Arval mean? The cycle of this world… said by an Agarthan "deity", whose only role in the game has been to generate constant conflicts between the inhabitants of Fodlan and beyond perhaps? so that they kill each other. I don't know Joe, something here smells weird -wink wink- (Not to mention it also emphasizes the qualities achieved through Nirvana)

It's Important to understand the importance of Forgiveness and everything involved in the act. Understanding forgiveness, as a spiritual practice, goes beyond simply letting go of resentment. It involves cultivating mindfulness and compassion towards oneself and others. Since the game has heavily references and basis from Buddhism you can grasp it from there (more than Christianity, I'm sure different faits have somewhat different or similar approach to some concepts). But need to mention the act is also applied from a physiological and neurological perspective (in case you're not much of a "fait" person like me. I still like the Buddhism take tho, from a philosophical standpoint💖).

Anyway, Dimitri AM manages to learn those lessons and is not just "to learn to live for himself", which is also important, but it is only possible to achieve it through the through the acts already mentioned: forgiveness, acceptance, compassion, etc. Acts that acts that are practiced externally towards others but which are mostly an act towards oneself. Compared to Dimitri AG where the path chosen is revenge.

Misfortune always dogs the steps of one who gives way to the desire for revenge.

Does he get the answers he thinks he wanted? Yes Did it satisfy him? A Dimitri fan knows it didn't. Can Dimitri's friends help him? No, because they're in a similar situation or under similar believes, and this game displayed it.

Sopilers: No, they won't get anything from getting revenge and certainly doesn't help to move on. Much less Dimitri, who's mental health has only been addressed at the end of a couple of supports. Is Shez a bad person? No! but they help no one and just goes along with whatever the leader says. Is Arval/Epimenides a bad entity? This is where I think, the original concept of the game is applied, the one mentioning. There's no good or bad, only a matter of perspective. But of course, that's something arguable and extense that deserves its own analysis.

At the end of all 3 routes, the war continues (despite having finished off Thales in AG) because the cycle continues. The cycle of anger, of suffering, of revenge, of prejudice, etc. And in my opinion, I think that's beautiful (the comparison, I mean). Thanks for coming to my Ted talk

#Long post #fodlan ramblings and analysis #thoughts on games #fire emblem 3 houses #fire emblem warriors 3 hopes #dimitri alexandre blaiddyd #fe3h #few3h #holy kingdom of faerghus #On the other hand #I think my Dimitri paint needs some fixing >__>#artists on tumblr #Disclaimer: i am not an expert in Buddhism principles so take what I said with a grain of salt

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writerbuddha · 9 months ago

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As a Buddhist I wanted to know what your opinion is on people criticising George Lucas for ‘stealing from philosophies he didn't understand or respectfully engage with’.

Uh-oh. This is a very complex issue. I might stir up the hornet's nest.

To be entirely honest, throughout the years, I've met these four types of the people who would claim, George Lucas is "stealing from philosophies he didn't understand or respectfully engage with."

There are many people who have no accurate recollection and/or understanding of what they saw in the movies and the tv show. For example, they would insist, mindfulness of emotions in the movies is presented as repression of emotions, or that non-attachment is presented as not having families, which are obviously not in line with Buddhist and other Eastern teachings, so they conclude, George Lucas is "stealing from philosophies he didn't understand or respectfully engage with." These people are, in my experience, genuinely well-meaning, they simply misunderstood some of the core messages and lessons. A good example is that some people would accuse George Lucas with twisting the Taoist "Yin" to mean evil, because the "dark side is an essence of evilness", which is not what the movies, the tv show and Lucas are saying at all.

There are some people who simply don't like and feel threatened by Buddhist and other Eastern teachings George Lucas depicted in Star Wars - mostly non-attachment and mindfulness of emotions - but they identify as progressive, and for them, that is irreconcilable with not liking, feeling threatened by and therefore attacking those Buddhist and other Eastern teachings. So, they entertain the idea that if George Lucas would "understand and respectfully engage with" those teachings, they would not have any issue with them at all, because they imagine, they would affirm their beliefs and attitudes instead of challenging them. This is a quite problematic attitude: in fact, these are the people who don't understand or respectfully engage with these philosophies.

There's an extremely marginal but very loud group who actually recognized, they misunderstood the core messages and lessons George Lucas was telling, so their takes on Star Wars are simply inaccurate - but, for various reasons (including, but not limited to using Star Wars as a means to cope with traumas, mental health issues etc.) they won't accept this, so claiming, George Lucas is "stealing from philosophies he didn't understand or respectfully engage with" is their way of sticking their heads into the sand. I.e., "the Jedi are not teaching Buddhist non-attachment, George Lucas is just appropriating Buddhist philosophy" etc.

And finally, there are those who don't like the fact that George Lucas depicted Buddhism and other Eastern philosophies in his movies and would try to use this statement, George Lucas is "stealing from philosophies he didn't understand or respectfully engage with" to present their outrage over the fact that George Lucas dared to introduce these non-Western philosophies to Western audiences and that it became extremely popular, as a progressive and woke position to take. The biggest problem with this group is that it's somehow convinced that erasing Buddhist and other Eastern teachings from Star Wars is a Good Thing.

Honestly, this fourth group is the one I'm the most concerned about. Here are people who would also signal ethnic nationalist ideas and prejudices i.e., basically claiming, Buddhism is copyrighted and non-Eastern people have no right to practice or teach it, which is, to be frank, an attack on Buddhism itself. Or those who actually have no understanding of or interest in these philosophies, but are desperate to find someone to "expose" for wrongdoing - these are those who didn't care until it was cool to care, and feel that it's George Lucas' fault that they didn't care before, even though he was always very clear on the fact that he depicted these philosophies in his movies and that he was inspired by Eastern cultures.

