CAS-E Year in Review 2023/24

CAS-E Year in Review 2022/23

Daoist Internal Alchemy and Science in Contemporary Taiwan

Workshop organized by CAS-E Fellow Prof. Fabrizio Pregadio. July 10-11, 2025, CAS-E, Big Seminar Room in D1, Hartmannstr. 14, Erlangen Open to the public For information: fabrizio.pregadio@fau.de This workshop addresses a subject barely explored in Western-language scholarship: the modernization and “scientization” of the Daoist practice of Internal Alchemy (Neidan) in contemporary Taiwan. […]
Writing with the Phoenix Stylus

In July, CAS-E has the great pleasure of welcoming a group of guests specialized in the ancient practice of Fuji (扶乩 or 扶箕), which is commonly translated as “spirit writing”. Coming all the way from Taiwan upon invitation from CAS-E director, Prof. Michael Lackner, their medium will demonstrate how they convey messages from deities, ancestors […]
The Esoteric Personal: Experience, Autobiography, and Personal Learning inthe Study of Esoteric Practices

An Open Circle Seminar Workshop organized by Knut Graw and Kelly Hayes Birgit Menzel, Kelly Hayes, Oleg Yarosh, Knut Graw and Monika Hirmer at the post-workshop dinner.
CAS-E Panel on the Resilience of Esoteric Practices at ESSWE

Convenor: Dr Bernd-Christian Otto More information here.
Ownership and Hidden Knowledges in Indigenous South America and Beyond: Human and Non-Human Sounds, Images, and Bodies

Workshop organized by CAS-E Alumnus Dr. Juan Rivera In collaboration with: Prof. Dr. Cecilie Odegaard (University of Bergen) June 12–13, 2025, CAS-E, Big Seminar Room in D1, Hartmannstr. 14, Erlangen For participation and other information: jjriveraandia@gmail.com This workshop is dedicated to the comparative exploration of hidden knowledges and ritual practices in four dimensions of life […]
Blurry Labels and Fluid Faiths: Managing Multireligiosity in Havana

By Joanna Katharina Kiefer On December 17, 2024, I had the pleasure of presenting my lecture “Practices of Multiple (Religious) Affiliations: Spatial and Practical Negotiations in Havana, Cuba“ at the Center for Advanced Studies in Erlangen (CAS-E). My research, based on participant observation and interviews conducted between 2021 and 2024, explores how religious plurality is […]