Heretical musings on religion and culture from a literary scholar
Taoism is one of the religions I appreciate. From the Lao Tzu's tao-te-ching we get pearls of wisdom like "Those who know do not speak, those who speak, do not know" and "Even a 1,000 mile journey starts with a single step" - what's not to like? So I was a bit disappointed when I saw this ridiculous headline on the front of the Taipei Times: Sword ladder makes cosmetologist a Taoist master (登一百零八層劍梯 美容師順利考取法師) Apparently the Beitian Temple in Hualien County’s ...
There are many reasons that Taiwan has one of the world's lowest fertility rates. Women are getting married later - at about 30 rather than the earlier average of 20~24 in 1984. Many women, put off by their husband's traditional Asian values and expectations, are in no rush to add to their burden as homemaker and child-rearer. Couples also want to be able to provide for their children, and often feel with the rising costs ...
Given the escalating series of natural disasters devastating various portions of the world in ever greater frequency and gravity, as well as Japan's recent earthquake and tsunami disaster, it would be no surprise to me if something similar happened here in Taiwan. In fact for weeks I've been asking my students whether they were prepared for such a natural disaster, whether they trusted the government's ability to respond to catastrophic devastation, and whether they felt ...
If you're interested in religious mythology, astrological symbolism, or supernatural folklore, grab my book Gods of Myth and Man. You can go buy it on Amazon.
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