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5. Sondra Hausner: Transcending Paradisal Imaginaries

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On Paradise: Between Hope and Memory
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Professor Sondra Hausner questions the assumed universalism of concepts of Paradise. From a Hindu and Buddhist perspective, such imaginaries are vehicles for transcendence.

Speaker: Sondra Hausner, Professor of Anthropology of Religion at the University of Oxford

Lost edens, hoped for utopias. The idea that a better place exists haunts the human imagination.

Accompanying the ‘On Paradise’ exhibition at the Schwarzman Centre for the Humanities, this podcast series features members of the University of Oxford Humanities community discussing conceptualizations of paradise and utopia in different historical and cultural contexts. The exhibition, featuring the work of Oxford-based artist, Saad Qureshi, was curated by Paul Basu, Professor of Anthropology and Curator at the Pitt Rivers Museum, who also interviewed the podcast participants.

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On Paradise series artwork
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4. Peter Boxall: Paradise and the Drama of Hope

Professor Peter Boxall discusses Paradise and Utopia in a secular context. Images of perfect worlds must be more than mere wish-fulfillment, they must be put into relation with the world as it is in order to generate hope.
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On Paradise series artwork
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6. J. C. Niala: Everyday Paradises

Dr J. C. Niala reflects on her research with allotment gardeners. She discusses how ‘paradise’ may be found in everyday places, acts, and what she terms ‘banal utopias’.
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Episode Information

Series
On Paradise: Between Hope and Memory
People
Sondra Hausner
Paul Basu
Keywords
paradise
transcendence
hinduism
Buddhism
pilgrimage
Department: Humanities Division
Date Added: 28/09/2026
Duration: 00:31:07

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