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Ambiguum 10 of Maximus the Confessor in Modern Study
No full textThis volume centers on Ambiguum 10, the most extensive and philosophically diverse Ambiguum of St. Maximus the Confessor. While this writing is part of a larger collection referred to as Ambigua to John, Ambiguum 10, due to its length and distinct subject matter, may be regard- ed as a separate work within this compilation. Ambiguum 10 is not only the longest work in Maximus’ Ambigua to John, it is also a text address- ing the most fundamental issues of the Christian religious itinerary. In this regard, Ambiguum 10 explores a diverse array of topics, encompassing Trinitarian theology, Christology, the doctrine of creation and providence, the interplay between contemplation and asceticism, the connection between the Old and New Testaments, the essence of the soul, and the classification of beings. Andrew Louth has characterized this work as an exemplary demonstration of Maximus’ “lateral think- ing”; namely, the Confessor’s unique capacity to intuit the most diverse facets of reality while weaving them into a cohesive image. The solutions he comes up with have lost none of their validity and relevance. The winding path of thought in Maximus’ Ambiguum 10 provides a blueprint of live metaphysical reflection
Da li je meditacija kraljevski put koji vodi do čiste svesti?
No full textOver the past 30 years, there has been an increasing scientific and philosophical attention to what contemplative and spiritual traditions for millennia have known as pure consciousness, free from concrete empirical content and egoic self-awareness. The article addresses whether meditation is the best candidate for the research of pure consciousness, as Thomas Metzinger claims in his book The Elephant and the Blind. The article calls this the Royal Road Thesis (RRT). The article first critically analyzes the concept of meditation, then uses descriptions of non- meditation to further deconstruct the concept of meditation. A section is devoted to an analysis of Metzinger’s claim that minimal phenomenal experience (and pure consciousness) is not mystical in itself, and finally, this is all interpreted in the context of consciousness culture and spirituality. The article concludes that RRT is very problematic and should be replaced by a more nuanced approach.Tokom proteklih 30 godina, sve veća je naučna i filozofska pažnja prema onome što su kon
templativne i duhovne tradicije milenijumima poznavale kao čistu svest, oslobođenu empi
rijskog sadržaja i egoičke samosvesti. U članku se govori o tome da li je meditacija najbolji
kandidat za postizanje iskustva čiste svesti, kao što Tomas Mecinger tvrdi u svojoj knjizi The
Elephant and the Blind. U članku se to naziva Royal Road Thesis (RRT). Članak prvo kritički
analizira koncept meditacije, a zatim koristi opise ne-meditacije da bi dalje dekonstruisao
koncept meditacije. Deo je posvećen analizi Mecingerove tvrdnje da minimalno fenomenal
no iskustvo (i čista svest) nije samo po sebi mistično, i konačno, sve se to tumači u kontekstu
kulture svesti i spiritualnosti. U članku se zaključuje da je RRT veoma problematičan i da ga
treba zameniti nijansiranijim pristupom
Thomas Reid and the Problem of Architecture
No full textThe eighteenth-century Scottish philosopher Thomas
Reid (1710–1796) widely as one of as David Hume’s most perceptive
contemporary critics, wrote nothing about architecture. In his Essays on
the Intellectual Powers published in 1783, however, the essay on “Taste”
contains thoughts that are relevant to the aesthetics of architecture. The
purpose of this paper is to show that on a central question in the philosophy of architecture, namely “What transforms the activity of building
into the art of architecture?,” Reid’s essay can be used to throw more
light than the familiar approaches to aesthetics that take their cue from
Hume and Kant. The key lies in Reid’s exploration of the relationship
between beauty, grandeur and excellence
“Highway to Hell” – Auschwitz as the Destination of Modernity?
No full textThe first part of the paper, running counter to Hegel’s dialectic, presents the main features
of Adorno’s negative dialectic and his thematization of Auschwitz as “absolute negativity”.
