We spend a lot of time on How God Works talking about how spirituality can offer tools to become better versions of ourselves.  And while learning to be happier, healthier and more resilient are all positive things to strive for, they can also lead us down a different path - an obsession with productivity and self-optimization… which can lead to a culture of trying to grind or life-hack our way through everything. But what if the secret to success lies in doing less, not more? On this episode, we’ll explore the Chinese concept of wu wei, effortless action. We'll talk to Edward Slingerland about how modern cognitive science has proven many early Chinese thinkers right, why wu wei is still relevant today, and how learning how not to try can help us forge a different path toward the good life.

Dr. Slingerland is a Distinguished University Scholar, professor at the Department of Philosophy, and director of the Database of Religious History (DRH). His research and teaching focus on Warring States Chinese thought, religious studies, cognitive linguistics, virtue ethics, evolutionary psychology, digital humanities, and science-humanities integration. Slingerland is the author of several academic monographs and edited volumes, a major translation of the Analects of Confucius, two trade books, and approximately fifty book chapters, reviews, and articles in top academic journals in a wide range of fields.

Edward Slingerland is a philosopher, sinologist, and professor in the Departments of Philosophy, Department of Psychology, and Department of East Asian Studies at the University of British Columbia, Canada, where he also directs the Religious History Database. His research areas include Chinese pre-Qin philosophy, religious studies, cognitive linguistics, and ethics. His representative works include Effortless Action: Wu Wei as Conceptual Metaphor and Spiritual Ideal in Early China (2003, Chinese translation published in 2020), Trying Not to Try: Ancient China, Modern Science and the Power of Spontaneity (2014, Chinese translation published in 2018), What Science Offers the Humanities: Integrating Body & Culture (2008), Mind and Body in Early China: Beyond Orientalism and the Myth of Holism (2019).

How does alcohol, especially wine, foster our creativity, trustingness, and sociability? On the Unreserved Wine Talk podcast, you’ll hear the stories and tips that answer those questions in our chat with Edward Slingerland, a professor of philosophy at the University of British Columbia and the author of Drunk: How We Sipped, Danced, and Stumbled Our Way to Civilization.

Why is alcohol use so widespread? The usual thinking is that despite its negative effects, alcohol is pleasurable and that is why we drink it. But this can't be the whole story because if alcohol is really so bad then cultures that prohibit drinking should dominate over those that like to drink, or you might think that a genetic mutation that makes drinking less pleasurable would spread rapidly through the population. In this conversation I discuss this mystery with sinologist and philosopher Edward Slingerland, who is a Professor of Philosophy at the University of British Columbia, where he also holds appointments in the Departments of Psychology and Asian Studies. Our conversation ranges from the history of alcohol, to its biochemistry and impact on creativity and social life, to a discussion of whether alcohol was necessary for the development of civilization.

Humans have been imbibing for thousands of years. What has drinking contributed to society? What is it doing to our health?

Guests: Edward Slingerland (”Drunk: How We Sipped, Danced, and Stumbled Our Way to Civilization”) and Susan Dominus (”Is That Drink Worth It to You?”)

Thinking is a human superpower. On a daily basis, thinking and planning and effort bring us innumerable benefits. But like all aspects of human behavior, you can sometimes get too much of a good thing. This week, we talk with philosopher Ted Slingerland about techniques to prevent overthinking, and how we can cultivate the under-appreciated skill of letting go.