Assimilation of Yogic Religions through Pop Culture (eBook)

Paul G. Hackett received his Ph.D. in religion and has taught at Columbia University.

Foreword David Gordon WhiteEditor's Preface Paul G. HackettAcknowledgements Preliminary NotesPart I: Theatre and FilmIntroduction Ken Derry1. The Yogi, the Prince, and the Courtesan: Izéÿl in Europe and AmericaSamuel Thévoz2. Supermen, Mystical Women, and Oriental Others: Dynamics of Race and Gender in Pop Cultural Yogis and the Universal SuperhumanAnya P. Foxen3. From the Razor's Edge to the Scalpel's Blade: Larry Darrell, Doctor Strange, and the Trope of the Rehabilitated Western Man as YogiPaul G. HackettPart II: Television and SerialsIntroductionJane Naomi Iwamura and Paul G. Hackett4. “I’ll See You Again in Twenty-Five Years:” Tibetan Buddhism in David Lynch’s Twin Peaks and American Pop Culture in the 90sAdam C. Krug5. The Future is Not What it Used To Be: Religion, Yogic Power, and Tibet in Star Trek and Doctor Who Paul G. Hackett6. The Blank Scriptures of the Xiyou ji: Interpretive Flexibility and Religious Stability in Post-1949 Adaptations of The Journey to the West Nathan Faries and Yuanfei WangPart III: Comic Books and Graphic NovelsIntroduction A. David Lewis7. The Spiritual Superhero: A Historical Overview of Tantra in Comics Albion M. Butters8. The Implied Spider-Man: Transcreating Religious Imagery and Meaning in Spider-Man: IndiaRex Barnes9. The Dark Knight of the Soul: Death as Initiatory Ordeal in Grant Morrison’s Batman R.I.P. Joel BordeauxAfterword Paul G. Hackett

This volume explores the hitherto-unrecognized complexity of the earliest connections between the Euro-American world and the cultures of Asia. With carefully constructed and nuanced historical case studies, we see how the beliefs and practices of various Asian religions were imported, adopted, and at times twisted to fit into expressions of Western culture. These include new spiritual movements, performing arts, and literature. This skillfully-compiled and broad collection of essays adds completely new examples of the phenomenon of Orientalism in context; the detail and insights found here are sure to interest a broad audience as well as inspire further explorations of this fascinating phenomenon.

Here is a brilliant collection detailing the pretzel logic of yoga in popular culture. It demonstrates how pervasive and deep Asian religions and spiritualities permeate the West’s best, even super-heroic, imaginings of itself.