Smells and Bells

Image from mondaycampaigns.org This course provided a different lens to my psychology major and helped me reconsider what I have been taught. Abram summarizes this shift in my perspective: “This breathing body, as it experiences and inhabits the world, is very different from that objectified body diagrammed in physiology textbooks, with its separable “systems” (the circulatory system, the digestive system, the respiratory system, etc.) laid bare on each page. The body I here speak of is very different from the body we have been taught to see and even to feel, very different, finally, from that complex machine whose broken parts or stuck systems are diagnosed by our medical doctors and “repaired” by our medical technologies. Underneath the anatomized and mechanical body that we have learned to conceive, prior indeed to all our conceptions, dwells the body as it actually experiences things, this poised and animate power that initiates all our projects and suffers all our passions” (37)....

While reading The Spell of the Sensuous, I was reminded of my time abroad specifically when Abram wrote that “nonhuman nature can be perceived and experienced with far more intensity and nuance than is generally acknowledged in the West” (25). Although Denmark is still considered The West, the cultural concept of “hygge” exemplifies how Danes are much more in touch with their senses than Americans. Cherishing, acknowledging, and savoring are frequent actions for them. Abram wrote, “To be sure, our obliviousness to nonhuman nature is today held in place by ways of speaking that simply deny intelligence to other species and to nature in general, as well as by the very structures of our civilized existence—by the incessant drone of motors that shut out the voices of birds and of the winds; by electric lights that eclipse not only the stars but the night itself; by air “conditioners” that hide the seasons; by offices, automobiles, and shopping malls that finally obviate any need to step ou...

Another aspect of Classen and touch that I want to “touch” upon besides what I mentioned in our group presentation (the necessity of touch through Harlow’s monkey experiment and how fun games are when we include touch and not sight) is the noticeable omission of tactile experiences in museums. Exploring history through touch makes the past come alive. While reading, I was reminded of when my family visited Graceland and went to the Elvis Presley museum. Part of the VIP tour included holding Elvis’ microphone, jewelry, etc., and this is so important, not only for die-hard Elvis fans, but for everyone to experience because “when we allow historical figures to be of flesh and blood, we make it possible to relate to them as fellow beings and, therefore, to make meaningful comparisons between their lives and situations and our own.” I believe touch is one of the best ways that we can understand the past, and it should be implemented in history lessons more. (Pictured here is my sister about...

Image from Dreamstime.com Reading about darsan reminded me a lot of my experience with Adoration. According to Christian tradition, Adoration is defined as "a​​ sign of devotion to and worship of Jesus Christ who is believed to be present in body, blood, soul, and divinity, under the appearance of the consecrated host, that is, sacramental bread" (wikipedia.org). It was and is difficult for me to understand how a piece of bread (a wafer, really) is supposed to encompass all of this. Additionally, adoration didn’t make me feel great because it is actually pretty awkward. Typically, people sit or pray in silence which can make it hard to think. I still have trouble looking at Jesus on the Cross in church even though I was an altar server because, in my upbringing, this statue was neither defined as a visual tool nor as an embodiment of the divine, so it really never “did” anything for me during mass, and I just looked at the priest.  The current and common view/thought/reactio...

Image from http://johnmccallum.blogspot.com/2011/06/sleeping-in-church.html In Public Speaking class this semester, I am learning about my strengths and weaknesses in giving presentations. After my Speech of Introduction, my professor (Jennifer Madden, who is fantastic by the way), told me in my feedback that I have a pleasing vocal quality. This was a nice compliment, but I had never really considered it to be true. I’ve heard my voice in videos (like the YouTube tour I filmed that has over 13,000 views…gulp), podcasts, and the like, and I simply feel that it sounds like a little kid’s voice. This week, when learning about recitation through Rasmussen’s piece, I thought back to the voices and vocal qualities that I have heard in religious settings.   There are three people that I would like to introduce you to. First, my priest, who I will refer to as “OP” (original priest). OP has been serving mass for as long as I can remember. He baptized me and all of my siblings, confirm...

