Tuesday 25 May 2004

"I am so ZEN"

I've been reading Fight Club (for the uncivilised, it was a book before it was a movie) and the differences between the book and the movie are interesting. In the movie, the narrator's "Zen Master" phase was practically just mentioned in passing. In the book, he sticks with it a bit longer. He thinks in haiku to calm down. He says he gets ZEN in everyone's FACE, and writes it just like that.

I get the impression that our modern Western culture is becoming Buddhist by default. Not a true Buddhist culture, of course, because we're still consumerist Westerners and the true Buddhist elimination of desire would mean we all should give up our credit cards and stop lusting after the latest combination mobile phone/MP3 player/GPS device/waffle iron. So what exactly are we taking from Buddhism? Perhaps part of the reason our post-Christian society is leaning that way is because firstly, if you are a Buddhist, you are on a path, and are expected to be working it out rather than have it all worked out already. Secondly, it might be that nothing seems to be wrong in Buddhism: there are no commandments and no laws. No "Thou Shalt Not". Well, there are, but they're more like suggestions. All in all, society is gradually embracing Buddhism because we're all too afraid to admit we actually believe in anything.

Mokalus of Borg

PS - I am not a Buddhist.
PPS - As such, I probably have a misguided idea of the Buddhist philosophy. Much like you do, unless you are a Buddhist.

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