Thomas B Ellis
Biographic Data
| ID | 1267713 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Thomas B Ellis |
| GIVEN NAMES | Thomas B |
| FAMILY NAME | Ellis |
| SIGNATURE | ELLIS T B |
| AFFILIATIONS | Appalachian State University |
| ORCID | 0000-0001-8459-5483 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 10 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 5 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 10 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2008 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 1 |
Who Will Think of the Children? Hindu Childrearing Practices in Psychoanalytic Theory
The preeminent Indian psychoanalyst, Sudhir Kakar, invites his readers to consider the psychological bases of Hindu childhood and society. Crucial to his project is the Hindu mother’s behavior toward her child. Kakar proposes that, because of her own psychological needs, the mother physically and emotionally indulges her child. It is this indulgence that ostensibly accounts for the central Hindu themes of dharma, karma, and moksa. Kakar equally c…
An Unnatural History of Religions
Leonardo Ambasciano’s An Unnatural History of Religions: Academia, Post-Truth and the Quest for Scientific Knowledge presents a critical discussion of what the author believes to be the troubling persistence of non-natural research programs in the academic study of religion. The discussion follows the trajectory of the discipline over the past two hundred years, identifying the promising inauguration of the science of religion in the nineteenth c…
Of Gods and Devils
Perceiving the lack of control over the natural and social spheres is psychologically averse. The resulting depression has an effect upon the human animal’s inclusive fitness. In moments of despair and depression, sexual intercourse may be impossible. In order to restore a modicum of control, and thus libido, the human animal turns to religion. Religion provides compensatory, and thus adaptive illusions of control. It does this by first turning t…
Evoked Pūjā
Journal Article Evoked Pūjā : The Behavioral Ecology of an Equatorial Ritual Get access Thomas B. Ellis Thomas B. Ellis * Philosophy and Religion, Appalachian State University, Boone, NC 28608, USA. I would like to thank the two anonymous reviewers for their time and consideration. The suggestions for revisions were most helpful. As always, I remain responsible for any remaining shortcomings. Also, I would like to thank Dr. Amir Hussain and the e…
Disgusting Bodies, Disgusting Religion
Hard-core Tantric practice is disgusting, a point several scholars make. Scholarly interpretations of Tantric disgustingness, however, tend to follow the lead of Mary Douglas in suggesting that what disgusts is ultimately a reflection of social–historical concerns with borders and boundaries. Such interpretations fail to take seriously the Tantric consumption of feces, menstrual blood, urine, semen, and phlegm. Likewise, they fail to take serious…
Natural Gazes, Non-Natural Agents
Teaching & Learning Guide for
Author’s Introduction Religious conversations – both scholarly and popular – routinely employ the term ‘spirituality,’ a term whose ubiquity is matched only by its obscurity. ‘Spirituality’ is seldom, if ever, defined. Most people seemingly appeal to commonsense when they speak of ‘spirituality’ as ostensibly referring to something immaterial and by a certain extension non‐natural. The spiritual is supposed to transcend the historical. For those …
I Love You, I Hate You
Of And and Of
Grammatical constructions in course titles and research agendas reflect particular theoretical orientations in the study of religion. Privileging one construction over the others amounts to a politics of grammar. Two constructions are examined here—the conjunction and the genitive: “Religion and. . .” and “. . .of Religion.” Whereas non-reductive methods such as theology/phenomenology and cultural anthropology endorse the conjunction, reductive m…
On Spirituality
Discussions pertaining to method and theory in the study of religion often address the problems and concerns regarding definitions. Precise definitions reflect the maturity of a discipline. The ubiquity of 'spirituality' in scholarly literature is matched only by its persistent imprecision. What is spirituality? This article presents a precise definition. Employing terror management theory, sociometer theory, attachment theory, and death anxiety …
Disgusting Bodies, Disgusting Religion
Hard-core Tantric practice is disgusting, a point several scholars make. Scholarly interpretations of Tantric disgustingness, however, tend to follow the lead of Mary Douglas in suggesting that what disgusts is ultimately a reflection of social–historical concerns with borders and boundaries. Such interpretations fail to take seriously the Tantric consumption of feces, menstrual blood, urine, semen, and phlegm. Likewise, they fail to take serious…