“Only women, envisioned as constitutionally and temperamentally ‘cool,’ can manage Shangó’s aché in the heat of the kitchen.” For some reason, this quote stuck out to me. I couldn’t get it out of my head because all that it makes me think about is Gordon Ramsay. Forgive me. Gordon Ramsay has got quite the temper and has surely been described as “hot-headed.” When reading, I was thinking about the contrast between the kitchens in the text and the kitchens portrayed on television, and I couldn’t help but think about how the centrality of women's cooking is so different. For reference, one of the winners of MasterChef said that “It’s a really tough industry and not female-friendly” when referring to professional cooking.  I figured that this blog was the perfect place to add a video of Gordon Ramsay’s temper, but I want to bring in another quote from Perez’s Introduction that made me think of a specific season of MasterChef: “The very physicality of food preparation has militated agai...

Image from IMDb I had to make a second post because Green’s text reminded me of a pop culture reference. The second point I would like to bring up is in response to the midrash that we interpreted on Tuesday. Green wrote that “odor, whether pleasing or foul, enters almost every aspect of our lives- its subtle pervasiveness affects our attitudes and judgments toward both the mundane and the sacred.” This quote reminded me of the movie “Parasite” where the rich Mr. Park comes to hate his housekeeper/driver simply because his scent is one of poor people. Green wrote about how fragrance provides a lens through which to view hierarchy, social constructions, and theological motifs, like those in the Bible, and it also affords the same lens for viewing the families in this movie. As Mr. Park begins to notice the unsettling and distasteful aromas of the Kims, the audience also becomes hypersensitive to their presence, and the Parks’ privileged position leaves them feeling entitled to dictate w...

Photo of the three essential oils that I used the most this week (L to R): Uplift (sweet orange), Calmness (geranium, vetiver, grapefruit), Asleep (lavender) I was unsure what to write about this week because, to be honest, I had a rough week. My uncle Fred passed away, and I couldn’t go to the funeral or wake, so I had to grieve in isolation away from my family which was difficult. The best thing that I did for myself this week was concentrate on “self-care,” as one does when they are sad, and part of my self-care was putting on my essential oil diffuser in my room to change my mood. You might be able to tell where this is going.  When I was being consoled by my friend this week, I told her about this recent self-care practice of mine, and she took out her collection of essential oils to let me smell them and borrow one. For ones like lavender and sage, I realized that I didn’t need to open them to smell them because I could already imagine the scent, probably because I have them ...

  I grew up going to a Catholic church, and I attended a religious conference the year after I made my Confirmation. Everyone called it “Jesus Camp.” These conferences happen all over the U.S. (they originated in Steubenville, Ohio), but as I read this piece for class, I was reminded of my time at “Jesus Camp” during adoration the first year I went.  The priest was bringing the Eucharist around the entire sports/performing arena and music was playing, and that in and of itself was a different experience than the adoration that I experienced at my home church where we sat in silence and stared at the Eucharist on the altar. My group was sitting in one of the last sections of the arena, and while we watched him weave in and out of the rows throughout the rest of the center, things started to happen.  Kripal writes “...the sacred is the mysterium tremendum et fascinans, that is, the mystical (mysterium) as both fucking scary (tremendum) and utterly fascinating (fascinans).” ...

Image from mickeyblog.com Ackerman describes how smells move us in profound ways because we cannot describe them. She writes " smells are often right on the top of our tongues - but no closer - and it gives them a kind of magical distance, a mystery, a power without a name, a sacredness" (9). About two years ago, my family took a trip to Disney. We went on the Avatar Flight of Passage ride, twice, and, goodness....it smelled. Bad. It made me, my siblings, and my father nauseous. My mom loved it. Disney is notorious for their scents and smell machines (dubbed "smellitizers") which enhance the experience of their parks and make your memories that much stronger. Such was the case on this specific ride. When doing my Christmas shopping this year, I came across a small Etsy business called "Main Street Melts Candle Co." that specializes in capturing those Disney scents and recreates them through candles, essential oils, etc. So, naturally (or artificially, I s...