To be honest, when I read the blog prompt I felt a little intimidated, and before attending class on Friday I had no idea what to write about. I was especially intimidated by the idea of writing two interdisciplinary essays for our midterm. However, I feel that I now have better grasp on what is expect. So in order to discuss the themes of obligation, suffering, and judgment, I am going to related theme to the cultures we have studied thus far.
Obligation is theme that I feel is very prominent in Hinduism. It relates directly to their idea of dharma, or duty. In order to break the cycle of samsara, and overcome human ignorance, you must become aware of your dharma. Becoming aware of your dharma, and essentially yourself is not a necessarily an easy task. However, when one discovers their dharma they must fulfill it in order to better their karma and better serve Brahma. In Hinduism, having good karma is the key to escaping samsara, the cycle of rebirth and suffering.
When it comes to Archaic Greece I believe that the theme of suffering was a very notable aspect of their culture. The thing that was most desired by Greek men was honor, or timê. In order to gain honor men would have to defend and fight for their community, which would most likely involve a lot of suffering. Achilles and Odysseus both suffered a great deal during and after the Trojan War; however this suffering, although it may have caused them a great deal of pain, paid off in the end because it resulted in honor.
Judgment is an important theme in both Hinduism and Ancient Greece. As previously stated, in order to break the cycle of samsara Hindus must have good karma, and if their karma is bad they are forced back into the cycle. In Archaic Greece the afterlife is the same for everyone, which means that unlike the Hindus, they are exclusively judged while they are on earth.
Word count: 335
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