psychology

The Four Agreements of Don Miguel Ruiz – Episode 47

In this episode Dara has a good look at the bestselling 1997 New Age text, The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz, the Mexican spiritualist and New Age thinker. The four agreements in question relate to how we speak or use language; how we receive the actions of others; the limitations of what we can know about anybody else; and the commitment to always trying to use the best of ourselves. Easier said than done, but Dara tries to examine them in a context of personal responsibility and everyday behaviour, and recognises how they can be applied in his own life.

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Platonism and Sport, or The Impossible Pursuit of Perfection – Episode 43

In this episode Dara presents his thesis that all sports fans are embroiled in a philosophical engagement with the team or sportsperson that they love. Namely, the relationship of our desire and emotional investment to a higher aspiration – the symbiotic realisation of sporting perfection. Dara argues that this desire is in essence a Platonic impulse to contemplate not only the ideal sporting moment, the physical and psychological expression of something exquisite that elevates fan and player alike, but also to be part of the collective good character of a club. When realised, therein lies the possibility of a moral edification.

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The Things We Shouldn’t Stomach, or The Violent Wellness of Expulsion – Episode 39

This week’s episode is all about getting rid of the bad stuff in your life, and it starts with having a good old vomit! Having had that unpleasant experience recently, Dara decides to hang this episode’s theme around the body’s singularity of purpose when expelling something evil from the gut.

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Acting Out in the Extreme, or When Private Pain becomes Public Tragedy – Episode 27

In this episode Dara is prompted by the recent violent attack in Waukesha, as well as other car and truck attacks and shooting atrocities, to reflect on how we view the individuals who perpetrate such acts. His train of thought takes in cultural stereotyping, systemic social failure, and the expression of pain in both positive and negative ways. Newton’s Cradle – the metal ball office toy – is offered as a metaphor for profound pain and alienation finding its equal and opposite expression in extreme acts.

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The Thrum of the Machine, or The Beautiful Irreducibility of Character – Episode 19

In this episode Dara explores the concept of character and how its uncovering might lie at the heart of true strength, happiness and resilience. He places it in firm counterpoint to the litany of reductive names, labels and titles and other identifiers we have put on us. That prompts a reflection on the tyranny of the word ‘Mother’.

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