Magic, witchcraft, supernatural body exam 3

why is medicine magical?

medicine seduces us into self-deception that life can be prolonged almost indefinitely

caterpillar weed

fungus that infects caterpillars as a parasite

Its cycle of hibernation and emergence leads to the belief that consuming it will promote immortality

this is a modern reflection of Lord Hanuman's journey

temples dedicated to the healer god Asclepius

Ancient Greece

functioned as centers of medical advice, prognosis, and healing

patients would enter a dream-like state of induced sleep known as enkoimesis

Invasive surgery was performed fairly successfully

Hippocrates

first to describe many diseases and medical conditions

Treatise on the so called "sacred disease" of epilepsy

Treatise on the so called "sacred disease" of epilepsy

says that epilepsy is not caused by spirit possession

Outlines a theory of humoral imbalance based on "empirical evidence"

Galen

Further developed Hippocrates work which became the dominant medical model of thinking until well into the Middle Ages

Ars medica (“Arts of Medicine”) - he explained mental properties in terms of specific mixtures of the bodily parts and physiological substances

Four Humors of Hippocratic Medicine

black bile (melancholic), yellow bile (choleric), phlegm (sanguine), blood (phlegmatic)

humor

a substance that flows through the body in relation to other substances that flow through the body in a constant flux

Paracelsus

Transitioned from focus of humors to focus on chemicals

Tria prima: "three primes"

Rejected Galen's work due to lack of experimental research

Tria prima: "three primes"

Paracelsus

the body is animated by three elements: a combustible element (sulfur), a fluid and changeable element (mercury), and a solid and permanent element (salt

Andreas Vesalius

De humani corporis fabrica (1543)

Tried to disprove Galen through dissection and autopsy

Portrayed the human body as an interdependent system of organ groupings

Example of why vision is deceptive

If we "see" something with our own eyes do we suddenly see things as they really are? - ambiguity of vision and interpretation that shapes perception and interpretation of reality

Vesalius's work was being explored in China at the same time by different scientists - their observations were entirely different and led to different interpretations

Islamic thought on medicine

Knowledge as a means by which to express one's faith in God

followed Galen's work

divided cosmos into unseen universe and observable universe

The Quran says: "Allah is He, who is the only God, the knower of the unseen and the observed"

Avicenna (Ibn Sina)

was a Persian polymath who is regarded as one of the most significant thinkers and writers of the Islamic Golden Age

wrote The Canon of Medicine - was used as the standard medical textbook in the Islamic world and Europe up to the 18th century

Bloodletting

Blood levels were manipulated to level our humors and was used for a wide variety of symptoms

cupping and leeches used for precision

Ayurvedic medicine

popular in India, recognized by government as a valid alternative to biomedicine

how can you most directly influence health (ayurveda)

by what you do to and with your body: everything you do

Two systems of ayurveda medicine

humoral and ecological

Tridosha

3 humors of ayurveda

vatta, pitta, kapha

The basic properties of the three humors are similar to the combined elements from which they derive

Dosha

(ayurveda)

the humors are in a chronic state of problematic fluctuation

ayurvedic theory - five elements

Ether, air, fire, water, earth

The five elements make up the three humors

Ether and air combine to make Vata

Fire makes Pita

Water and earth combine to make Kapha

Rasayana

(ayurveda)

immortality

Vajikarana

(ayurveda)

aphrodisiacs

help prevent loss of ojas from having too much sex

Rasayana therapy

finding a treatment for aging

Trying to empower pure ojas

Stopping the metabolic process of transformation: the flow of time

Soma: the elixir of life

Medicine based on ecology

Ayurveda

Ayurvedic medicine uses the food chain to classify animals

Animal substances have medicinal properties that reflect their place in the food chain, what/ how they eat, and the environment they inhabit

Animal substances contain the condensed essence of the animal's "humoral" character

Pahalwani

This way of life involves a deeply embodied concern with physical fitness, the physiology of sex, sexuality and masculine self-presentation

Gender and Pahalwani

-Obsessive masculinity

-Deeply embodied ideology

-Sex and Sexuality: the danger of weakness

-Women are dangerous

ethnography and field methods of studying Pahalwani

Joining an akhara (gymnasium)

Physical and social participation

interviews/surveys/ popular literature

Akhara

a gymnasium where men engage in pahalwani

Khurak

A specific combination of food that pahalwans consume including: Almonds, Milk, Ghi (clarified butter)

Guru/Chela relationship

A relationship between a powerful, master teacher who embodies the ideals of pahalwani and an aspirant, acolyte or disciple who seeks to embody those ideals

guru

master teacher

chela

Disciple of the Guru

Hanuman

The "patron" deity of the akhara

Hanuman embodies three interrelated attributes of masculinity which pahalwans aspire to: shakti, bhakti, Bramacharya

shakti

physically embodied power that is supernatural

power that is beyond muscular power

bhakti

devotion that physically connects a person to god

establishes the overarching authority to god and the guru

Brahmacharya

The embodied practice of celibacy, as a moral and ethical virtue of masculinity, that serves to produce a physical connection between contained sexuality, devotion and supernatural power

jor

Sparring in the akhara, when pahalwans develop their strength and skill

produces shakti

builds a reservoir of sexual energy

Vyayam

exercise routine associated with pahalwani which entails dands (jackknifing push-ups) and bethaks (deep knee-bends) both of which produce shakti

builds up condensed masculine energy

Dangal

A wrestling tournament during which pahalwans compete, demonstrating their skill and dramatically performing masculinity

Jnana Yoga

path of knowledge

Understanding that nothing in the world is permanent

Focusing on higher desires frees us from lower desires

As we grow and develop so do our desires, abandoning our lower desires

Bhakti Yoga

path of devotion

Love of god and people

Reaching out and feeling for people; not feeling threatened, competitive, insecure, etc.

