Reviews and Comments

I've translated the following folk tale from this #folklore collection:

"Albertus Magnus in Cologne" ("Albertus Magnus in Cöln"): www.patreon.com/posts/in-emperors-89749245

I've translated the following folk tale from the second volume of "Deutsche Sagen" - the other #folklore collection by the Brothers Grimm:

"Albertus Magnus and Emperor Wilhelm" ("Albertus Magnus und Kaiser Wilhelm"): www.patreon.com/posts/in-emperors-89749245

I've translated the following folk tales from this #folklore collection:

"Hare at the Crossroads near Remetschwil" ("Hase am Kreuzwegli bei Remetschwil") "Hanging by a Straw" ("Erhängen am Strohhalm"): www.patreon.com/posts/further-leporid-88425566

"The Hare Woman of Zofingen" ("Die Zofinger-Hasenfrau") "Hannele of Eckwil" ("Hannele von Eckwyl"): www.patreon.com/posts/return-of-hare-95038348

"The Fickle Xaver of Tägerig" ("Der Lädeligugger-Xaveri von Tägerig"): www.patreon.com/posts/reformed-secret-92293430

I've translated the following folk tale from this old magazine:

"How People Can See Spirits": www.patreon.com/posts/sunday-children-86272312

I've translated the following folk tale from this #folklore collection:

"The Devil’s Path of Falkenstein" ("Der Teufelsweg von Falkenstein"): www.patreon.com/posts/devils-path-of-85051734

I've translated the following folk tales from this #folklore collection:

"The Legend of the Rolandseck" ("Sage vom Rolandseck"): www.patreon.com/posts/so-near-and-yet-84763175

I've translated the following folk tale from this #folklore collection:

"The Stone Cross in the Teufelsthal Valley" ("Das steinerne Kreuz im Teufelsthal"): www.patreon.com/posts/old-feuds-new-81694341

I've translated the following folk tales from this #folklore collection:

"The Devil’s Ditch" ("Teufels-Graben"): www.patreon.com/posts/infernal-works-79140916

"Faithful Eckart" ("Vom treuen Eckart"): www.patreon.com/posts/faithful-eckart-94827404

It was probably a bit ambitious to read "Aztec Philosophy" as my very first book on philosophy, and thus it took me a long time to finish it. But it was very much worth it, since it allowed me to examine my own Eurocentric perceptions and assumptions on philosophy, metaphysics, cosmology, and so forth. And thus I recommend this book to anyone else who wants to gain a wider perspective on these matters.

Consciously or not (and mostly the latter), most people with an Eurocentric background (including those descended from European settlers) have internalized narratives about the world that are heavily based on both Greek philosophy and Christian theology - and this remains true even for those who have decided to reject Christianity. Aztecs - and other indigenous American people - have long lived in isolation from Europe, and have thus built up their own philosophies and metaphysics which has shaped their understanding of the world in an entirely different way.

Central to Aztec metaphysics is the concept of "teotl" - a divine force (and not energy) that constantly recreates itself in new forms. Everything that was, is, and will be - from rocks and animals, humans, and to the very gods themselves - are merely temporary manifestations of teotl which will eventually decay and dissolve, and then their teotl will manifest in new forms. The goal for humans is then to maintain a good, stable, moderate life on this Earth for long as it will last - for nothing will last forever.

This is the merest gist of the complexities involved, but it is already a huge contrast to the Christian notions of an "eternal, unchanging divine" and the "temporary base matter" of earthly existence - to the Aztecs, there is no fundamental difference between the teotl within a mortal and the teotl within the gods. And while Christian cosmology has a clear beginning and end to Creation, Aztec philosophy does not - existence will always go on, although its form is constantly changing.

Even if you are not a student of philosophy, I recommend this book to #ttrpg players and GMs. For instance, I found that the concept of teotl as described in this work could work surprisingly well for the philosophical underpinnings of "The Force" in #StarWars - it would add some real nuance to the conflicts between the "Dark Side" and the "Light Side". And the concepts within this book could add a lot of nuance and ideas to other settings with complex metaphysics!

You can find a shorter overview article about the concepts explained in this book here:

iep.utm.edu/aztec-philosophy/

I've translated the following folk tale from this old journal:

"The Wailing Woman" ("Das Klageweib"): www.patreon.com/posts/antecedents-of-78133131

I've translated the following folk tale from this work:

"Of the Knight Walter von Endenich and the Devil" ("Vom Ritter Walter von Endenich und dem Teufel"): bookrastinating.com/book/550280/s/wunderbare-und-denkwurtige-geschichten-aus-den-werken-des-casarius-von-heisterbach-erster-theil

I've translated the following folk tales from this #folklore collection:

"The Devil Hears a Miner’s Confession" ("Der Teufel hört einen Bergmann beichten"): www.patreon.com/posts/devils-last-77781678

"The Devil Fetches a Lovesick Cleric at Freiberg" ("Der Teufel holt einen verliebten Cleriker zu Freiberg"): www.patreon.com/posts/summoning-devil-39474520

"The Devil in the Confessional at Oschatz" ("Der Teufel im Beichtstuhle zu Oschatz"): www.patreon.com/posts/devil-goes-39519272

"The Ghostly Suitor on Hartenstein Castle" ("Der gespenstige Freier auf Hartenstein"): www.patreon.com/posts/love-after-death-48654264

"The Rider without a Head on the Ziegenberg hill near Zwönitz" ("Der Reiter ohne Kopf auf dem Ziegenberge bei Zwönitz"): www.patreon.com/posts/headless-41100420