In this workshop, we will explore some of the most mysterious and misunderstood ‘unseen beings’ in the world - those who have populated our stories, cosmologies, arts, and psyches for generations untold, inspiring both terror and transcendence, hope and fear. These are, of course, the beings that we call ‘spirits.’
Join Erik Jampa as we open Pandora’s Box and explore the fascinating histories of our world’s ‘daemonological’ paradigms - exploring what they can teach us about our place in the world and our relationships with the environment, as well as how we can more thoughtfully engage with these paradigms in the ‘rational’ modern world.
Some of the topics explored will include:
An introduction to ghosts, gods, demons, nature spirits, and many other ‘paranormal’ beings.
How spirit paradigms developed, and their prominence in the pre-modern and non-modern world.
The ‘supernatural’ as a reaction to Enlightenment-era philosophies of ‘nature’.
Why spiritualism and supernaturalism failed to challenge the disenchanting premise of modernity.
Fairy lore and elvish mythologies of the 19th-20th centuries.
An introduction to ‘Spirited Ecologies’ and animistic approaches to non-human entities.
Why spirit beliefs are important in the modern world.
How storytelling serves as a key transmitter of spirit ontologies.