And here, I would point out that in my personal experience, those people who, for example, would say that George Lucas should have made Yoda (his Jedi Master who is "like a little Dalai Lama" and "Buddha-like" as he said) an elderly Asian man, are by and large would not say, George Lucas is "stealing from philosophies he didn't understand or respectfully engage with," but would make more nuanced statements and they would make them in good faith, without running around asserting things like George Lucas can't be a sincere Buddhist practitioner because he can't etc. and - again, in my personal experience - they would be able to recognize and would be more than happy to see these philosophies depicted in Star Wars. In other words, they're more about the how, not the what.

#star wars #george lucas #buddhism #star wars fandom #fandom problems #anon ask

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lilianasgrimoire · 1 year ago

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Witchcraft 101: An Introductory Post

What is Witchcraft?

Witchcraft is the practice of magick. It's a series of techniques one uses to harness and/or manipulate energies externally or internally to change one's surroundings of circumstances as well as themselves. This can be done through using herbs, stones, crystals, and other materials.

Witchcraft can, and is, performed in a plethora of ways. It can be done through meditation, spell work, rituals or even baking and cooking. Witchcraft is as unique as you are. To practice witchcraft you do not need a religion, however most people practice witchcraft to feel more connected to their chosen religion. Witchcraft is as unique as the individual demonstrating it.

What makes someone a witch?

A witch is a person who practices magick. Witches can come from any background, any age, race or gender and religion. The term 'witch' is a gender-neutral, universal name. A being who claims the title may do what they desire with the craft. There are many types of witches, all of which are nature based. Not all witches are interested in the same type practise, however. One may prefer the study and use of crystals, and another being drawn to divination or even one of the elements.

A witch is neither good or bad, as they are only human.

There aren't any rules to being a witch (unless your religion states otherwise). Whilst you don't have to be religious to be a witch, most witches who practise, are most commonly Wiccan.

What is Paganism?

Pagan is an umbrella term for the many non-Abrahamic religions. This included Hinduism, Wicca, Buddhism, Sikhism, etc. However, not a lot of people fall into a specific type of religion that comes under paganism but still believe in & worship more than one God/Goddess or Greater being such as the elements, for example. Many, if not most, witches, fall under the Wiccan religion.

Paganism, across all sub-genres, follow holidays/festivals, and in many religions, many they follow The Eight Sabbats, or Wheel of the Year. The Sabbats, depending on the religion, have slight variations in terms of rituals, timing and practicing of the holidays i.e. which God/Goddess is associated, traditional colours or foods. It also is up to the individual as to what they do and don't want to celebrate.

"All Wiccans are witches, but not all witches are wiccan. All Wiccans are Pagan, but not all Pagans are Witches."

Religion VS. Spirituality

Religion and spirituality are often meshed together and difficult to differentiate the two. Some people believe there is a blurred line between them, whereas another may believe they are two completely different topics.

So, how can we tell the two apart?

Religion is an institutionalised system of certain attitudes, practises and beliefs; often the service or worship of a greater being than ones self or the supernatural. A religion is often based upon life lessons and teachings of a historical or archetypal figure. Typically, there is a place of worship, such as churches, temples, mosques and cathedrals. Religion is a structured organised system that is heavily rule based with it's main focus on the faith of the religion (scriptures of being infallible and ultimate or truth. Acceptance and the surrender to the Divine are taught as the path to complete and ultimate salvation. Religion is one path for all to follow.

Spirituality is a connection that one has to something that is much larger than yourself. Spirituality is an aspect of humanity where an individual seeks and expresses meaning and purpose through the connection they experience to a moment. People who are spiritually awakened liv4e life in a reverent and sacred manner. Yoga, meditation and contemplation all help a person to start, progress and explore their journey. Many use these practices to reach out to their spirit guides, past lives and even advice from outside forces. Each journey is unique. Spirituality is often referred to as a "pathless path". Spirituality is about following your own path and learning, growing, loving and acceptance on a more personal level. Unlike religion, spiritualists do not follow a set of rules n regards to their inward journey but, faith is not dismissed and entirely acceptable to incorporate with spirituality.

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venusiandollz · 19 days ago

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My original film in my fame dr

Somewhere, still ours

rating : PG-13

run time : 1 hour and 30 mins

Genre : Romance Drama

Director : N/A

Plot : The story follows two people from different backgrounds who meet and fall into a relationship. One of the main characters, Kyomi Anderson(me), grew up with rose-colored glasses when it comes to love,her parents had a whirlwind romance that shaped her passionate and pure view of relationships and love. Then we meet Lotus Carter, who represents the opposite perspective. His view of love is complicated by witnessing his parents' nasty divorce during his childhood. As the movie unfolds, we follow their relationship journey, watching them learn important lessons about letting people in and navigating the ups and downs of love.

plot twist : Kyomi ends up dying in the end but Lotus doesn’t let that effect him, instead uses it as a way to honor her by not locking his up heart and doesn’t let it flaw his view of love that Kyomi taught him.

Meaning of their names

Lotus : Lotus grows beautiful through muddy waters, in Buddhism it a metaphor for life you are the flower and the water is the reality and to rise above it

Kyomi : innocent and pure

Aesthetic :

Idk who will play lotus 😭🙏🏽

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itmethanh · 11 months ago

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when you lose everything, that's when you're finally free // mae aniseya

thought process/meta under the cut!

THEMES

MAE'S SMILE: I was grief stricken for mae but also happy for her for a couple of reasons: this was her choice, her challenge with being too codependent on osha is finally resolved, she no longer has to hold onto the grief and anger that burned her all these years (the internal fire she started). her smile reminds me of how Buddha is often depicted smiling. We ascribe happiness to the expression but can be closer to a sense of equanimity, mental calmness, composure, and evenness of temper, especially in a difficult situation. In other words, balance. (we know Jedi philosophy borrows so much from buddhism that it's quite profound mae demonstrated non attachment as part of her character arc finale.)

