The Spirit of Play in Shaping Culture, Creativity, and Spirituality | Sophia Lectures 2023 Part 1/5

The Ralston College Podcast

University of Cambridge philosopher, Professor Douglas Hedley, delves into the concept of play and its vital role in understanding the human condition. Drawing on Johann Huizinga, Hermann Hesse, and Josef Pieper's ideas, Hedley links play to the divine act of creation, asserting it as an essential element of our existence associated with freedom, creativity, and spirituality. He considers various viewpoints from Christian and Eastern traditions, addressing criticisms and underscoring play's civilizing role. Through Hermann Hesse's "The Glass Bead Game," Hedley probes into play's societal function, its ties to leisure and festivals, and its life-enriching effects. The lecture's Q&A session offers additional insights, marking it as a significant resource for those intrigued by play's profound meanings.

Douglas Hedley is a distinguished philosopher at the University of Cambridge, celebrated for his extensive research in the philosophy of religion and Platonism. He is the author of multiple influential works on imagination and religious experience.

Glossary of Terms

Sophia: Greek word for wisdom, used in the context of the lecture series to signify the exploration of wisdom through philosophy.

The Delphic Oracle: The ancient Greek oracle at Delphi, famous for its cryptic predictions and guidance, including the maxim 'know thyself.'

Resources

Website: https://www.ralston.ac/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@RalstonCollegeSavannah X: https://twitter.com/RalstonCollege Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ralstoncollege/

Douglas Hedley https://www.divinity.cam.ac.uk/directory/douglas-hedley https://www.ralston.ac/people/douglas-hedley

Living Forms of the Imagination -Douglas Hedley

Sacrifice Imagined: Violence, Atonement, and the Sacred - Douglas Hedley

The Iconic Imagination - Douglas Hedley

The History of Religious Imagination in Christian Platonism, Exploring the Philosophy of Douglas Hedley - Christian Hengstermann

Homo Ludens: A Study of the Play-Element in Culture - Johan Huizinga

In the Shadow of Tomorrow: A Diagnosis of the Modern Distemper - Johan Huizinga

Leisure: The Basis of Culture - Josef Pieper

The Glass Bead Game (Magister Ludi) - Hermann Hesse

The Journey to the East - Hermann Hesse

Siddhartha - Hermann Hesse

Religion in Human Evolution: From the Paleolithic to the Axial Age - Robert N. Bellah

Tertullian. (n.d.). De Spectaculis.

De Ludo Globi: The Game of Spheres - Nicholas de Cusa

Plato. (n.d.). Symposium. https://classics.mit.edu/Plato/symposium.html

Plato. (n.d.). Phaedo. https://classics.mit.edu/Plato/phaedo.html

Plato. (n.d.). Laws. https://classics.mit.edu/Plato/laws.1.i.html

Quotes

"Platonic games and jokes are much more serious than the serious things of the Stoics." - Marsilio Ficino [00:09:20]

"Play may well be a key to understanding something about ourselves." - Douglas Hedley [00:09:00]

Chapters

[00:00:00] - Introduction [00:01:00] - Welcome and introduction of Sophia lectures series [00:06:40] - Topic introduction: The Spirit of Play [00:08:13] - Guest speaker introduction: Professor Douglas Hedley [00:09:40] - Distinguishing play and game [00:15:00] - Play as an intimation of the sacred [00:20:40] - The link between play and freedom [00:26:40] - Essentialism and play as an essential part of human condition [00:31:20] - Critique of play within the Christian tradition [00:36:50] - The glass bead game by Hermann Hesse [00:45:00] - Critique of Mandarin culture in the glass bead game [00:51:00] - Religious aspect of play [01:02:00] - Suspicion of leisure in Anglo-American culture [01:04:00] - Q&A session [01:37:19] - Conclusion of Q&A session and end of the lecture