Dear Colleagues and Students,

The Institute of Advanced Studies in Humanities and Social Sciences (IAS) cordially invites you to participate in the Philosophy Forum Distinguished Scholars Series – 5, scheduled for 29 August 2024 (Thu). We are honoured to have Professor Brook Ziporyn from the University of Chicago, explore the topic of “Human Agency and Human Sacrifice: A Neo-Tiantai Perspective.”

We are also delighted to have Professor Hans-Georg Moeller and Professor Ellen Zhang from the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies of FAH, as the discussants, and Professor Shaoyang Lin, Head of Academic Programme and Publication of IAS, Distinguished Professor in the Department of History, FAH, as the moderator for this forum. Please find the details below:

• Title: Human Agency and Human Sacrifice: A Neo-Tiantai Perspective
• Organizers: Institute of Advanced Studies in Humanities and Social Sciences; Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies, FAH
• Date: 29 August, 2024 (Thu)
• Time: 2-4 PM
• Language: English
• Venue: UM Gallery Auditorium (E1 – B1002)
• Registration: Click HERE

Abstract:
In this talk I’ll be mulling over the contrasting roles of violence in the theories of religions of Georg Bataille and René Girard. Both of these writers take note of the fact that for much of human history and pre-history, human or animal sacrifice plays a surprisingly outsized role in religious and (therefore) social life. They have sharply differing views of the meaning of this phenomenon and of its contemporary significance for understanding the role of violence in human psychology. To disentangle this, we’ll have to talk about Bataille’s notions of intimacy, communication, tool-making, excess and uselessness on the one hand, and about Girard’s notions of mimetic desire and scapegoating on the other. I’ll try to sum up the salient points of both theories, and then ruminate a bit on the application of some of the takeaway points when applied to the microcosmic level of the human psyche, considered in Buddhist terms as a precarious society of highly heterogenous collections of disunified micro-drives and perspectives. With the combination of these theoretical perspectives, I’ll explore a naturalistic account of the phenomenology of human decision-making and agency on the model of the religious practice of scapegoating violence, and what implications that would have for considering human behavior from the Bataillean, Girardian and finally the Tiantai Buddhist perspective.

We look forward to seeing you at this event! For more information about IAS, please visit the website of IAS at https://ias.um.edu.mo/. Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at ias.programme@um.edu.mo.

Best regards,
The Institute of Advanced Studies in Humanities and Social Sciences

Students who attend on-site will receive 1 SP and 15 CS for “Cultural Engagement” in the Whole Person Development Award.