The second part of the paper is dedicated to Lyotard’s adoption and radicalization of the
negative dialectic to its suspension, and to his remarks regarding projects of (universal)
emancipation that he was convinced characterize modernity – and led to Auschwitz. In
the ensuing part, we take a look at some remarks addressed to Adorno about his “fascination”
with Auschwitz and the alleged wrongdoing committed by Lyotard’s postmodernist
rupture with the modernity on that basis. The final part of the paper is mostly dedicated to
Claussen’s return to Adornian theoretical narrative regarding Auschwitz and the apology of
its significance for the present day.Prvi dio rada, suprotno Hegelovoj dijalektici, prikazuje glavna obilježja Adornove negativne
dijalektike i njegovu tematizaciju Auschwitza kao »apsolutne negativnosti«. Drugi dio rada
posvećen je Lyotardovu preuzimanju i radikalizaciji negativne dijalektike sve do njezine
suspenzije, kao i njegovim zapažanjima o projektima (univerzalne) emancipacije za koje je
bio uvjeren da obilježavaju modernost – i koji su doveli do Auschwitza. U sljedećem dijelu
osvrćemo se na neka zapažanja upućena Adornu u vezi s njegovom »fascinacijom« Auschwitzom
i navodnom nepravdom koju je Lyotard počinio postmodernističkim raskidom s modernošću na toj osnovi. Završni dio rada uglavnom je posvećen Claussenovu povratku Adornovom teorijskom
narativu o Auschwitzu i obrani njegove relevantnosti za današnje vrijeme.Der erste Teil der Abhandlung, der im Widerspruch zu Hegels Dialektik steht, präsentiert die
Hauptmerkmale von Adornos negativer Dialektik und seine Thematisierung von Auschwitz als
„absoluter Negativität“. Der zweite Teil der Abhandlung behandelt Lyotards Übernahme und
Radikalisierung der negativen Dialektik bis hin zu ihrer Aufhebung sowie seine Bemerkungen
zu Projekten (universeller) Emanzipation, die seiner Überzeugung nach die Modernität
charakterisieren – und zu Auschwitz führten. In dem darauf folgenden Teil werfen wir einen Blick
auf einige an Adorno gerichtete Bemerkungen über seine „Faszination“ für Auschwitz sowie das
angebliche Unrecht, das Lyotard auf dieser Grundlage durch seinen postmodernistischen Bruch
mit der Modernität begangen habe. Der abschließende Teil der Abhandlung ist vorwiegend der
Rückkehr Claussens zu adornoschem theoretischem Narrativ in Bezug auf Auschwitz sowie der
Apologie seiner Signifikanz für die Gegenwart gewidmet.La première partie de cet article, à rebours de la dialectique hégélienne, présente les traits
principaux de la dialectique négative d’Adorno ainsi que sa conceptualisation d’Auschwitz
en tant que « négativité absolue ». La deuxième partie est consacrée à l’appropriation puis
à la radicalisation de cette dialectique négative par Lyotard, jusqu’à sa mise en suspens,
ainsi qu’à ses réflexions sur les projets d’émancipation universelle qu’il considérait comme
emblématiques de la modernité – et qu’il tenait pour responsables d’avoir conduit à Auschwitz.
La partie suivante examine certaines critiques adressées à Adorno, notamment sur sa supposée
« fascination » pour Auschwitz, ainsi que les reproches formulés à l’égard de la rupture
postmoderne de Lyotard avec la modernité, fondée sur cette lecture. La dernière partie de
l’article est en grande partie dédiée au retour de Claussen à la lecture théorique adornienne
d’Auschwitz, et à la défense de sa pertinence dans le monde contemporain
Beyond the attention economy, towards an ecology of attending. A manifesto
No full textWe endorse policymakers’ eforts to address the negative consequences of the attention economy’s technology but add that
these approaches are often limited in their criticism of the systemic context of human attention. Starting from Buddhist
philosophy, we advocate a broader approach: an ‘ecology of attending’ that centers on conceptualizing, designing, and using
attention (1) in an embedded way and (2) focused on the alleviating of sufering. With ‘embedded’ we mean that attention
is not a neutral, isolated mechanism but a meaning-engendering part of an ‘ecology’ of bodily, sociotechnical and moral
frameworks. With ‘focused on the alleviation of sufering’ we mean that we explicitly move away from the (often implicit)
conception of attention as a tool for gratifying desires. We analyze existing inquiries in these directions and urge them to be
intensifed and integrated. As to the design and function of our technological environment, we propose three questions for
further research: How can technology help to acknowledge us as ‘ecological’ beings, rather than as self-sufcient individuals? How can technology help to raise awareness of our moral framework? And how can technology increase the conditions
for ‘attending’ to the alleviation of sufering, by substituting our covert self-driven moral framework with an ecologically
attending one? We believe in the urgency of transforming the inhumane attention economy sociotechnical system into a
humane ecology of attending, and in our ability to contribute to it
Is there a future for the sacrifice zone? Understanding Mining Conflicts and Local Community Engagement in Bor and Majdanpek, Serbia
