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If you could, in the most earthly way possible could you help me show proper respect to the mother of my dearly departed friend? I have a long time friend name G. He and I were close some 35 years ago in high school and we stayed so very close as friends in the past 13 years since we moved back separately to our home town. He and i shared a one night stand one drunken night after college that was always a source of comic relief in our times of hardship during the pandemic, his friendships and mine were shared with some dozen or so fellow classmates but his seemed to fall away as his depression got the better of him over time. The friends were still fond but just not as formal as he an d I stayed. Sadly he died suddenly due to a heart condition (cont'd) [more inside]
posted by The_imp_inimpossible at 8:17 AM - 16 answers

I cannot really have a pleasant day dream about my big life dream because it turns into a night mare in which I am bloodied, betrayed, and helpless. (1) Is this what people mean when they say that their big dreams care them? (2) Besides getting a therapist, can you recommend any books or insights to help me figure this out? [more inside]
posted by Kitty_Levin at 8:35 AM - 11 answers

i'm looking for a unicorn of a catholic parish in chicago. snowflakes inside. [more inside]
posted by maighdeann mhara at 9:45 AM - 5 answers

There are plenty of tips out there for using a pool for spiritual cleansings but I'm having trouble finding anything about cleansing the pool itself. Does anyone know of rituals for helping a swimming pool back to a more spiritually neutral state?
posted by Tell Me No Lies at 8:04 PM - 11 answers

My high school students are trying out several methods of ancient (Roman) divination in class to learn how they worked. For years, I have used a method of hydromancy where they throw a piece of bread into a container of water and sinking = "yes"/floating = "no." However, due to food allergies, I really need to stop using bread in class. Can you think of a substitute that would also sometimes float/sometimes sink that we could use in the same way or an entirely different method of hydromancy that would still be simple that I could substitute? NO FOOD. [more inside]
posted by lysimache at 2:37 PM - 18 answers

Visiting Osaka, we went to a tea museum which had a calligraphic hanging scroll inside which was called something like "Ro-Ko-Sui" and has a famous zen saying on it about the "humble owl." It's something about the importance of staying humble yet highly capable as a zen priest. Could you point me to it? Haven't been able to find anything on google. [more inside]
posted by egeanin at 6:40 AM - 0 answers

I’m searching for other texts like The Questions of King Milinda, wherein a respected religious authority presented an account of his or her religion to a governing authority.
posted by jefficator at 3:26 PM - 5 answers

I'm an atheist (though raised christian with extensive exposure) dating someone looking to be a priest in the episcopal church in a major, progressive city. We're OK with it (though recognize this will be a lot of work at times). Things are looking serious. Are there any books or other resources for someone who is going to be a priest's partner? Obviously "talk to your partner regularly" and "discretion!" are things I'm already doing, but other resources are appreciated.
posted by anonymous at 10:00 PM - 13 answers

I'm looking for a name and/or discussion or research about the rhetorical device of connecting the main topic of a speech or sermon to a future everyday event you expect a large percentage of the audience to encounter. The goal of the device is to trigger a moment of reflection and mindfulness about the broader topic of the sermon later in the week when the small event happens. [more inside]
posted by ch3cooh at 12:31 PM - 5 answers

I will be in London in May, arriving Sunday morning by red eye. I expect to arrive at Heathrow around 7am and will need to clear customs, etc. I'd love to attend a choral Anglican service when I get into town (time permitting), with some parameters inside. I'll be staying at a hotel on the north side of Hyde Park, and somewhat would prefer to be nearby, but I could go further afield. [more inside]
posted by Admiral Haddock at 6:27 AM - 12 answers

Lately, I've been thinking about how genius is recognized and celebrated. We often elevate a small group of artists every generation as geniuses and then ignore or downplay the art made by every other artist, but it seems that great art is made by all kinds of people, not just the canon of 'great artists'. I'd like to read more on this topic - can anyone recommend any particular thinkers, especially recent ones - like from critical theorists or later?
posted by clockworkjoe at 3:38 PM - 11 answers

I've noticed there seem to be two types of people--those who accept there are some things the human mind just won't be able to comprehend and those who think that if we can't imagine it, it can't exist. I feel like the latter camp is just wrong on the facts since there are things in modern physics we can observe but have no way to explain (e.g., wave-particle duality and other aspects quantum mechanics, how ions going across a membrane results in a thought in her psyches). Is there a formal area of philosophy (or book) that considers the topic from that perspective--i.e., that since our minds evolved in a certain environment we'll never be able to understand aspects of the physical world outside of that environment. [more inside]
posted by Jon44 at 7:08 AM - 18 answers

I've been asked to officiate at the unveiling of the headstone of a dear departed cousin of mine. I've attended such ceremonies before but usually they've been presided over by a rabbi. I'm doing my own research, but have you ever officiated one, or seen a layperson do so? If so, I'd be grateful for anything you can tell me about it. Thank you.
posted by Conrad Cornelius o'Donald o'Dell at 2:35 PM - 2 answers

I'm in no way proud of how my life has turned out. I feel defeated on every level. Some people can shift their values to reflect their current reality- but thanks to religious trauma , I am not one of those people. I'm not suicidal, I have a therapist and a good psych... but seriously, how does one start feeling proud of themselves without a huge amount of external validation (income, health, beauty, or instagram likes )? I really cannot stand to be alone with these thoughts, so I work every minute that I am asked and I sleep as much as possible-
posted by Mr. Metaphor at 3:35 PM - 10 answers

I was wondering if anyone had any meaningful advice on how to practice self compassion including recommendations for resources and/or practices that have worked for you? [more inside]
posted by Sunflower88 at 4:07 AM - 9 answers

I'm having a conversation with a friend about art, and we disagreed on a point that seemed so obvious to me that I wanted to get some other opinions. Is an art director at a magazine, who works with a team of illustrators and photographers and typesetters to design magazine, an artist? [more inside]
posted by tybstar at 9:41 AM - 15 answers

I would love to find a collection of graphs that explain the fundamentals of major philosophical ideas, particularly modern ones. Does such a thing exist? I'm thinking about things like this (ideal, for its comparative nature, focus on modern ideas, and distillation to the most basic elements) or this (less ideal, but serviceable). I know a lot will be elided in this format, and that's ideal so that I don't get overwhelmed. In a perfect world, there is one book that exists that is mostly graphs.
posted by sugarbomb at 9:31 AM - 3 answers

Please help me find a poem or reading for a women’s retreat about “reconnection”. Topics include reconnection to the spirit/God, to one’s self, to community. This is for our final session which is loosely “worship” but suggestions from any faith tradition or secular humanism etc are welcome.
posted by ChristineSings at 5:36 PM - 10 answers

Calling all roboticist philosophers.... For the sake of argument, if one can program AI to suggest random prompts to itself and then have it use Midjourney to create unique art based on those random prompts, how is the computer not considered the artist? I'm curious about the specific arguments around this new technology re: what counts as "art" if the creator is not human but still generating, technically, the original prompts to generate new imagery in the first place. [more inside]
posted by egeanin at 12:38 PM - 21 answers

Micro McGee, 11, is learning about ancient Mesopotamia, and is curious which ancient religions, from anywhere in the world, survive to the modern era, that are not among the "big five" (Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism) or their offshoots. It's okay if they're syncretic or influenced by later movements; among those we've discussed are the religion of the Yazidi, Zoroastrianism, Dravidians, etc. [more inside]
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 7:21 PM - 29 answers