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Ariana M

@arianam.bsky.social

Himalayan & South Asian material culture, Bhutan, Tibet, Buddhist art & ritual. Fulbright Scholar (2x) & NEH-Mellon Fellow. Also likes: digital humanities, open access, Pictured Rocks. lifeofthebuddha.org | bhutan.virginia.edu

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Ariana M@arianam.bsky.social · last mo.

AI use = deficit for job seekers “…new hires who were seen as “AI natives” are turning out to have alarmingly shallow ideas. So much so…that his firm now actively avoids seeking out AI-literate STEM graduates, and opts to comb through humanities students instead.” futurism.com/future-socie...

Bosses Horrified as "AI Native" College Graduates Hit the Workplace

"AI native" college graduates are hitting the workplace -- and, as experts warned, bosses are finding their performance disappointing.

futurism.com

Kate Lingley 龍梅若@klingley.bsky.social · 3mo ago

Remarkable installation by Tuan Andrew Nguyen on the High Line in NYC: a reproduction of one of the standing Buddhas of Bamiyan (as it looked at the time of its destruction in 2001), furnished with shiny steel hands cast from melted-down artillery shells found in Afghanistan.

View of a sandstone standing Buddha, carved to represent one of the Great Buddhas of Bamiyan. Parts of its face and legs are missing, as are its hands, to replicate the state of the original in 2001 when it was destroyed. Where its hands once were, shiny gold-colored metal hands are mounted as if floating in mid-air. The background is a cityscape of New York highrises.
Ariana M@arianam.bsky.social · 6mo ago

It’s okay to find solace! The extraordinary Kurtis Schaeffer (UVA) speaking tonight about the 9th Je Khenpo of #Bhutan on “How to Live in Hard Times” Many thanks to Mangalam for the online option! www.mangalamresearch.org/how-to-live-... #buddhism #himalaya

How to Live in Hard Times - Mangalam Research Center

How to Live in Hard Times: Examples from Buddhist Lives The talks in this series respond to our need for inspiration in this moment, as scholars and as human beings. Each scholar has identified an his...

mangalamresearch.org

Ariana M@arianam.bsky.social · 6mo ago

A must-see—incredible contributions by Laura Lodoe & Kunsang Kyirong, historical and contemporary content, fully bilingual signage, & remarkable curation by Dr. Fuyubi Nakamura. MOA hosting special events during #AAS2026 and Dr. Nakamura organized a conference panel. #himalaya #tibet #ubcmoa

Association for Asian Studies@asianstudies.org · 6mo ago

During your time in Vancouver during #AAS2026, a can't-miss field trip is a visit to the UBC Museum of Anthropology to see the permanent collection and a special exhibit, "Entangled Territories: Tibet Through Images." https://moa.ubc.ca/

Two visitors explore traditional wooden artifacts displayed in glass cases at the UBC Museum of Anthropology.
Ariana M@arianam.bsky.social · last yr.

Another site doing things with AI that none of their users want—this time academia.edu making AI-generated “podcasts” about our scholarship… #AcademicSky

A person wearing a plaid skirt and black sweater stands with their back against the wall, labeled “me”, facing them is another person wearing similar clothing but with the addition of black tights. The second person is labeled “Any Company”. They are standing so that they are viewed from behind, and are holding a tuba up on their shoulder so that its bell obscures the first person’s face, seemingly swallowing them. The tuba is labeled “AI”. Personal note: AI is a an energy hungry hallucination-prone bullshit machine being forced on us by desperate VC d bags and tech bros who want to recoup their investments. AI makes us dumber.
Dr. Kaitlyn Ugoretz@kaitlynugoretz.bsky.social · last yr.

Don’t want it, didn’t approve or ask for it, misconstrues my thesis, says my name wrong, makes weird jokes about sushi pizza and my area of expertise in a British man’s voice. Sooo do I delete my account now? What is it even good for anymore #AcademicSky

Screenshot of an email from Academia.edu announcing that the platform fed my article”Do Kentucky Kami Drink Bourbon? Exploring Parallel Glocalization in Global Shinto Offerings” to an AI and generated a <5 minute “podcast” based on the content
Ariana M@arianam.bsky.social · last yr.

We dodged a bullet—imagine what continued funding for the arts would have contributed to. All those people thinking about & responding to, and (shudder) finding joy in, the human condition… Great that this will reduce creative expression & thoughtful engagement even more rapidly 👊🇺🇸🔥

McSweeney's@mcsweeneys.net · last yr.

"And it’s not like billionaires can just fund the arts themselves. No, no. They’re busy innovating and coming up with new ways to get out of paying taxes on their sixth yacht."

Angela S Chiu@chiuangelas.bsky.social · last yr.