MEMORY GAP VISUALIZATION: Qimir performing a memory rub on her felt so interesting to me. I loved the idea of capturing both the lightness and heaviness of having all this love for someone and not being able to give it to them anymore. and how it feels when. our love gives shape to the memory of someone in their absence

QUOTE: The original idea was to write some lines from the poem that the twins recite under the tree but then I saw a fan edit of Qimir saying he lost everything (etc...) I thought it was a bittersweet moment for her to parallel her former master's lesson

#itmethanh draws #the acolyte #mae aniseya #amandla stenberg #star wars fanart

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astra-ravana · 4 months ago

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The Influence Of Past Lives

If existence is a river, then past lives are the stones beneath its surface—shaping the flow, unseen but ever-present. We walk through this life with instincts and inclinations that have no clear origin, as if echoes from another time whisper in our hearts. Why do certain places feel familiar though we have never been? Why do some people awaken within us an unexplainable recognition, as if our souls have met before?

Perhaps our joys and struggles are not born in this moment alone, but are remnants of journeys we have walked before. The lessons unlearned return, presenting themselves in new forms, urging us to complete what was left unfinished. Love, loss, fear, and wisdom cycle through us, carving the soul like waves against stone, refining and reshaping who we are. If we listen closely, we may begin to hear the stories of who we once were, guiding us toward who we are meant to become.

You Have Lived Before

The concept of past lives suggests that the soul is eternal and experiences multiple lifetimes through reincarnation. Many spiritual traditions, including Hinduism, Buddhism, and various esoteric philosophies, believe that each lifetime provides lessons for soul growth. These past incarnations shape your current personality, fears, talents, relationships, and karmic lessons. Knowing and understanding one's past life experiences can allow us to move through this life with wisdom and knowing.

How Past Lives Affect Your Present Life

• Unexplained Fears & Phobias

• A strong, irrational fear (e.g., drowning, fire, heights) may stem from a traumatic past-life event.

• Inexplicable Talents & Interests

• Some people naturally excel in skills like music, languages, or healing arts, possibly carried over from previous lifetimes.

• Deja Vu & Strong Soul Connections

• Meeting someone for the first time but feeling an intense connection could indicate a past-life relationship (soulmate, karmic bond, or soul family).

• Recurring Life Patterns & Karma

• Struggles or repeating patterns in life (toxic relationships, financial hardships) may be unfinished karmic cycles that need resolution.

• Birthmarks & Physical Ailments. Some believe birthmarks correspond to past-life injuries or significant events. Chronic pains with no medical explanation could be energetic imprints from a past incarnation.

Methods for Remembering Past Lives

Meditation & Self-Hypnosis:

• Find a quiet space, relax, and visualize a golden doorway labeled “Past Lives.”

• Imagine stepping through it and allow images, emotions, or flashes of past experiences to arise.

• Journaling immediately after can help process and analyze what you see.

Dream Work & Intuitive Messages:

• Before bed, set an intention: "Tonight, I will remember a past life."

• Pay attention to repeating symbols, historical settings, or identities in dreams.

• Keep a dream journal to track patterns over time.

Past Life Regression Therapy:

• A trained hypnotherapist or regression specialist can guide you into a trance state to access past-life memories safely.

• This method often uncovers key experiences, relationships, and karmic themes.

Tarot & Divination:

• Use tarot or oracle cards with questions like"What lesson from a past life influences me now?" or "Who was I in a past life that is affecting me today?"

• Look for Major Arcana cards like Judgment (rebirth), The Wheel of Fortune (karma), or The High Priestess (hidden wisdom).

Records Exploration:

• Some believe there to be an energetic library of every soul’s history (sometimes referred to as the Akashic Records).

• Meditating and asking to access your soul’s record can reveal past-life insights, soul contracts, and lessons.

• Feeling deeply drawn to (or repelled by) a particular time period, culture, or place may indicate a past-life connection. Visiting locations that feel “familiar” could trigger past-life memories.

Working With Deities and Spirits

Many deities, spirits, and entities across different cultures are associated with memory, reincarnation, and uncovering past lives. Here are some that are often invoked for such purposes.

Deities Associated with Past Life Recall:

• Mnemosyne (Greek) – The Titaness of memory, Mnemosyne governs recollection and insight, making her a powerful ally for past life recall.

• Thoth (Egyptian) – The god of wisdom and knowledge, Thoth can aid in retrieving hidden memories and understanding karmic lessons.

• Shiva (Hindu) – As the god of destruction and transformation, Shiva can help dissolve illusions and reveal past-life truths through deep meditation.

• Hekate (Greek) – Being the goddess of liminal spaces, necromancy, and magick, recovering past life memories is definitely in the realm of Hekate's influence.

• Yama (Hindu/Buddhist) – The lord of death and reincarnation, Yama oversees the cycle of rebirth and can provide insight into one’s soul’s journey.

• Kuan Yin (Buddhist) – The bodhisattva of compassion, Kuan Yin helps individuals navigate past-life traumas and karmic healing.

• Anubis (Egyptian) – A psychopomp god who guides the souls of the dead to their rest. He is familiar with the soul of each human, which makes him great for past life recall.

• Hermes (Greek) – The messenger of the gods who can slip between realms of time with ease. Also known as a psychopomp and knowledge keeper.

General Spirits:

• Record Keepers – In esoteric traditions, there exists spiritual libraries containing all souls' histories, and their keepers can help reveal past lives. The spirits who keep these places are like librarians with access to extensive knowledge.

• Ancestral Spirits – Connecting with one’s ancestors through rituals or dreams can uncover past-life connections and wisdom.

• Psychopomps (Soul Guides) – Spirits that guide souls between lives can help retrieve past-life memories.

Otherworldly/Demonic Entities:

• Paimon – Known for his vast knowledge, Paimon can provide deep insights into past lives, hidden truths, and esoteric knowledge.

• Agares – Said to reveal hidden knowledge, Agares may assist in uncovering past lives.

• Orobas – Known for truth and knowledge, Orobas may provide insight into one’s reincarnations.

• Azrael – Azrael helps souls transition between lives and may aid in understanding past incarnations.

• Vassago – Known as a spirit of prophecy and hidden knowledge, Vassago can help reveal past-life memories and karmic patterns.

