Phys.ORG has an article on a Kansas State University researcher who is studying religion in virtual reality, in particular it seems Buddhism in Second Life. The article: Buddhism in second life: Anthropologist studies spirituality in virtual reality describes how Jessica Falcone of Kansas State University has been taking a look at religious practices in virtual reality and exemplifies why Second Life is a good place for such practices in certain circumstances.
The article is not earth shattering and it’s not really telling us anything new. However when we’re mostly talking about tier, marketplace, Flufee being no more, as revealed on this week’s Metareality Podcast, it’s sometimes nice to read an article about some of the core strengths of Second Life, namely user generated content and connecting people who are physically a great distance from each other.
One of the issues is that Jessica Falcone is interested in, is why are Buddhists building temples and meeting in Second Life, one of her quoted reasons:
“For some Buddhists, they may be living in an area without a Buddhist community and this may be the only place where they can practice their religion with other people. It is a way for them to come together and listen to teachings or to do group meditation sessions, even though it may not be possible in real life.”
There’s probably something in that, and it would apply to other religions, there are certainly circumstances where people may find that they can share their religion with like minded individuals in a virtual space. However one of the keys here is definitely the user generated content angle. People can build temples, create items, the article talks of bowls being created for use in meditation.
Whether you’re religious or not, the core issues here are the reasons why Second Life is such a wonderful concept, even if we at times feel the delivery is wide of the mark. User generated content is a wonderful concept and although that means we may sometimes come into contact with content we find objectionable, it’s a price worth paying for that freedom of expression within Second Life.