Karma
Karma Why do things happen to us as they do? For many throughout Asia, the answer has been or is karma, the ancient Indian notion that over multiple lifetimes individuals reap the effects of past actions. We will examine this powerful idea of moral causality in depth, considering striking variations in classical Hinduism, Jainism, and Buddhism, and compare it to other theories of causation, both religious and scientific. We will also study the wealth of practices believed to improve future lives (and ultimately lead to liberation) and investigate diverse, surprising consequences of karma in some Asian societies, including justification of social hierarchy, mistreatment of some groups, and vegetarianism.
Karma Why do things happen to us as they do? For many throughout Asia, the answer has been or is karma, the ancient Indian notion that over multiple lifetimes individuals reap the effects of past actions. We will examine this powerful idea of moral causality in depth, considering striking variations in classical Hinduism, Jainism, and Buddhism, and compare it to other theories of causation, both religious and scientific. We will also study the wealth of practices believed to improve future lives (and ultimately lead to liberation) and investigate diverse, surprising consequences of karma in so …Read more
Professor Morrison is great! The course material was extremely interesting and there were no exams. There were two response papers, two short papers, and a final research paper. It was reading and writing intensive, but that was to be expected from a CW course. The course was well-structured and Professor Morrison provided helpful feedback with assignments. Overall, my experience was very positive.
Professor Morrison is great! The course material was extremely interesting and there were no exams. There were two response papers, two short papers, and a final research paper. It was reading and writing intensive, but that was to be expected from a CW course. The course was well-structured and Professor Morrison provided helpful fe …Read more
This is a first year-seminar class, so there is definitely a focus on learning how to read and write at a college level. The material is really interesting (basically, looking into how different religions-- Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism-- characterize karma), but there is a lot of reading and it is very dense (although you can skim most of it.) There are typically 2 or 3 20-ish page articles to read before each class, and they are often very scholarly articles about the more technical aspects of these religions. However, you only have to write 3 essays and maybe a couple short responses all semester, and the professor is truly brilliant and a wonderful academic advisor.
This is a first year-seminar class, so there is definitely a focus on learning how to read and write at a college level. The material is really interesting (basically, looking into how different religions-- Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism-- characterize karma), but there is a lot of reading and it is very dense (although you can skim …Read more
Professor Morrison is a fantastic teacher. She's friendly, has brought in food for the class to try, is very smart, and clearly passionate about the material. The readings added up to about 60-100 pages a week on average of dense material. I found a lot of value in reading the material fully without skimming as it improved my reading comprehension massively. My readings in my other courses were very easy in comparison. There's 2 essays and a research project and overall her grading seems fair. Going into this class, I didn't have the most enthusiasm for it, but it ended up being very enjoyable for me and easily surpassed my expectations.
Professor Morrison is a fantastic teacher. She's friendly, has brought in food for the class to try, is very smart, and clearly passionate about the material. The readings added up to about 60-100 pages a week on average of dense material. I found a lot of value in reading the material fully without skimming as it improved my reading …Read more
Professor Morrison is amazing and really cares about her students. This class is entirely on religion and there is little to no content outside of religion. Essays are graded harshly but there is support through the essay writing process. Readings often seem unnecessarily long and dense but can be skimmed.
Prof. Morrison was probably the most passionate teacher I've had thus far. While the course material didn't necessarily grab me, the teaching style and atmosphere that the professor created still made this class enjoyable.