• Glasya-Labolas – A spirit of wisdom who can reveal secrets, including those of one's past lives and spiritual journey.

• Dantalion – A prolific knowledge keeper, Dantalion may be able to offer aid in past life recall.

• Buer – A demon associated with wisdom and philosophy, Buer can aid in understanding the lessons carried over from previous lifetimes.

• Lucifuge Rofocale – A demon of deep wisdom who may assist in revealing past-life secrets through occult practices.

• Astaroth – A spirit of knowledge and hidden wisdom, Astaroth can help in uncovering past-life memories through divination.

• Foras – A demon of forgotten knowledge who can assist in regaining past-life awareness and lost spiritual insights.

• Ronove – Known for teaching languages and hidden wisdom, Ronove may aid in recalling past-life skills and knowledge.

• Metatron – A spirit of knowledge and keeper of the Book of Life, Metatron is familiar with all of the soul's incarnations.

Spell for Past Life Recall

This spell is best performed on a full moon or during a quiet evening. This spell is gentle and safe, but for deeper exploration, you may combine it with dream work, guided meditation, or divination tools like tarot.

Needed:

• A purple or white candle

• A small mirror or bowl of water for scrying

• Mugwort, lotus, or lavender incense

• A journal and pen

Instructions:

Light the candle and incense. Sit in a comfortable position with the mirror or bowl of water in front of you. Take deep breaths and focus on calming your mind. Stare into the mirror or water, allowing your vision to soften. Recite the following:

"Veil of time, now grow thin,

Show me where my soul has been.

Through the ages, my past I see,

Reveal the truth, return to me."

Keep your gaze on the reflective surface. Allow any images, emotions, or sensations to come naturally. Do not force them. When ready, blow out the candle and thank any spirits or energies present. Immediately write down any visions or feelings in your journal. Past life recall can take time and practice. Repeat the spell when needed and look for patterns in your dreams and meditations.

Healing & Integrating Past-Life Knowledge

Once past-life memories emerge, it's essential to process and integrate them:

• Forgive & Release old karmic wounds to prevent repeating cycles.

• Acknowledge Strengths gained from past experiences and apply them to your current journey.

• Work with Spirit Guides or ancestors for guidance in resolving past-life karma.

• Do shadow work to understand your own behavior in previous lives and now.

By uncovering past-life experiences, you gain deeper self-awareness, healing, and spiritual evolution, allowing you to live more fully in the present. While one can certainly get through life without exploring their past incarnations, they will likely repeat the same patterns and relearn the same lessons. Integration of past life experience raises our level of consciousness in this life, allowing us to navigate life’s challenges with understanding and relative ease.

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mydogatemymotivation · 3 months ago

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Kanan Jarrus and Buddhism

This is a very long post. (oh my god I’m so sorry. It got away from me. I just kept going)

Kanan Jarrus is the best example of Buddhism in Star Wars, if not one of the best examples in modern television. Disclaimer: I have only a surface level understanding of the religions I’m about to get into, so if you know more about these religions or time periods in history, please share the info you have or share sources. Pretty please. I love history. Especially Religious History. Ok, moving on.

One last disclaimer: None of this will be a perfect one-to-one retelling of any religious mythology or ideology. It’s about the overarching themes and lessons.

I don’t know whether the Jedi are strictly Buddhist in teachings. I don’t think they are, I think they pull from a lot of different Eastern religions. However, at the time of the Clone Wars, I think they mirror the institution (for lack of a better word) of orthodox Hinduism at the time of Buddhism’s founding.

To be clear, I’m talking about the public perception of Hinduism as an institution, not necessarily the religion. I don’t have a clear enough understanding of Hinduism to have any kind of meaningful discussion of the religious aspect (if anyone has good sources, please let me know). To put this very, very, very simply, orthodox Hinduism has a concept of Sanatan Dharma the “Eternal Order”. There is the Brahman which both is the universe and created the universe. Brahman established and maintained order. The Vedas, Hindu Scripture, encouraged acceptance of one’s place in life – no matter how difficult or impoverished – while priests lived well from temple donations. The human soul is immortal. And there are the concepts of karma (action) in accordance with dharma (duty) to break free from the cycle of rebirth and death (samsara) and attain union with the oversoul (atman). That’s what I have in my notes, but keep in mind that Hinduism is so deeply complex that this explanation is the equivalent of someone burning instant noodles then trying to judge Cutthroat Kitchen. So. Take what you will, research the rest.

Part of the problem, at the time of Buddhism’s founding, which was around 563 – 483 BCE, Sidhartha Gautama’s estimated lifetime (the specific dates vary greatly, but his estimated lifetime is all around the same time period), was that the Vedas were all written in Sanskrit, which most people didn’t read, and the average person relied on Hindu priests to read the Vedas for them. On top of that, there was the caste system, an incredibly complex system, but put briefly, if you were born into a poorer caste, it was because you belonged there or had done something in a past life to warrant the suffering you were enduring. The fear of death was also looming. With the soul being eternal, death meant rebirth, possibly into another life of suffering, and people wanted a way out.

I’ve made about five different versions of this paragraph, but I keep getting dragged into other points I want to make, so I’ll leave it at this. A self-governing universe, and the eternal soul are the two main parallels to Hinduism. And 10,000 knights is a considerable number – if they spread their impact more individually. They weren’t meant to be a full fighting force, as a unit. Institutionalizing created resentment and division. They shouldn’t have consolidated. They were involved in politics that they shouldn’t have been, and they were living well in their Temple on Coruscant, presumably living off taxpayer dollars. Could the people of Coruscant afford the Jedi? Very probably, but should the people of Coruscant have to pay for a religious order that’s infiltrating their political sphere? No. All this to say, all institutional (not individual) religion is wrong. I’ve seen some posts joking about how the Jedi are Catholic because they punish people who practice differently than they do, but Hinduism has done the same with the caste system. Because people with the power to even the playing field don’t want to give up their advantage – in any religion. But I’m losing my main point.

How does any of this relate to Kanan?

