Reflecting on Sensory Experiences

    As the semester is coming to a close, I’m realizing how fast it seemed to go by. That’s why I’m glad I was able to take this course and really think about sensory experiences in a way I hadn’t before. I really enjoyed learning about each of the senses, the science and culture behind them, and their religious contexts. It’s pretty fascinating to see how different religions use the senses in a myriad of ways, and how distinct religious traditions value certain senses over others. When looking back at all my blog posts, I recognize that I wrote about each of the senses in slightly different ways, depending on how I felt when writing them. I remember feeling particularly connected to my first touch post and my post about sound and Anne Rasmussen’s book and I feel like that is when my voice and passion comes through in my writing the most.

    After having participated in the banquet, I feel really grateful that we were able to hold the banquet in person and cook some of our own food. Although I’m not usually the biggest fan of cooking, I had a really fun time learning how to make new dishes and preparing items for the banquet. It’s a special moment when you cook food or a meal and are able to enjoy it after and feel satisfied that you made it yourself. That is one part I love about cooking. Not to mention all of the senses that are involved: watching and waiting for water to boil, kneading dough, listening as jam bubbles on the stove, feeling the heat of the oven, smelling butter melt in a pan.

    In this course, I learned to think about the senses more mindfully and truly consider how they are experienced, shared, talked about, written about, and used in religious practices. I’m really glad this class made me reconsider the senses and experiences that I take for granted every day.