Sotheby's is about to auction off remains of the Buddha taken by colonial officials from India in 1898. "For the Buddhists who deposited them-as for Buddhists today-the gems, & his bone & ash, all belong to the Buddha & shouldn’t just be sold to the highest bidder." religionnews.com/2025/04/22/a...

Auctioning the Buddha's relics is perpetuating colonial violence

(RNS) — For the Buddhists who deposited these relics — as for Buddhists today — the gems, bone and ash all belong to the Buddha and shouldn’t just be sold to the highest bidder.

religionnews.com

Ariana M@arianam.bsky.social · last yr.

Generosity is the theme of this #ThangkaTuesday. This charming Vajradhara (རྡོ་རྗེ་འཆང་།), Holder of the Indestructible, is in a private collection shown to me years ago. I adore its simplicity & beauty, and that little extra head tilt. My gratitude to those who have shown me so much. #himalaya #bhutan

Two hands hold up a small embroidered thangka for the camera. The fabric ground is black and torn in places, while the figure, stitched in golden thread, depicts a cross-legged, two-armed, crowned deity sitting on top of a lotus.
Ariana M@arianam.bsky.social · last yr.

In #Himalayan #Buddhism, compassion doesn't always cut it, especially for stubborn obstacles. In this mural, a Buddhist master flings a blazing ritual sculpture (torma; གཏོར་མ་) toward the enemies, who are in turn peppered with a rain of fiery daggers from the sky. 📷: Me, Paro, Bhutan #buddhistart

Bhutanese mural showing a figure wearing a black hat and dark blue robes holding a blazing object on a tray, while nearby red-robed monks play ritual horns and drums. They stand on an outcropping, the other side of which are warriors trying to attack but being assailed by flaming daggers hurtling from the sky.
Ariana M@arianam.bsky.social · last yr.

Escapism is the word of the day for today’s #ThangkaTuesday. Sick of/from samsara, #Buddhists can turn practice to one of several Pure Lands. Rebirth there means enlightenment is guaranteed, so matter how long it takes. I often teach this work from the Met showing the Land of Great Bliss (2004.139)

An elaborate painting of a Buddhist heaven realm with a large Buddha seated at center, surmounted by a tree full of sumptuous offerings of musical instruments and flowers, as well as throngs of devotees.
Ariana M@arianam.bsky.social · last yr.

ལོ་གསར་བཀྲིས་བདེ་ལགས། Happy New Year! May the Year of the Wood Snake bring joy, good health, and happiness in abundance. 📷: Detail of a thangka of Tsepakme, Williams College Museum of Art (M.2024.22.11)

Detail from a Tibetan painting showing two phoenix near light blue water. On the other side of the water are heaps of round, colorful, stylized gems and other precious offerings, along with lotuses.
Ariana M@arianam.bsky.social · last yr.

#ThangkaTuesday inspo: Tibetan equivalents of #Medieval goth manuscript lions. Some paintings of Buddhas & teachers have lions in the thrones, referencing the Buddha Shakyamuni (Lion of the Sakya Clan) #Buddhistart #Himalaya 📷: L: Detail, Drakpa Gyatso's throne R: Detail, Menlha's throne via HAR

Detail of a painting showing the detail of a Buddhist throne, made of multicolored lotus petals, under which are geometric forms of the throne structure. A small white snow lion with bulgy eyes and pert tail occupies one portion of the throne base, perhaps pondering his fate as he stares, unseeing, over his right front leg. A blue gem with stylized flames is in the space nearby.A detail of a snow lion throne element from a Tibetan painting. The lion, mouth agape, stands and looks up toward the sky. Its bushy black eyebrows give Eugene Levy a run for his money.
Art History Animalia@arthistoryanimalia.bsky.social · last yr.

For #ManuscriptMonday + #MedievalMonday please enjoy this fabulous goth #lion: Bibliotheque Saint-Genevieve MS 1029 (France, 14th c.), f. 127v marginalia detail: arca.irht.cnrs.fr/iiif/80994/c...

zoomed in detail of a black rampant lion illustration in a medieval manuscript margin
Andrew Quintman@andrewquintman.bsky.social · last yr.

Inspired by @bryandaniellowe.bsky.social's manuscript that was never meant to be read, here's another: a long consecration inscription on the back of a Tibetan portable scroll painting (thangka) of Milarepa, in the shape of a stūpa. #ManuscriptMonday 1/

Long Tibetan consecration inscription in the shape of a stūpa on the rear of a hanging scroll (thangka) portrait of Milarepa. Photography © The Art Institute of Chicago.
Bryan Lowe@bryandaniellowe.bsky.social · last yr.

Some manuscripts are never meant to be read, at least not by human eyes. This 13th-century statue of Prince Shōtoku from Harvard University was filled with manuscripts, including prayers by nuns, that were only discovered 700 years later. #manuscriptmonday harvardartmuseums.org/tour/603/

Statue of Prince Shōtoku surrounded by manuscripts and other objects stuffed inside him.