There are Buddhist ideals within the Jedi Order and the Jedi Code, but they are fully realized with Kanan. And to realize these ideals, Kanan had to be removed from the Jedi. If you don’t know the story of Siddhartha Gautama, I’ll recap briefly. Siddhartha was a Hindu prince. His father was told that he would either be a great king or a great spiritual leader. His father didn’t want him to be a spiritual leader, and kept him locked away, essentially, but one night, Siddhartha snuck out. He then saw an aged man, a sick man, a dead man, and an ascetic man (ascetic: characterized by severe self-discipline and abstention from all forms of indulgence, typically for religious reasons). He panicked, realizing that he too could age, get sick, and die. While he was upset, the ascetic man was at peace, and Gautama decided to follow a religious life. So, on another night, he left his palace for good to seek enlightenment. (I don’t know where else to put this, but there’s some sort of symbolism, in relation to Buddhism, about the jedi temple being turned into a palace. I feel like that means something deeper than the obvious jab at the jedi.)

Kanan’s story isn’t a one-to-one retelling of the Buddha’s, but I do feel like he hits all the main points, and that’s what I want to expand on. First, I want to make a case for the four signs.

The aged man: Rex. A relic of a bygone age, and a symbol of the end of the Jedi. Not his fault, but that’s what he represents to Kanan. Seeing him so unexpectedly, and so much older frightened him.

The sick man: Maul. Not necessarily physically sick, but sick, nonetheless. Watching that sickness spread to Ezra and realizing how sly and corrosive it was had to have been sobering. As much as he was trying to coach Ezra through his call to the dark side, he was learning from Ezra, too.

The dead man: Luminara. This one was my brother’s idea, I was originally thinking something more symbolic and was going to say Caleb. But Luminara as a confirmation that there is no going back, that the Jedi are truly dead and gone, makes more sense.

The ascetic man: Dume. Not the Bendu. When I was talking to my (aforementioned) brother about this, he was telling me about someone who’d made a post about how it was bad karma to euthanize a suffering animal. That the animal must’ve done something in a past life to deserve the suffering he was enduring in this life. He was, of course, shot down by everyone else. That even if it was bad karma to put this animal down, letting it continue to suffer was worse. It’s better to take the hit on your own karma for kindness, than cruelty. The Bendu reminds me of the first commenter. Neutrality to the point of indolence. To the point of pain and suffering. You aren’t supposed to turn your back on the world or the pain of others, you’re supposed to alleviate it. Dume, and his lothwolves, were the ones who were willing to get involved in protecting their home world. Not just for themselves, but for everyone on Lothal. Because they understood that suffering couldn’t continue. You’re a part of the world. You’re not supposed to detach from it.

This leads me to my next point. Attachment. The great question mark of the Jedi Order. I think the reason people struggle so much with the concept of attachment is because many Star Wars fans don’t know much about Buddhism – and this is the place where the Jedi and Buddhists overlap the most. It will be easier to speak about this if we change the language. Don’t think “attachment”, think “craving”.

This is the crux of Buddhism’s “Four Noble Truths”.

Life is suffering.

The cause of suffering is craving.

Ending craving, ends suffering.

There’s a path that leads away from suffering and craving.

Say you go to a dinner party. When it ends, you don’t throw yourself on the floor of your host’s house and demand the party continues. You thank your host for their time and leave. You go in knowing the party will end, and you accept the end gracefully when it comes. If you go into the party craving more time than you’re allotted, being attached to the idea of staying, you’ll suffer when the party ends. But even if you accept the party will end, that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy yourself when you’re at dinner. Eat, drink, be merry, just know you will have to go when your time ends.

Let’s take a look at Anakin and Kanan, and their respective love interests. Anakin didn’t understand not to crave Padmé. Even when he thought her time was ending, he craved more. Not for her, but for him. She was a famous senator during wartime. There were already several attempts on her life before they were even together. Did he think it could last forever? He didn’t want to think about the end. He didn’t want to believe it could end. When the end was in sight, despite knowing she was as human as he was, despite knowing she couldn’t live forever, he threw himself on the floor demanding her life continue.

Kanan would never. He was fully aware of the fact that Hera’s life would end one day. Whether it was when she was a storied old woman, or the very next day in a battle gone wrong. In the episode “Protectors of Concord Dawn”, Hera is very nearly killed by Fenn Rau, one of the rare fighter pilots that was able to best her. Had this happened to Anakin and Padmé, Anakin would’ve teetered on the edge of the dark side, going after Rau for revenge, craving more of Padmé’s time or Rau’s death as penance for him nearly losing her. Kanan, however, went to Rau in peace. He was worried about Hera (and slightly distracted, considering Sabine was able to sneak aboard the Phantom) but he was levelheaded, and was able to complete Hera’s mission for her.

Kanan was able to love Hera, without being attached to her. Without craving her. He was happy with her, and when it came to an end, he accepted it, and was able to let go. This was the lesson he finally fully realized when he met Dume on the road. That his time would end, but there was nothing to fear when it did.

In my opinion, Hera fits in two different places in the story of Siddartha. When Siddhartha first left to pursue his life of enlightenment, he tried to live an ascetic life, a life of devotion to religion through suffering. But he didn’t reach enlightenment, only more suffering. This ends eventually, when he can’t find what he’s looking for, and he ends his starvation when a milkmaid, Sujata, offers him food (though there are other versions of how Siddhartha ended his asceticism). After years of study, Siddhartha went back to his palace to get his wife, Yasodhara, and his son, Rahula, both of whom stayed with him until his death. I see Hera as Sujata, the woman who offered him food and a new path, and as Yasodhara, his wife. During his time spreading his teachings, Siddhartha had five believers – disciples in a way – who traveled with him, even back during his asceticism. Kanan, similarly, has five traveling companions while he teaches Ezra his ways.

When Siddhartha died, he died teaching a lesson.

Make my teaching your light – rely upon it

Make yourself a light – rely upon yourself

Control your mind – your mind will make of you buddha or beast

Death is but a vanishing of the body

He passed away, with his wife and child by his side, and was eventually cremated.

