Breath of Proximity: Intersubjectivity, Ethics and Peace

ISBN-13: 9789401797375 / Angielski / Twarda / 2015 / 207 str.

Lenart Kof

Opis

This book offers an original contribution towards a new theory of intersubjectivity which places ethics of breath, hospitality and non-violence in the forefront. Emphasizing Indian philosophy and religion (Vedas and Upanishads) and related cross-cultural interpretations, it provides new intercultural interpretations of key Western concepts which traditionally were developed and followed in the vein of re-conceptualizations or revitalizations of Greek thought, as in Nietzsche and Heidegger, for example. The significance of the book lies in its establishment of a new platform for thinking philosophically about intersubjectivity, so as to nudge contemporary philosophy towards a more sensitive approach, which is needed in our times. Its originality lies in its innovative approach, which searches for the origin of ethical gestures (represented in respecting the breath/breathing) through the newly introduced concept of "mesocosm" as a space of a ritual, or a new ethical space of intersubjective encounters. The book also introduces the possibility of an original ethics based on breath. Intended for philosophers, feminists and others concerned with intercultural philosophy and comparative religion, the book will appeal to readers interested in contemporary ethical and political theories of peaceful conflict resolution and concepts of hospitality. A Breath of Hospitality will benefit all who seek a more sensitive approach in philosophy, including philosophy of religion, and often-neglected practical and educational layers of our everyday intersubjective relations.

Spis treści

1 Introduction.- Part I: On Mesocosmic Rituals: Three Accelerations.- 2 Towards Mesocosmic Rituals in the Vedas.- 3 Schelling, or From the Abyss of Ethics.- 4 A New Way of Gesture (G. H. Mead).- PART II: Two Intermediate Variations on the Elements of Water and Air.- 5 Feuerbach’s “Pneumatische Wasserheilkunde”.- 6 Heidegger’s Hölderlinian Breath.- Part III: Communities of Breathing, Communities of Peace.- 7 Ethics of Breath: Derrida, Lévinas and Irigaray.- 8 Divine Violence? Radical Ethics and Politics of Nonviolence.- 9 Rorty and Irigaray: On a Culture of Love and Peace.- PART IV: the Return of the Breath.- 10 Breath of Silence.- 11 Ethics of Breath and the Atmosphere of Politics.- 12 Conclusion.- Index nominum.

O autorze

Lenart Škof was born in Ljubljana, on July 6, 1972. He studied philosophy at the Faculty of Arts, University of Ljubljana. In 2001 he obtained Ph.D. in Religious studies at the Faculty of Theology, University of Ljubljana with a thesis on Schopenhauer’s ethics of compassion. During his postgraduate studies he spent 6 months on a KAAD research grant in Tübingen, Germany, studying at indological and philosophical seminars and in 1998-2001 he was a guest student at indological seminars at the University of Zagreb, Croatia. In 2005 he published a translation and commentary of the ancient Indian Upanishads from Sanskrit into Slovene. He is Professor of Philosophy at the Faculty of Humanities, University of Primorska, Slovenia, where he was Chair of Depts. of Philosophy and Anthropology, and Vice Dean for Academic Affairs and Research in 2006-2012. Dr. Škof published a paper in Schopenhauer Jahrbuch (2006, another paper in 2010). He has also important publications in the field of pragmatism. In 2008 he published two papers on American pragmatism. The first one was published in the leading journal for the philosophy of American pragmatism, Contemporary Pragmatism (USA). The second one was published in a special issue dedicated to the memory of Richard Rorty of journal Ideas y Valores (Colombia). His other important publications are about Rorty’s philosophy of religion (in one of the leading journals for philosophy of religion Sophia), contemporary political ethics and intercultural philosophy (Peace Review: Journal for Social Justice) and Dewey’s philosophy as compared to Ambedkar. He is also an author of three monographs in ethics, Indian and comparative philosophy and pragmatism. In May 2012 his fourth book on American pragmatism was published by Lexington Books. Dr. Škof received a Fulbright research grant for the 2005-06 academic year and Humboldt research grant for the 2010-11 academic year.

Blurb

This book offers an original contribution towards a new theory of intersubjectivity which places ethics of breath, hospitality and non-violence in the forefront. Emphasizing Indian philosophy and religion and related cross-cultural interpretations, it provides new intercultural interpretations of key Western concepts which traditionally were developed and followed in the vein of re-conceptualizations of Greek thought, as in Nietzsche and Heidegger, for example. The significance of the book lies in its establishment of a new platform for thinking philosophically about intersubjectivity, so as to nudge contemporary philosophy towards a more sensitive approach, which is needed in our times. Intended for philosophers, feminists and others concerned with intercultural philosophy, the book will appeal to readers interested in contemporary ethical and political theories. A Breath of Proximity will benefit all who seek a more sensitive approach in philosophy and often-neglected practical layers of our everyday intersubjective relations.

 

Life as breath: such is the grand theme of Lenart Škof's wonderful new book. Ranging from Indian Vedic writings to Heidegger and Irigaray, Breath of Proximity cuts across the tired analytic/continental distinction in philosophy and proposes an ethical cosmology based on our human dwelling. A breath of fresh air!

 

Kevin Hart is Professor of Christian Studies at the University of Virginia

 

Lenart Škof wrote a very interesting book on breath and breathing which expresses and analyzes the essence of human existence. The breath or wind is the core point of humans. As you know, you will read in John 3.8 that the humans are born from the wind. The breath and wind have something to do with the ethics of being human, because humans live with breath and breathing. Ethics is essentially a way of life through breathing. 

 

Tadashi Ogawa is Professor of Philosophy Emeritus at Kyoto University

Breath and breathing are central themes of Asian philosophies since ancient times. This was also the case in ancient Europe. But we forgot about this dimension in our academic discourse. The book of Lenart Škof brings into sight that well known Western philosophers of the 20th century picked this topic up again. The book is the most notable and far-reaching attempt to rediscover the fundamental dimension of breath and breathing for the contemporary discourse of philosophy. 

 

Rolf Elberfeld is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Hildesheim