“Sleeping, eating, and shitting.” Those were said to be the three realisations of Shantideva, who was an exceptional Buddhist monk famous for delivering the Way of the Bodhisattva off-the-cuff per the request of his confrères who intended to throw him out of the monastery. You might laugh, as I certainly did. It’s seen as uncharacteristic…

One time, when I was on a zen retreat, we sat around in a circle and took turns screaming imperatives as loud as we possibly could. They were very dramatic, too. We’d scream things like “Don’t waste your life!” and “Wake up!” or some such thing. Sounds easy, right? Wrong! It looked really easy, and…

Have you ever tried to think of how mind-bogglingly big infinity is? I mean, really, have you tried to picture it? You wouldn’t be able to do so, of course. If you did, I expect the sheer volume of the concept would shatter your mind. On the other hand, however, are you able to picture…

Probably my favourite class from undergrad was Plato and the Roots of Western Philosophy; and consequently, if anyone ever asks where to start with philosophy, I tell them to start by reading Plato. This is not because I think Plato’s ideas are absolutely right. (In fact, not one year after I finished that course I…

In the beginning, God created the heaven and earth. —Genesis 1:1 This verse from Genesis, as understood by orthodox Christian theology, describes God creating the world ex nihilo; that is, from nothing. Imagine that! Granted this was said for comedic purposes, Ricky Gervais once remarked that this was an incredible statement: it’s not like God…

What is “the answer”? That is, the answer to life, the universe, and everything? According to the Deep Thought supercomputer of Douglas Adam’s Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, it’s not an answer that we would like. Do you want to know what it is? Are you unperturbed on account of some morbid sense of curiosity?…

Fun fact about me: I actually prefer the Old Testament to the New. I know what you’re about to say: “But it’s so horrid! There’s so many violent parts! There’s so many strange laws! It’s just so… ugh!” But do you know what? That’s exactly what I like about it. It’s not that I don’t…

I hadn’t read much of Bertrand Russell until recently, when I came across a very short essay called The Theologian’s Nightmare. Mind! it’s less of an essay and more of a short story. In it, the esteemed theologian finds himself on the way to Heaven only to be subjected to greater inquisition than he was…