After his death, we never really saw him again. We had a brief glimpse of Dume, and a memory of him through Hera’s eyes, but it wasn’t him. Qui-Gon, Obi-Wan, Yoda, Anakin, Leia, and Luke, all had force ghosts. I know that it was a technique that only a few knew, but I don’t feel it represents the best of the Jedi’s teachings. Speaking of Buddhism, I feel as though learning that technique is making the active choice to forfeit escaping the cycle of reincarnation. They’re Boddhisatva’s, not Buddhas. A bodhisattva is just that: someone who can reach enlightenment but chooses to teach others the path instead. The only true Buddha in Star Wars is Kanan, even shaving his hair in his last episode, as so many Buddhists do.

The Jedi do have many overlapping ideals with Hinduism, Buddhism, and Christianity. I think it’s irresponsible to say that they are only one of those or are definitely not one of those. Star Wars is popular all over the world, but there’s no denying that a large chunk of the fanbase is in western countries, and the writers are almost always from western nations. And I say that because many of the people interpreting Star Wars, and almost all the people writing it, have a certain Christo-centric lens. Maybe the Jedi order does pull from Eastern religions but acting like the people writing these characters don’t have bias is wrong. Acting like there is no other religion mixed into the Jedi is just blatantly false.

As I said, I don’t know much about Hinduism, so maybe there is a deity that fits the bill, but if you look at the Sith, they are demonic. Not in a Christian fearmongering way, but in a legitimate, they’re based off demonic characters in mythology (all religion is mythology, it just is, please don’t start). There’s a reason Vader’s palace is on Mustafar, the Star Wars equivalent of hell, there’s a reason Maul has horns. But I’m getting sidetracked again. I’m trying to say that these characters and their motivations are better understood when you take a realistic look at their inspirations. Kanan, and the Jedi’s meaning of “attachment”, is better understood when you study Buddhism. Everyone who watches Star Wars is taking their biases into the world with them.

I need to wrap this up because it’s waaaaaay too long already. But I’m going to leave you with three things. Buddhism’s eightfold path, the Jedi code, and the Sith code.

Right Understanding

-We should learn and try to understand the truth

2. Right Purpose

-We should always try to do whats right

3. Right Speech

-We should be truthful and kind in all we say

4. Right Conduct

-We should try to behave ourselves at all times

5. Right Livelilhood

-We should earn our living in a way which will not harm anyone

6. Right Effort

-We should constantly try to improve ourselves

7. Right Thought

-We should have good and pure thoughts because words and actions arise from thoughts

8. Right Meditation

-We should concentrate our will when we meditate

There is no emotion, there is peace.

There is no ignorance, there is knowledge.

There is no passion, there is serenity.

There is no chaos, there is harmony.

There is no death, there is the Force.

Peace is a lie. There is only Passion.

Through Passion, I gain Strength.

Through Strength, I gain Power.

Through Power, I gain Victory.

Through Victory my chains are Broken.

The Force shall free me.

I did my best with the religions that I spoke about, and I’m not trying to needlessly criticize any of them. Some people in each religion are good, some people in each religion are bad. I tend to view actual religious practices as neutral, and dependent on whose practicing them. So if I got anything really wrong, or really egregiously offensive, please kindly let me know, so I can try to fix it.

It may read like homework to you, but I promise I’m having fun.

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jasper-book-stash · 19 days ago

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May 2025 Reading Wrap-Up

I spent most of this month chipping through one book between various problems going on. And then several books through various, worse problems going on.

1/10 - Why Did They Publish This?

None applicable.

2/10 - Trash

None applicable.

3/10 - Meh

None applicable.

4 to 6/10 - Mid-Tier

Joy At Work: Organizing Your Professional Life | Marie Kondo, Scott Sonenshein

So, this book sucked and didn't suck to a far lesser extent than it sucked.

For the most part, in the Marie Kondo portions (except when talking about specific other people) Marie will use a lot of "we/us" and "me/I", while Scott will use a lot of "you" (direct you, not general you) and "he/she" in the narration instead.

Another thing that got me about this book is that it's...privileged, I guess is the word. The example people and the authors are all well-off enough that they can just quit their jobs and work solely because they want to work in whatever field, rather than having to keep an eye out for making sure they can cover all of their bills.

It also has a pretty heavy focus early on about making more money for the company being a motivator for tidying up around your work space, which also puts me off.

Most of this book was the Scott asshole. Ultimately, I think it comes down to this: The ex-Silicon Valley tech bro who's now a professor should not have been involved in the writing of this book. He was grindset-focused rather than paying attention to Marie Kondo's own lessons in the book.

Overall, 4 out of 10. There are some helpful things in here, but it's not worth it overall. Read Marie Kondo's other books on tidying instead.

7 to 8/10 - Good With Caveats

The Dharma Of Star Wars | Matthew Bortolin

So firstly I want to say that this book is actually meant for fans of Star Wars who are interested in a Buddhist analysis of episodes one through six, and that it was published in 2005 (well before most modern Star Wars stuff, obviously). My passing knowledge of Star Wars via the LEGO adaptation of it and pop culture understanding via Tumblr memes and shitposts managed to get me through it, but this was still a hefty little book that I struggled to get through. Regardless, I have come away from it with a better understanding of Buddhism, so...I guess I win anyways. Ultimately I would rank this as a 7 out of 10.

Devout: An Anthology Of Angels | Freydis Moon, Dorian Yosef Weber, Angela Sun, Ian Haramaki, Tyler Battaglia, Daniel Marie James, Morgan Dante, Cas Trudeau, Aurelio Loren, Rae Novotny, Rafael Nicolas, Emily Hoffman, Quinton Li

DISCLAIMER: Watch this video about Freydis Moon, consider it required watching because of all of the brownfacing.

