Work

‘Unhappy Lovers’? Difficulties of Spiritual Transition and the Case of Environmentalist ‘New Animism’

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: In this paper, we reflect on difficulties connected with transitioning from one spiritual tradition to another. We consider Western New Animism, sometimes proposed as a remedy to the exploitative and anthropocentric values typical of Western Modernity. New Animism hopes to provide a framework for resilient, pro-environmental attitudes and practices. Referring to Wittgenstein’s reflections on religion, magic and culture, as well as the work of Peter Winch, we argue that the possibility of embracing another form of spirituality depends on one’s ability to see a ‘depth’ in it. However, a conversion always has an element of the unpredictable, as we never know in advance what awaits us on the other side. This creates problems for purely pragmatically oriented suggestions to adopt an animist worldview.

Source: Religions

DOI: 10.3390/rel16060793

Authors: Ondřej Beran, Olli Lagerspetz

Institutions: University of Pardubice, Åbo Akademi University

Language: English

Topic: Religion, Ecology, and Ethics

Subfield: Sociology and Political Science

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $2,172

Funder: European Regional Development Fund