When you learn to give priority to others' well being over your own, your desires drop

Karma Yoga

path of action

Out of gratitude comes the attitude of giving

everyone is a combination of matter and spirit, matter =

body, mind, intellect

Enlightenment is the power that comes with

disconnecting from the BMI

What gets in the way of the spirit/ perfection?

desire

Michael Taussig

The magic of the state is the way institutionalized forms of power make it seem like nation states are natural and timeless

As a result, we the people often believe in nation states with the kind of conviction that is characteristic of religious zeal

stealing the emperor's sword

A metaphorical statement about how revolution works to reveal the magic of the state, of money, and nationalism

Revealing the ways in which power is built from mass deception

Commodity Fetishism

is the perception of the social relationships involved in production, not as relationships among people, but as economic relationships among the money and commodities exchanged in market trade. As such, commodity fetishism transforms the subjective, abstract aspects of economic value into objective, real things that people believe have intrinsic value

examples of commodity fetishism

designer bag vs. plastic bag

pure bred dog vs. mixed breed

water and bottled water

nation

large, impersonal collective of people with common cultural characteristics attributed to them.

nation state

a type of state that joins the political entity of a state to the cultural entity of a nation, from which it aims to derive its political legitimacy to rule and potentially its status as a sovereign state.

nationalism

An attitude expressed by a nation that their cultural identity is under attack and needs to be defended

Imagined Communities

The way in which nations come into being over time as people begin to imagine their shared identity

individual differences

greater than our collective similarities, but are insignificant in relation to that which makes us the same on a global, species specific scale

magic of culture

By uniting relatively small groups into nations, culture "magically" creates the illusion of seemingly real, meaningful differences

magic of violence

violence is not magic

But the ways in which our species has developed technologies of violence has turned violence into a form of magic

Threats of violence involve deception in much the same way as a magic involves deception

Both magic and violence involve the manipulation of power to control people by controlling what they think is going to happen

violence has no meaning

without culture

karma and maya

people are entangled in a world that is an illusion

enlighhtenment

Experiential insight into what is really real

Purusa/ Prakriti

creation - devolution not evolution

the three Guna

Rajas, Tamas, Sattva

-The imperfection and imbalance of life

-the quest for contingent balance

-The ideal of perfection- return to a state of purusa

Pran

vital energy of life

Two bodies and two realities

sthul and suksama

sthul

gross body and gross nature

air - the "gross" element that we breath

suksama

subtle body and subtle nature

pran - the "subtle" essence of air

Samadhi

A transformation of the gross body - including the mind - into a subtle body

Jivan mukti

Living "detached" from life's entailments and entanglements

An enlightened sage who has achieved samadhi and has an immortal body

Ashtanga yoga

has 8 branches

Yama

branch of Ashtanga yoga

moral observance:

Non-violence

Not lying

Not stealing

Not having sex

Non-attachment to possessions

Niyama

branch of Ashtanga yoga

self discipline:

Contentment

Purity

Austerity

Study scriptures

Surrender to God

Asana

branch of Ashtanga yoga

postures

Pranayama

branch of Ashtanga yoga

breathing techniques

subtle body

invisible, pure, transcendent

gross body

tangible, strong, ensnared in the world of illusion

In Hatha yoga, perfection is achieved by

stopping all processes of transformation

Hatha Yoga

Forceful yoga; purifying the body, stopping normal process of change and transformation, developing physical power to withstand the force of enlightenment

The Peacock Posture (Mayurasana)

This asana destroys all diseases, even the most deadly poison

Chakras

Energy centers of the body

Swami Kuvalayananda

Leading figure in the yoga renaissance in early 20th century India

Developed asana and pranayama for the treatment of diseases based on the scientific study of the subtle body

Kalaripayattu

A martial arts with historical roots in South Asia

Based on a theory of three bodies in one

Three bodies of Kalaripayattu

Fluid body of humors and saps: the balanced, energized flow of the humors gives strength

subtle body: pran is channeled through the central nadi to produce supernatural

physical body: muscle, bones, and vital points called marma

theory of marma

Marma as vital points on the gross body that are gateways to the vitality of the subtle body

Marma can be hit/jabbed/pressed in order to disable an attacker

Marma can be activated to heal a person who has been injured

Daosim

Searching for harmony with nature

Chinese medicine

Daoism, meridians, points, chi

Qi

Vital force of life

Energy of the universe

A force that can be developed and refined

Qi Gong

"Invented" as a modern form of self development in 1949 by Liu Guishen

Falun Gong

Established by Ling Hongzhi in 1992

The three central tenets of belief are truthfulness, compassion, and forbearance

the invention of tradition

Cultural traditions are distortions of history

History invents traditions, and traditions define history

cultural traditions reflect nationalism and nationalist properties

Wudang martial arts

internal, soft arts such as Tai Chi

These arts are physically and spiritually therapeutic due to the stimulation of chi

Closely linked to Daoist alchemy

External martial arts

external, hard arts such as Kung Fu

Associated with the Shaolin monastery

More closely related with Buddhism than with Daoist philosophy

gendered bodies and martial arts

yin/yang - gender complimentary

yin

female/feminine

yang

male/masculine

transgendered power

Qi

queering

An interpretive act of transformation. Turning something that is intended to mean something into something else. Queering involves the transformation of meaning