| Website | http://malcolmkeating.com |
| Podcast | http://www.sutrasandstuff.com |
I've just posted a link to my newest podcast episode, on the avatar idea (avatāra or अवतार in Sanskrit).
It's a bit late, as somehow the link between my Twitter and my Mastodon has broken, so tweets aren't automatically posted here.
I have a hard enough time keeping up on one social network; two is a lot!
But I'm still here and check in now and again. If I'm slow in replying, please forgive me. 🙏
What do the Metaverse, blue aliens, and airbenders have in common? They’re all based on the avatar. Season 4, Episode 2 of Sutras & Stuff explores what an avatar is and how the idea can help us think about reality, the divine, and even our survival after death.
https://anchor.fm/malcolm-keating/episodes/S4-E2-Avatar-e1ucvsb
#sutrasandstuff #philosophy #PhilosophyPodcasts #avatar #ai #buddhism #hinduism @philosophy @indianphilosophy @religion
What do the Metaverse, blue aliens, and airbenders have in common? They’re all based on the idea of the avatar, which goes back thousands of years to the Sanskrit term avatāra. In this episode, we’ll explore what an avatar is and how thinking about these ideas in ancient Hindu and Buddhist contexts can help us think about reality, the divine, and even our survival after death. Sounds and Music All music excerpts and soundbites used with an understanding of fair use modification for educational purposes. Theme music by Kevin MacLeod’s music https://incompetech.filmmusic.io Bibliography and Further Reading Clough, Bradley S. “The Ambivalence of the Hindus: The Buddha as Avatāraṇa of Viṣṇu in the Mahhāpurāṇas and Beyond.” The Journal of Hindu Studies (2021): 1–19. Parrinder, Geoffrey. Avatar and Incarnation: The Divine in Human Form in the World's Religions. Oxford: Oneworld Publications, 1997. Sheth, Noel. “Hindu Avatāra and Christian Incarnation: A Comparison.” Philosophy East and West 52, no. 1 (2002): 98–125. Stevenson, Robert W. “The Concept of Avatāra in Ancient and Modern Commentaries on the Bhagavadgītā.” Journal of Studies in the Bhagavad Gītā 3 (1983): 56–86. Vaidya, Anand. Review of Reality+ by David Chalmers in Philosophy East and West, forthcoming. Wolfendale, Jessica. “My avatar, my self: Virtual harm and attachment.” Ethics and Information Technology (2007) 9:111–119. Clips and Sound Effects Watch Mark Zuckerberg Reveal Next-Gen Avatars With Legs!, 2022. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=njvp-E8gzqA. https://freesound.org/s/403005/ by InspectorJ https://freesound.org/s/326404/ by MorneDelport Avatar | Official Trailer (HD) | 20th Century FOX, 2009. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5PSNL1qE6VY. “Avatar: The Last Airbender” Theme Song (HQ) | Episode Opening Credits | Nick Animation, 2016. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1EnW4kn1kg. New Books Network. Raj Balkaran, host. “Podcast | Simon Brodbeck, "Divine Descent and the Four World-Ages In….” Accessed February 2, 2023. https://newbooksnetwork.com/divine-descent-and-the-four-world-ages-in-the-mah%C4%81bh%C4%81rata-or-why-does-the-krsna-avat%C4%81ra-inaugurate-the-worst-yuga. Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies. Ramesh Pattni. “Three Faces of Vedanta: Shankaracharya, Madhvacharya, and Ramanujacharya - YouTube.” Accessed February 3, 2023. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tlmdRFz1DVs. New Books Network. Raj Balkaran, host. “Podcast | Sucharita Adluri, "Textual Authority in Classical Indian….” Accessed February 3, 2023. https://newbooksnetwork.com/sucharita-adluri-textual-authority-in-classical-indian-thought-ramanuja-and-the-vishnu-purana-routledge-2014. David Chalmers: Reality+ from the Matrix to the Metaverse, 2022. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ov_BTAsgDU. Little Buddha (1993). Clip via Crescendo on YouTube.com https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xf4e4tbkmCM Dalai Lama Wants to Be a Machine Avatar, 2011. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6JNyUVSoiAE. The Dalai Lama on Why Reincarnation Is Not Important, 2019. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uqOMZP6HPP8. DW Shift. How You Can Become Immortal as a Digital Avatar, 2022. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X8EiTfOggbI.
My short story "Unfrozen Eons Drown the Future" is on the Weird Tales Podcast! A few years ago I wondered if "Lovecraftian climate fiction" was a thing, and sometime last year I decided to make my own. Thanks to @[email protected] for reading it! https://twitter.com/WeirdTalesPod/status/1620246287038955522
🐦🔗: https://twitter.com/Ethan_Mills_42/status/1620295723609899010
Printing a nearly-complete book draft as encouragement. One more chapter to polish and then on to the end matter!
Something about it being printed helps me feel I've made progress. (And it helps me catch typos.)
Was just asked, at a restaurant on Orchard Road: “Where are you from?”
Me: “The US, but I’ve lived here for seven years.”
Reply: “Oh, the accent really sticks around, huh?”
I think it would be really suspicious if I acquired a Singaporean accent, lah.
Yesterday I saw a tweet saying that "smart people" keep ChatGPT tabs open. In philosophy, too, there has been some discussion about the AI producing passable explanations of philosophical ideas.
We are far from this in my area. Examples follow using ChatGPT and Google Translate.
Check out my new @[email protected] interview with Simon Brodbeck of Cardiff University (@[email protected]) about his new @[email protected] title, "Divine Descent and the four world-Ages" Available on all podcast platforms!
🐦🔗: https://twitter.com/DrRajBalkaran/status/1617502809775132673
Went to see Avatar 2 today, since I'm thinking about avatars for the next podcast episode (first Fridays now--should be available February 3rd).
There's another Sanskrit word tossed in there, too, used in a way that resonates with uses in Sanskrit texts.