If you like angels in a really horny way and don't mind a lot of heavy themes, this is the anthology for you. Each work has its associated content warnings at the top of the chapter so you can skip ones that don't interest you. It's mostly stories, but there are also poems and a few pieces of art. Overall, I give this an 8 out of 10.

9/10 - Very Very Good

Destroy All Humans. They Can’t Be Regenerated, volume 3 | Katsura Ise, Takuma Yokata

Yes, I'm continuing this series, and yes, I still love it. Honestly I'm living for the drama.

A Sign Of Affection, volume 1 | Suu Morishita

This is a series that I started because I saw it recommended in a BookTube "what I read this month/quarter/year" whatever video and it seemed interesting. Deaf characters aren't something I often see portrayed in manga, and the narrative respected the female main character and didn't shortcut past any of the realistic problems she would have.

10/10 - Unironically Recommend To Everyone

None applicable.

#jasper post #books #bookblr #authors #reading wrap up #2025 #may 2025

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hermeticphoenix · 1 year ago

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The Realm of the Bodhisattvas and Emptiness

The realm of the bodhisattvas is located in the higher regions of the spiritual universe. Unlike the realm of the deities, the realm of the bodhisattvas has very clear and pure energies. The same energy could make a person a thousand times more alive. It is also full of joy, celebration, wisdom, and compassion.

Bodhisattvas in Mahayana Buddhism are believed to be entities who delayed Nirvana to help those who needed help. Each bodhisattva is unique and has specific goals. Some bodhisattvas focus on helping non-human entities in higher dimensions, while others incarnate physically in the human realm.

The realm of the bodhisattvas is vast, and each region has a lesson to share, even from the smallest plant to the largest landscapes. It may seem strange to many people, but you do not have to go to the bodhisattva realm to experience the same thing. We can learn from nature, for example, as physical human beings.

The bodhisattvas have radiant and pure energy, much different from that of a deity. They also have very light and airy bodies, but they can change their form, although they have an original form that represents their qualities. But even their original form is changing.

Bodhisattvas also have an interesting aspect, which turned out to be connected to emptiness. This is also written in the Heart Sutra. In the essence of wisdom, there is emptiness. It can be challenging to understand but it is also somewhat paradoxical to some extent. But the ultimate reality is indeed emptiness, and within this emptiness, everything is possible and has full potential.

Once, a bodhisattva came to me and shared an important message to purify one’s energy. The bodhisattva said to always speak the truth, but humbly; to do good things, but not expect anything in return, and to be generous, but not take it to extremes. To do positive actions, one must do it wholeheartedly, aligning the mind with the wisdom of goodness, regardless of who you are helping. But use discernment, a highly valuable trait, to know whether the act of helping would be beneficial to a situation and to know the right person, place, time, and which action to take.

After connecting with the bodhisattvas, one can experience a sense of bliss, peace, and complete contentment. The bodhisattvas are already satisfied, for they do not form any attachments to anything they do. They are compassionate, but they also recognize the role of karma in everyone’s lives. They are wise, but they do not adhere to limiting belief systems. If human beings learn the power of emptiness, they can easily reach their goals, understand their desires, and eventually reach a higher consciousness.

Disclaimer: The views presented in this article are based on a hermetic perspective and may vary from traditional Buddhist beliefs.

#spirituality #spiritual knowledge #occult #spiritualguidance #hermeticism #bodhisattva #buddhism #mahayana

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slova-the-necromancer · 7 months ago

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a dive into the symbolism in "forged in fog"

exactly how the title of the post sounds, i have this so insanely on the mind and i wanted it in a slightly easier format than google docs to have accessible. while i'm at it, too, i'd like to share my thoughts and possibly hear others on the matter. more specifically, this is about tome 14, so..yappening under the cut.

SO. when i was in between classes today, i was looking at tarhos's tome armor/the rift outfit that you got for that tome. most notably, taking a magnifying glass to the symbolic concept of "hear no evil/see no evil" represented in the helmet, and looking a lot at the in-game description saying something along the lines of how he was made to wear that by his lord. see below, looking at the hands over the ears and the eyes.

this led me down a REALLY deep rabbit hole in regards to the origins of this old western proverb that we are all so familiar with, and most notably at first, i found 2.

the four wise monks from buddhism, dating back to ancient china. practicing right mindfulness, right speech, right action, and right livelihood.

from that concept in buddhism came another interpretation from 14th century japan, the three wise monkeys. mizaru, roughly meaning "does not see," kikazaru, or "does not hear," and iwazaru, or "does not speak.

the problem i found with trying to link these interpretations back to the tome is that neither of these have any relation to the italian renaissance. the italian renaissance was, obviously, a christian/catholic renaissance. at this point in history, buddhism was very largely untouched by the west, and this held true until around the 19th century. this isn't even BEGINNING to count the isolationist policies of 14th century southeast asia. apologies if some stuff here is wrong, this is NOT my field of study!

this is a problem because, as we know, tarhos and vittorio are dated from 1391, and historians pretty generally agree that the renaissance has its origins in the 14th century. it's really more...the span of the renaissance that's argued. there's some pretty blatant symbolism here that doesn't make MUCH sense to have reached 14th century italy, even for a nobleman such as vittorio who, like most, was probably a sponsor in the arts and exploration. by this point in my research, i really just started bitching about the historical accuracy-- or rather, inaccuracy-- and how BHVR really seems to prioritize aesthetics over period-relevance.

