Weekend Stories
I enjoy going exploring on weekends (mostly). Here is a collection of stories and photos I gather along the way. All posts are CC BY-NC-SA licensed unless otherwise stated. Feel free to share, remix, and adapt the content as long as you give appropriate credit and distribute your contributions under the same license.
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Siddhartha Gautama: The historical person behind the Buddha myth
Who was Siddhartha Gautama before he became the Buddha, the most central figure in Buddhism? In this post, we explore that question from a historical perspective, seeking to reconstruct a plausible biography of the man behind the myth. While centuries of devotion and tradition have elevated him into a symbol of awakened wisdom, Siddhartha’s actual life likely began in a small tribal republic in northern India during the 5th or 6th century BCE. Rather than dismissing the textual and oral traditions that preserve his memory, this article reads them critically — neither accepting supernatural claims at face value nor ignoring the consistent patterns that suggest a coherent human story. It situates Siddhartha in the vibrant social, political, and intellectual landscape of his time, and follows his transformation from a privileged heir to a seeker, teacher, and founder of one of the most enduring philosophical traditions in human history. Our goal is not to strip away meaning from the Buddha figure, but to understand the historical Siddhartha Gautama: a thinker shaped by his world, whose radical reimagining of spiritual life continues to resonate today.
Buddhism: Philosophy or religion?
Recently, I read the book Die Philosophie des Buddha – Eine Einführung (The Philosophy of the Buddha – An Introduction) by Sebastian Gäb. I found it to be not only an excellent introduction to Buddhism, but also a thoughtful exploration of several key questions surrounding it. One of the most intriguing questions Gäb raises is whether Buddhism is best understood as a philosophy or a religion. Gäb does not settle this question conclusively in the book. Instead, he chooses to approach Buddhism as a philosophy for the purposes of his book, and outlines a number of compelling arguments for doing so. In this post, I summarize and reflect on Gäb’s arguments. In addition, I try to maintain a broader view that also recognizes the religious dimension that has developed around Siddhartha Gautama’s teachings. My aim is to show that both interpretations — philosophy and religion — are justified, and that understanding their relationship helps us grasp what Buddhism is, and what it can be, more clearly.
Buddhism: A short introduction to its history and heart
Buddhism stands as one of the most influential religious and philosophical traditions in the world, shaping not only spiritual practice but also art, literature, and social institutions across Asia and beyond. From its roots in ancient India to its far-reaching expansions via trade routes and patronage by powerful rulers, Buddhism embodies a complex mosaic of ideas, historical developments, and cultural adaptations. In this post, we give a short introduction to Buddhism as a start of a new series on the history and philosophy of this tradition.
Three years of Russian aggression: Why the world must stand with Ukraine
On February 24, 2025, three years had passed since the Russian Federation launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine — an act that not only shattered peace in Europe but also violated every fundamental principle of international law. To mark this somber anniversary, I attended a rally on Cologne’s Roncalli Platz directly in front of the Cologne Cathedral, where people gathered to express solidarity with Ukraine and to remember the countless victims of this war of aggression. As a European citizen and a scientist who values truth, I feel compelled to offer this reflection — both as a documentation of Russian war crimes and as a clear call to support Ukraine’s continued fight for sovereignty and survival.
Momotarō at Schloss Arenfels – A Japanese fairy tale in light and stone
Schloss Arenfels, a historic castle near Bad Hönningen in Rheinland-Pfalz, recently hosted a remarkable cultural event that bridged Japanese folklore, contemporary light art, and European historical architecture. The famous Japanese fairy tale Momotarō, often known as Peach Boy, became the centerpiece of an immersive light installation that turned the facade and interior rooms of the castle into a living canvas. Through the interplay of light, projection, and spatial design, visitors were invited not only to see the story but to step into it, experiencing it as a visual journey. Luckily, I had the chance to visit this unique event and experience the fusion of storytelling, technology, and cultural exchange firsthand.