No full textThis paper explores the key theoretical concepts that best explain local community engagement in the mining areas of Bor and Majdanpek, Serbia. In post-socialist, semi-peripheral countries like Serbia, where economic development relies on direct foreign investment—including speculative mining projects that transform lively areas into sacrifice zones (Scott & Smith, 2017) —and where the anti-mining environmental movement is still emerging, it is essential to critically reassess concepts such as participatory, professional, and transactional activism (Petrova & Tarrow, 2007). It is also important to examine the deeper causes of local community engagement beyond institutional public participation and its various forms, given that residents' activities in Bor and Majdanpek are often individual, small-scale, sporadic, and primarily directed against the negative externalities of mining—such as environmental degradation, involuntary resettlement, health issues, monofunctional economy, etc.—rather than against mining activities themselves, but may contribute to the rise of the broader anti-extractivism movement and help create space for reimagining alternative futures (Rodriguez, Walter & Temper, 2024). The analysis is based on secondary sources on the ecological activism in Bor and Majdanpek and examines the specific dynamics of community engagement in these local contexts. Additionally, the paper explores a theoretical framework for understanding small-scale grassroots participation, offering insights into the environmental activism in mining affected areas
Filozofija menstruacije: telo koje nije bestelesno
No full textThe question this text raises is how do we think about the bodies that bleed, “we” being in particular those whose bodies bleed regularly? The question is philosophical in kind, as it tests our capacities to think about such bodies. Philosophy as a corpus has had little to say about menstruating bodies, which curiously also applies to feminist philosophy. Since these bodies do exist and we need to think of them in some way – not only for the sake of thinking, but also in order to apply legal measures in an equitable way – the text proposes the following: to see how bodies
were framed in philosophical thought, departing from the notion of a bodiless body as the central paradigm in conceptualizing the philosophical subject, to make room for greater pluralism, and a fortiori, equality in thinking about human embodiment. The key claim is that it is bleeding that stands firmly in the way of conceptualizing bodies as bodiless.Pitanje koje ovaj tekst postavlja jeste kako mislimo o telima koja krvare, posebno mi čija tela krvare. Pitanje je filozofsko pošto testira našu sposobnost da uopšte mislimo o takvim telima. Filozofija je, kao korpus znanja, imala malo toga da kaže o telima koja menstruiraju, što, zanimljivo je, važi i za feminističku filozofiju. No, kako ta tela postoje i stoga o njima moramo nekako misliti, ne samo mišljenja radi već i da bismo na njih mogli pravično da primenjujemo određene pravne mere, ovaj tekst predlaže sledeće: da se razmotri kakav je oblik telima davala filozofska misao, napuštajući shvatanje o bestelesnom telu kao središnjoj paradigmi u određenju filozofskog subjekta, da bi se načinilo više prostora za pluralizam i, a fortiori, za jednakost u mišljenju o ljudskoj telesnosti. Ključna je teza ovog teksta da upravo krvarenje stoji na putu razumevanju tela kao bestelesnih
Conceptualizing Psychedelic Pure Consciousness
No full textDrawing upon a meticulous delineation of pure consciousness’s fundamental and necessary features—including unstructuredness, maximal simplicity, selflessness, awareness as such, zero-perspective, and the absence of specific phenomenal qualities—this article asserts that a full-fledged experience of pure consciousness is attainable within the psychedelic state. Critically, this psychedelic manifestation is argued to be phenomenologically indistinguishable in its core properties from pure consciousness accessed via meditative practices. Consequently, this finding not only problematizes, but actually directly refutes Metzinger’s thesis, which posits meditation as the sole “best and most natural candidate” for achieving pure consciousness. Moreover, this work champions a soft phenomenological perennialism. This perspective navigates a middle ground between rigid perennialism and radical constructivism, underscoring the identical phenomenological core shared by all pure consciousness experiences, including those induced by psychedelics. This exploration further posits that psychedelic pure consciousness experiences can yield significant epistemic insights into the fundamental nature of consciousness, the self, and reality. Beyond this, a systematic phenomenology of pure consciousness is demonstrated to offer profound contributions to our understanding of certain religious–spiritual concepts such as God. Nonetheless, while acknowledging naturalistic critiques, a significant caveat is issued: extreme caution is warranted regarding religious–spiritual interpretations gleaned from such phenomenologies. Ultimately, the paper underscores the burgeoning importance of a spiritual naturalistic interpretation of pure consciousness
Az értelmen túli tapasztalat?
No full textVajon a módosult tudatállapotokat valóban mint a spontán értelemképződés fo-lyamatait kell leírnunk? Ez lenne a legmegfelelőbb konceptuális keret a meg-ragadásukhoz? Mielőtt egyértelmű nemmel válaszolna, ez a cikk kritikai vizsgá-latnak veti alá az egyes fogalmakat: az „értelemképződést”, a „spontaneitást”, a „módosult tudatállapotokat”. Ez a megközelítés segíthet, hogy radikálisan újra-gondoljuk a tapasztalat és tudat fogalmá