In this course we will examine religious life from different perspectives, the relationship of doctrines to rituals, the role of religions explaining and expanding the human body, the way images and taboos can organise social life and the way spaces and interacting with them can change with perceptions of the role of religion in public life.
Are you interested in the ways religion and spirituality are practiced today? Do you want to learn about how scholars from various disciplines study religious practices from local perspectives? Are you looking forward to approach these questions not only through the reading of texts but also by directly engaging with people and their beliefs, listening to what they say and how they say it? Are you curious about what practices, contexts and diversity in the study of religion mean?
Concretely we for instance look at bodily practices such as yoga and dance and how they help practitioners give meaning to their lives and expand a sense of self. We study contemporary religious buildings such as mosques, synagogues and churches and learn what they tell us about religious communities and identities. We ask what Christian, Buddhist or secular pilgrimage means today and how places are made sacred through collective or individual pilgrimage. We explore how rituals evoke states of consciousness beyond everyday life and how rituals of transition help people cope with life crises such as birth and death. The instructors combine religious studies and anthropology with additional insights from sociology, geography, architecture and psychology.
Carolina Ivanescu & Oskar Verkaaik
All lectures will take place on-campus and we assume you can be physically present during the scheduled hours. You can find the timetable on Datanose.
Registration is possible for students participating in an Honours programme. The registration period for the Honours courses will be from November 29, 10:00 am to December 3, 11.59 pm. You can register through the online registration form that will appear on Honoursmodules IIS. (registration is NOT through SIS)
Please note: Placement is not guaranteed if you register after December 3, so make sure you register on time. You will hear which course(s) you are registered for before December 15.
For questions about registration, please contact us at: Honours-iis@uva.nl