Ancient sculptures in color: Revisiting Greek and Roman polychromy
For centuries, the prevailing image of ancient Greek and Roman sculpture has been one of pure white marble, stripped of any decorative elements or applied colors. This perception is still widespread today, shaping how the European classical world is imagined in museums, schoolbooks, and popular culture. Yet this idea is fundamentally misleading. During my recent visit to the Liebieghaus Skulpturensammlung in Frankfurt, the exhibition Bunte Götter (‘Painted Gods’) offered a striking correction to this misconception. Based on decades of research into the original polychromy of ancient sculpture, the exhibition highlights both the scientific findings and the ideological roots of the ‘white marble myth’. Here are some impressions and insights I collected during my visit.
How the Jewish community of Frankfurt reflects Europe’s complex Jewish history
Throughout European history, Jewish communities have oscillated between periods of relative peace and prosperity and times of persecution, often driven by Christian fanaticism and exclusionary policies. In Germany, Jews contributed significantly to cultural, economic, and intellectual life, despite facing systemic discrimination and violence. The Enlightenment brought gradual emancipation, enabling Jewish communities to integrate more fully into broader society. I recently visited the Jewish Museum in Frankfurt, where I had the opportunity to witness this rich history firsthand. The museum’s exhibits, artifacts, and narratives vividly illustrate the resilience and contributions of Frankfurt’s Jewish population across the centuries. In this post, I will briefly summarize the this history along with the museum’s portrayal of this complex and multifaceted story.
Parallelomania and parallelophobia: The cautionary challenges of comparative analysis
The human mind has a natural inclination to identify patterns and connections, even across seemingly disparate domains. This cognitive tendency has driven significant intellectual achievements, from the discovery of universal scientific principles to the comparative analysis of religions, myths, and cultures. However, this same propensity can lead to what is called ‘parallelomania’, the uncritical identification of parallels that lack substantive grounding, as well as its counterpart, ‘parallelophobia’, an excessive aversion to drawing connections for fear of oversimplification or error. Both phenomena pose challenges for scholarly inquiry, particularly in fields such as comparative religion, literary studies, and anthropology, where discerning genuine relationships from superficial or coincidental similarities is a delicate task. In this post, we explore the cautionary challenges of parallelomania and parallelophobia, highlighting the risks of overzealous comparisons and the dangers of excessive aversion to connections. We also check how to navigate the middle ground by applying methodological rigor and contextual analysis to comparative inquiry.
“Anyone who doesn’t write world history as criminal history is its accomplice”: Karlheinz Deschner and the Criminal History of Christianity
Few historians have scrutinized religious history with the relentless critical rigor of Karlheinz Deschner, making his work a significant milestone in the field of religious critique. His life’s work, encapsulated in his monumental Kriminalgeschichte des Christentums (“Criminal History of Christianity”), systematically dismantles the idealized narrative of the Church’s role in world history. With the motto, “Anyone who doesn’t write world history as criminal history is its accomplice” (“Wer Weltgeschichte nicht als Kriminalgeschichte schreibt, ist ihr Komplize”), Deschner positioned himself as an intellectual provocateur, unflinching in his indictment of Christianity’s role in oppression, violence, and deceit. In this post, we take a closer look at Deschner’s historical perspective and the significance of his work in contemporary historical research.
Christianity vs. Eastern traditions: Divergent paths to the Absolute
After examining the nature and institutional framework of Christianity in our previous post, we now turn to a broader comparison between Christianity and Eastern traditions. The distinction between the two traditions lies at the heart of some of the most profound philosophical, theological, and cultural differences in human thought. While Christianity, emerging as a synthesis of Jewish traditions and Greco-Roman philosophy, centers on the worship of an absolute, omniscient deity, Eastern traditions such as Daoism and Buddhism often emphasize a spiritual philosophy. These traditions blur the lines between religion and philosophy, offering a path for individual enlightenment and harmony with the cosmos. By examining the foundational tenets of these traditions, we can better understand how they represent two fundamentally distinct approaches to the pursuit of the Absolute.