Touchstone
A System for Understanding Systems of Knowledge
A Project of Religion 225
"Magic, Science, and Religion"
Washington and Lee University
 
 Touchstone provides basic information on a  wide range of  systems of knowledge, organized and presented in a format that allows comparison on the level of basic assumptions and modes of expression and practice.  The term "systems of knowledge" is meant to cover anything from religious traditions, philosophical systems, and meditative techniques, to systems that are meant to explain or control the natural world, including the human body.

The aim is to compare:
     How knowledge is identified; 
     What the criteria are for discerning falsehood from truth; 
     What the purpose of discovering knowledge is; 
     What sorts of techniques are employed; 
     What sorts of institutions develop to promote or safeguard the knowledge; 
     How such knowledge is related to other forms of knowledge.

All student articles will follow the following set format:
     I. Abstract 
     II. Scope and Purpose of the System 
     III. Authority Structure 
         a. Sources and Criteria of Valid Knowledge 
         b. Methods of Inquiry 
         c. Institutions and Professional Structure 
     IV. History 
     V. Representative Examples of Argumentation 
     VI. Suggested Position in Comparative Scales 
     a. Relative emphasis on traditional authority ----- or the testimony of experience. 
         b. Relative centralization of authority ----- or decentralization (individual inquiry, lay teaching). 
         c. Relative emphasis on invisible (spiritual or heavenly) realities ----- or material, earthly ones. 
         d. Mainly spiritual or moral objectives ----- or pragmatic aims (prediction, healing, etc.) 
         e. Most power or agency reserved for a divine being ----- or realizable in individuals. 
     Annotated Bibliography 

For a more detailed explanation of this format, click HERE
For a starter bibliography on many of the topics below, click HERE 
(See other bibliographies under specific topics below)
Students' Rapportage (click on "paper") and Web Links
Views on the World
Systems that explain the role of the divine in history, offer access to personal experience of the divine, or account for the origin and structure of the world and the social order		 Mystical Technologies
Systems that claim to provide a technical means to control or modify the natural world, to reveal the unknown, or to predict the future		 Therapies of Body and Soul
Systems that claim to improve the capacities or health of the soul, mind, or body
RELIGIOUS SYSTEMS

Jainism
   paper 

Kabbalah
   paper 

Sikhism
   paper 

CHARISMATIC RELIGION

Cult of the Christian Saints 
   paper 

The Phenomenon of Stimata
   paper 

The Trial of Joan of Arc 
   paper 

Glossolalia (Speaking in Tongues) 
    paper 

Snake Handling (Appalachia) 
    paper 1     paper 2

Mevlevis ("Whirling Dervishes") 
   paper 

MODERN RELIGIOUS MOVEMENTS
The Amish 
    paper 1     paper 2 

Aum Shinrikyo 
    paper 

Baha'i
    paper 

Branch Davidians 
    paper 

Freemasonry
    paper 
Links:
 Indiana Masons Online
 United Grand Lodge of England
 Freemasonry in Hong Kong

- Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn
   paper 

- Rosicrucian Movement
Links:
 Rosicrucian Order

Heaven's Gate

People's Temple (Jonestown)
   paper 

Raelianism
   paper 1     paper 2 

Rastafarianism
   paper 1     paper 2

Santeria
   paper 

Theosophy
   paper 

UFOlogy
Links:
 UFOlogy Association, Taiwan

Vodou (Voodoo) (Haiti)
   paper 1      paper 2        paper 3 

Wicca 
   paper 

RELIGION AND SCIENCE

Islam
Links:
 The Center for Islam and Science

RELIGIOUS IDEOLOGY IN AS A SOCIAL FORCE

The Inquisition
    paper 
Links: 
 Links to Inquisition Sites

The Reformation
   paper 

Religious Uses of History
Links:
 Hindutva Historical Fraud: The Treachery and Deceit of Brahmin Historians.
 Mahabharata: A Myth or a Reality?

Ku Klux Klan 
   paper 1     paper 2 

 

 ALCHEMY

In Europe
  Paracelsus paper
Links:
 Paracelsus (1493-1541) on Alchemy, Astrology...
 Alchemy in the work of Ibn Khaldun
 The Alchemy Website (nonacademic)
In India 
    paper 

In China
 Links:
 The Golden Elixir: Intro. to Ch. Alchemy 

MANTIC SYSTEMS
I Ching 
    paper 

Oracles - Greek, Hellenistic
   paper 

Astrology 
    paper 
Links: 
 *** Ancient Divination and Astrology 
   by Timothy Spalding
 Jyotisha (Indian Astrology)
 The Hindu Calendar
 Feng Shui

Numerology
 

Shamanism
   paper 

Spiritualism 
   paper 

Tarot Card Reading
   paper 1     paper 2 

MAGIC / SORCERY

Research Bibliography 1 
Research Bibliography 2

European Witchcraft 
    paper 1     paper 2 
Links:
 Scottish Witchcraft

Magic in Antiquity
   paper (Egyptian amulets)
Links:
 Bibliography on Magic in Ancient Egypt, Near East, Greece, and Rome

Azande Witchcraft
   paper 

Appalachian Magic
   paper 

Sailors' Lore
   paper 

 TRANSFORMATIVE RITES

In Roman Catholicism:
   Baptism paper 
   Eucharist paper 
   Exorcism paper 

SPIRITUAL DISCIPLINES

Yoga
   paper 1     paper 2 (Yoga-Sutra)

Tai Qi Chuan and Qi Gong
Links:
 ChiLel Qigong Home Page

Falung Gong
Links:
 Falun Dafa Official Website
 Evaluation by Barend ter Haar
 Analysis from AsiaSource

Trephination (Trepanation) 
   paper 

HEALTH AND HEALING

Acupuncture and Acupressure 
   paper 1     paper 2     paper 3 
Links:
 The British Medical Acupuncture Society
 Intern'l Council of Medical Acupuncture
 Su Jok acupuncture

Chinese and Japanese Herbal Medicine
Links:
 Chinese and Japanese Medicine

Ayurveda (Indian Life Science) 
   paper 
Links:
 International Academy of Ayurved, Pune

Tibetan Medicine 
   paper 

Yunani (Galenic) Medicine
Links:
 Unani Medicine
 Unani Herbal Healing
 Niamath Research Foundation
 Islamic Medicine on islam-usa.com
 Other Links

Homeopathy 
   paper 
Links: 
 National Center for Homeopathy
 Homoeopathic Online Education

Magnetic Therapy 
    paper 

Osteopathy
   paper 

Parapsychology
   paper 

Reiki
   paper 

Folk Medicine - Appalachian
    paper 

Christian Faith Healing
   paper 
 
RELIGION AS "SCIENCE"
The Church of Christ, Scientist 
    paper 1     paper 2  
Links:
 Official Church Website

Church of Scientology (Dianetics) 
    paper 
Links: 
 Official Website

Modern Uses of Veda
Links: 
 Gayatri Pariwar (India)
 
 

 Lubin Home | South Asia Links | Religion Department | Washington and Lee University

Since 17 October 2002 this page has been accessed [an error occurred while processing this directive] times.   This page was last updated on Tuesday, 06-Jan-2009 16:17:43 EST