Conferences and Conversations

The weekend before last saw me present my research findings from India at the Australian Association for the Study of Religions annual conference in Melbourne. Academic conferences are always fun, and a wintry Melbourne was an ideal setting for hearing about such diverse topics as teenage witches, media bias against UFO groups, the ordination of Buddhist nuns in Thailand, and the use of secular fiction as religious text (plus many more cool papers). If you're into all things religious a conference is a pretty cool way to get a taste for what's going on. It's much nicer than having to plough through everyone's journal publications (which you wouldn't read anyway because you don't have the time to read anything much outside your little niche).

I'm pretty happy with how my chapter is coming, even though I stumbled upon a massive structural shift while in Melbourne (that will require a re-write). The main thing I want to get across is the diversity of reasons with which people approach spiritual activities in India. I think it reflects the diversity we find in people's spirituality at home, which is essentially a 'moral' or metaphor I want to flesh out in the thesis. I tihnk the new structure will show this much more effectively.

Seeing as I was to be in Melbourne I decided to spend some time with my brother, Pip. Many long chats about life, the universe, and German monks drinking lots of Bock were had, and it helped remind me of the joy of family and the intimacy of siblings. You can't choose them, but love 'em or hate 'em your family know your story, and have a pretty good idea about what makes you tick. They know your history because they were there. They have seen the blood, the tears, and the warts and (if your are lucky, as I am) they don't care, they just love you. It is a devastatingly comforting knowledge. We can become so locked in our consumer hedonism, so lost in our cycles of dissatisfaction with life and self-absorbed whining that we can forget there are people out there who actually care enough to sit down and listen, no matter what is said. Those moments - by river banks, on mountain tops, at cafes, in cars - when simple, raw words are spoken and heard are magical. When it's family doing the listening you feel like your roots are getting a massage; all the gooey worms, moist soil, and gnarled fibres are being shaken and oxygenated. Those moments give you new life.

Finally, for any TZU fans out there here are a couple of exciting pictures:

Pip and Corey laying down a demo track for the next TZU album. Joel's studio, 11/07/07. (18-55mm@25mm, 0.3sec, f4.0, ISO800)



Lyrics aborning, from Pip to paper, through lips they're laid down. Joel's studio during a writing session, 11/07/07. (18-55mm@33mm, 1/13sec, f4.5, ISO1600)