Monday – 17:15
Panel Discussion – Aud. Armfelt A102 – Chair: Ruth Illman
Nina Kokkinen – The Donner Institute, Linda Annunen – Åbo Akademi University, Måns Broo – Åbo Akademi University & Ville Husgafvel – University of Helsinki
‘Eastern Spirituality’ in Arts: Inspiration, Appropriation, Conversation
The starting point of the panel discussion are the ideas about Eastern spirituality constructed in the Finnish art scene through the 20th century. An art exhibition called Eastern Spirituality will be on display at the museum Villa Gyllenberg (Helsinki) during the conference and will provide the themes for the panel discussion. What kind of ideas Finnish artists had about ‘Eastern spirituality’ and how did they express these ideas in their art? What are the challenges, problems and learning opportunities associated with such constructed images? How should dialogue between cultures and religions be studied, or represented in an art exhibition popularizing scientific research? The discussion includes research doctor Nina Kokkinen, who has curated Eastern Spirituality exhibition based on her current research project, post-doctoral researcher Linda Annunen, who edits a forthcoming thematic issue on religious appropriation, university lecturer Måns Broo, who is an expert on Indian religiosity, and post-doctoral researcher Ville Husgafvel, who just finished his dissertation on recontextualization of Buddhist meditation practices in contemporary mindfulness-based programmes. Each expert will have a short presentation at the beginning of the panel, after which the panel will proceed on the basis of questions posed by moderator Ruth Illman (research director at the Donner Institute) and the audience.
Tuesday 09:00
Panel Discussion – Aud. Armfelt A102 – Chair: Terhi Utriainen
Linda Annunen – Åbo Akademi University, Maija Butters – University of Helsinki, Ville Husgafvel – University of Helsinki, Helena Kupari – University of Eastern Finland/ University of Helsinki, Tiina Mällinen – University of Helsinki, Terhi Utriainen – University of Helsinki & Siiri Virta – University of Helsinki
What did we learn about religion and learning in the LeNeRe project?
Learning is one of the most esteemed and supported values of contemporary society. The ethos and rhetoric of continuous and life-long learning can also be found in the sphere of religion and particularly individual religiosity. The objective of the LeNeRe project is to produce new knowledge on contemporary religious and spiritual milieus as sites of learning and to identify and understand processes through which people integrate their religious or spiritual learning to other spheres of life. To approach this objective, we have conducted ethnographically informed research on adult individuals in Finland who have embarked on (for them) new religious and spiritual paths.
Our case studies include examples from traditional religion as well as contemporary spirituality. The cases include: 1) Singing bowl healing, 2) Finnish Muslims learning from Ramadan; 3) Participation in the catechumen courses organized by the Orthodox church; 3) Mindfulness meditation, 4) Indian guru and her followers; 5) Highly educated Finns investing in spiritual learning. As our focus is on informal learning, on adults familiarizing themselves with previously unknown practices, and on the transferability of the skills and notions thus adopted, the project significantly expands the scope of existing anthropological and sociological research on religious learning that has so far very much focused on the transmission of one’s own religious tradition.
Our panel presents some key findings of the project and opens the discussion on their relevance to the study of religion and the potential wider social significance.
Responses by Kim Knott and Linda Woodhead