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ASIAN HISTORY & MODERN SOCIETY
(Updated Tuesday, Apr 1, 2008, 05:25:25 PM to reflect the 100 most recent valid responses.)

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WHAT YOU SAY

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Rare stuff--

How do you define an "ancient religion?" You seem to emphasize loosely that something ancient must suredly be less centralized and organized. This may or may not be true, but the East also has a very ancient tradition for having a very rigid and hierchical religious traditions whether that be Hinduism, Buddhism, or Confuscianism. And we must not forget the mideast which also has Islam which resembles Christianity(or if you prefer, Christianity resembles Islam). Then we also must speak about the plurality within Christianity itself.

I fail to see the difference between the Western spiritual view or the Eastern spiritual view.

You make some very interesting comments about socio-cultural behaviors of the west, and it's double standard hypocrisy in condemning some behaviors in the 3rd world, but not it's own. I have to agree to a degree-- Whereas I agree with you that many western women chooses to live in a gender-discriminating fashion on purpose, certain practices such as footbinding is quite different in that it clearly undermines the physical mobility of the individual. This has economic consequences as well for obvious reasons.

I have to disagree with you, because you see "human rights" as inherently being a western concept, while I do not. Furthermore, I do not think the diffusion of ideas would undermine the native cultural identity of a developing nation, but rather enhance it.
ka Monday, May 06, 2002 at 07:38:11 (PDT)

How can you even compare footbinding to high heels?? That is just dumb. Footbinding was done at about the age of five, and the little girl probably didn't ask for it! She had to wear her feet bound and in excruciating pain all her life if she wanted to get a good husband and be accepted. Do you see mothers nowadays forcing their five year old girls to wear high heels? Some girls I know wear sneakers all the time, or flat comfy shoes. Some choose to wear high heels, but guess what- you can choose to take them off. And they might give you a slight case of achy feet at the end of the day, but that's nothing compared to the lifelong torture of bound, broken feet.
me Sunday, May 05, 2002 at 18:48:47 (PDT)

ka,

you are right as long as you're comparing Christianity to other world religions. But world religions are not as ancient as archaic tribal religions. Humankind is much older than archaeology is able to prove at the moment. Thus I suppose that there was once a time in the past when people could not become followers of the masses and were thus more individualistic than nowadays in the USA.
Preceeding on the assumption that some ancient societies were already democratic I dare to speak out my thesis that the whole Western world lives in a Christian theocracy. There are several arguements for it: while Christians are overrepresented in the Western media and influence even the non-Christian media morally there are not many people in the Western world who know at least about the archaic roots of all people.
rare stuff Friday, May 03, 2002 at 08:01:47 (PDT)

MLK,

one sensible aspect of more integration for traditional people into modern society is that traditional shamans work together with people who studied medicine at a university.This is already the case in some areas.
rare stuff Friday, May 03, 2002 at 07:00:21 (PDT)

ka,

I think that basically nothing has changed in terms of morality. "Footbinding" among other fashions which would seem to be cruel among whites nowadays is replaced by high heels.Both are impractical for running.The "headbinding",a custom which might have been painful for Scythian,American Indian among other children in the past is replaced by silicone implants in the women's breasts. "Human rights" couldn't change the background of this kind of behavior patterns.
I stress my interest in archaic religion meaning especially customs which represent the mentality of people whose temperament is relatively close to my own: Perhaps you know that the Papuans weren't the only race who engaged in traditions like headhunting.Tribes like the Mundugumor of New Guinea should not be condemned to practice an exrtremely peaceful religion if it is against the nature of their temperament."Human rights" don't give them the chance to develop a new lifestyle more suitable for the modernized environment.
rare stuff Friday, May 03, 2002 at 06:28:31 (PDT)

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