Evoked Pūjā
Journal Article Evoked Pūjā : The Behavioral Ecology of an Equatorial Ritual Get access Thomas B. Ellis Thomas B. Ellis * Philosophy and Religion, Appalachian State University, Boone, NC 28608, USA. I would like to thank the two anonymous reviewers for their time and consideration. The suggestions for revisions were most helpful. As always, I remain responsible for any remaining shortcomings. Also, I would like to thank Dr. Amir Hussain and the e…
I Love You, I Hate You
Of And and Of
Grammatical constructions in course titles and research agendas reflect particular theoretical orientations in the study of religion. Privileging one construction over the others amounts to a politics of grammar. Two constructions are examined here—the conjunction and the genitive: “Religion and. . .” and “. . .of Religion.” Whereas non-reductive methods such as theology/phenomenology and cultural anthropology endorse the conjunction, reductive m…
On Spirituality
Discussions pertaining to method and theory in the study of religion often address the problems and concerns regarding definitions. Precise definitions reflect the maturity of a discipline. The ubiquity of 'spirituality' in scholarly literature is matched only by its persistent imprecision. What is spirituality? This article presents a precise definition. Employing terror management theory, sociometer theory, attachment theory, and death anxiety …
Natural Gazes, Non-Natural Agents
Teaching & Learning Guide for
Author’s Introduction Religious conversations – both scholarly and popular – routinely employ the term ‘spirituality,’ a term whose ubiquity is matched only by its obscurity. ‘Spirituality’ is seldom, if ever, defined. Most people seemingly appeal to commonsense when they speak of ‘spirituality’ as ostensibly referring to something immaterial and by a certain extension non‐natural. The spiritual is supposed to transcend the historical. For those …
I Love You, I Hate You
Disgusting Bodies, Disgusting Religion
Hard-core Tantric practice is disgusting, a point several scholars make. Scholarly interpretations of Tantric disgustingness, however, tend to follow the lead of Mary Douglas in suggesting that what disgusts is ultimately a reflection of social–historical concerns with borders and boundaries. Such interpretations fail to take seriously the Tantric consumption of feces, menstrual blood, urine, semen, and phlegm. Likewise, they fail to take serious…
Evoked Pūjā
Journal Article Evoked Pūjā : The Behavioral Ecology of an Equatorial Ritual Get access Thomas B. Ellis Thomas B. Ellis * Philosophy and Religion, Appalachian State University, Boone, NC 28608, USA. I would like to thank the two anonymous reviewers for their time and consideration. The suggestions for revisions were most helpful. As always, I remain responsible for any remaining shortcomings. Also, I would like to thank Dr. Amir Hussain and the e…
Of Gods and Devils
Perceiving the lack of control over the natural and social spheres is psychologically averse. The resulting depression has an effect upon the human animal’s inclusive fitness. In moments of despair and depression, sexual intercourse may be impossible. In order to restore a modicum of control, and thus libido, the human animal turns to religion. Religion provides compensatory, and thus adaptive illusions of control. It does this by first turning t…
An Unnatural History of Religions
Leonardo Ambasciano’s An Unnatural History of Religions: Academia, Post-Truth and the Quest for Scientific Knowledge presents a critical discussion of what the author believes to be the troubling persistence of non-natural research programs in the academic study of religion. The discussion follows the trajectory of the discipline over the past two hundred years, identifying the promising inauguration of the science of religion in the nineteenth c…
Who Will Think of the Children? Hindu Childrearing Practices in Psychoanalytic Theory
The preeminent Indian psychoanalyst, Sudhir Kakar, invites his readers to consider the psychological bases of Hindu childhood and society. Crucial to his project is the Hindu mother’s behavior toward her child. Kakar proposes that, because of her own psychological needs, the mother physically and emotionally indulges her child. It is this indulgence that ostensibly accounts for the central Hindu themes of dharma, karma, and moksa. Kakar equally c…
Psychology (6 works) · History (5 works) · Philosophy (5 works) · Religion, Spirituality, and Psychology (5 works) · Sociology (5 works) · Anthropology (4 works) · Epistemology (4 works) · Social Psychology (4 works) · Art (3 works) · Death Anxiety and Social Exclusion (3 works)