BUT!!! a little bit more reading brought me to look further into confucius and his teachings!

according to national geographic, "The main idea of Confucianism is the importance of having a good moral character, which can affect the world around a person through the idea of cosmic harmony. This moral character is achieved through the virtue of ren, or 'humanity,' which leads to more virtuous behaviors, such as respect, altruism and humility." so huh! just based on that, it really kind of feels like we're onto something based on the characterization of vittorio that BHVR gives us. (from what i'm aware of, i'm more of a tarhos guy)

confucius writes in The Analects in chapter 12, "Yen Yuan asked about perfect virtue. The Master said, "To subdue one's self and return to propriety, is perfect virtue. If a man can for one day subdue himself and return to propriety, an under heaven will ascribe perfect virtue to him. Is the practice of perfect virtue from a man himself, or is it from others?' Yen Yuan said, 'I beg to ask the steps of that process.' The Master replied, 'Look not at what is contrary to propriety; listen not to what is contrary to propriety; speak not what is contrary to propriety; make no movement which is contrary to propriety.' Yen Yuan then said, 'Though I am deficient in intelligence and vigor, I will make it my business to practice this lesson.'" i feel like this in and of itself can be seen as symbolic of best-case scenario tarhos and vittorio, because it is ABUNDANTLY clear that this path to enlightenment is virtually nonexistent for the former-- tarhos is more the one prattling on and on about foolishness towards vittorio, not himself. but here we see the roots that buddhism and, by extension, japanese philosophy both pull from, confucius defining propriety as "proper behavior and interactions."

from here, i made an effort to link this idea back to the italian renaissance. it's all speculation of whether or not there was really any confucian influence in the italian/european renaissance-- we're looking at a time about 400-ish years before deistic teachings emerged (god as the secondary driving force, morality and humanity first and foremost as the number one influence. think martin luther and voltaire). here, we're looking more at very early/preliminary enlightenment, so very philosophical, less scientific. i won't say objective because NOTHING in history is objective. here's what we know in regards to possible relevance:

confucian's teachings weren't really translated until the 17th century by the jesuits.

in the later half of the 13th century, the polos returned to venice after a few excursions to china, reaching as far as what is known now as modern day beijing.

in the mid-to-late-ish 14th century, there was a cessation of european roman-catholic missionaries and merchants from china after establishment of the ming dynasty, and reestablishment of ethnic han rule.

it feels a little bit like a big nothing burger here, so at this point, i'm kind of about ready to throw my hands up and say whatever, i'm putting more thought into this than BHVR has.

now, i'll run through the actual interpretations of the proverb, much less "how did they even KNOW about this??"

the proverb has multiple meanings, as many ideas in philosophy do.

from a glass half full standpoint, we can look at it like...this is the peak of spiritual consciousness. living with an awareness of what we take in, what we see, what we hear, how we act, and what we say. we have the power, as the individual, to choose to see what is right with people, as opposed to what is wrong with them.

from a glass half empty standpoint, this can all be taken the exact same way but sort of flipped on its head a little bit. instead of the active choice being made by the individual to do all of these things, it can be seen as practicing willful ignorance. seeing the bad in making the choice to not acknowledge wrongdoing, to ignore the world around us, to pick and choose the things and ideas that confirm our biases of human nature and the "inherent goodness" of people.

both of these interpretations for SURE apply greatly to the forged in fog lore in general. again, not a vittorio guy, but i see him more as the former, seeking enlightenment and knowledge and doing so peacefully, while tarhos's criticisms of him and of noble society is the latter.

tarhos views the nobles and the knights as cowards that are shielding themselves from and wrapping themselves in the security of this idea of justice, choosing only to see and hear the good when their actions and legacies are just absolutely...bathed in blood. a bloody legacy that they are choosing to ignore. people who practice willful ignorance being so far up on their own high horse that they just can't look down and see the people that they are trampling into the ground. tarhos as this superior moral being-- how he KNOWS he's evil and he doesn't deny it, but it's the fact that these same exact people pick and choose what to praise him for. this begs the questions from him...what makes the atrocities he commits righteous and honorable? is it only worthy of praise when he's receiving a paycheck for them?

FINALLY getting into the design of the armor now holy shittt.

all of those ideas, ultimately leading up to THIS, is why BHVR's choice of depicting the physical representation of this proverb onto tarhos-- the exact OPPOSITE of someone that would willingly uphold these ideals-- is so unbelievably interesting to me. the personification of see no evil and hear no evil forced onto him by his employer, who he views as some...self-righteous douchebag, and what to him, feels like just downright ignorance and foolishness.

in the video, too, we see tarhos committing these atrocities that are outlined in the tome lore. he's killing, pillaging, thieving, what have you, and by the end of it?

a VERY VERY nice and up close and personal shot of that helmet, of that symbol of good morals and proper conduct, of propriety. we see the streaks on the hands covering the eyes, honestly probably dripping blood but also looks veiny and reminiscent of like...corruption and how that's depicted in art, or maybe some cracks in the visage we see. and then, the zoom out shot of him stabbing the sword into the man, giving us a pretty clear juxtaposition of just absolutely bastardizing and twisting this ideal that stems from good faith.

the final shot that we see at the end of the video gives us a good view of the cape, too. on it is what is universally know as the scales of justice, but we can see that the scales are tipped-- and i know that's not just the cape moving because you can see it earlier on in the video, too, this is just a more clear shot of him walking away from the scene. i unfortunately got a not great screenshot of the cape being a little straighter ough. justice in a literal representation of the ideals of vittorio, yes, but also, perhaps a new, metaphorical representation of the scales of justice tipped in favor of tarhos's idea of what it means? of the way that he views himself as the judge, jury, and executioner? like this decision of his is what weighs the scales down in his favor.

fin.

if anyone made it this far, i'd be happy to hear any other thoughts! of course, this is non-exhaustive-- again, in regards to the history of it, not my circus, not my monkeys, i'm just a guy that likes the knight a little bit too much. plus i myself might expand on this some more and edit it a little, too, because in my lots and lots of searching, i saw arguments that the "virtue politics" of the italian renaissance have some striking similarities to confucianism. my school library has a book on that that i'm planning on taking out later this week.

TLDR; i crave historical accuracy, and pieces of lore that i can put together like a puzzle. in regards to accuracy, it feels like BHVR took 3 different puzzles together in a box and just shook it up. historical accuracy aside though, the symbolism is SO GOOD. yum yum yum BHVR please release the knight cosmetic in the shop already.

#squid is squeaking #dead by daylight #dibby doo #tarhos kovacs #tarhos kovács #the knight dbd #also i think tarhos and vit are actually so #if hes your man then why is he MY narrative foil?

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