I guess, looking back, that I wrote this too fast. I just wrote it in about 10 minutes before I left town. "Escapist," was the wrong word there. "Returnist," would have been a better word (to coin). Trying to come back to the world in an enjoyable way, rather than trying to get away from it.
Concepts are important for interpreting the world, of course. I'm just wondering about unnecessary ones. I think this was originally written in response to some thoughts about people's religious views and personal identities that can lead to foolish perspectives on life. You're right about culture and narrative though in that sense.
Well, I meant (in terms of subjectivity and objectivity) that there is an unnecessary binary belief that things are either coming from me or from the world and that the two are separate and distinct, rather than the same (or connected). I'm not sure what you mean by art or journalism in this case. For instance, the word in Sanskrit for birth and death is birth-and-death. We have two separate concepts and ideas that are different, whereas thinking in other places at other times has been of more similarity and sameness and connection.
How is Buddhism overly concerned with feelings? Your response to that little koan baffles me. I don't understand.
Concepts are important for interpreting the world, of course. I'm just wondering about unnecessary ones. I think this was originally written in response to some thoughts about people's religious views and personal identities that can lead to foolish perspectives on life. You're right about culture and narrative though in that sense.
Well, I meant (in terms of subjectivity and objectivity) that there is an unnecessary binary belief that things are either coming from me or from the world and that the two are separate and distinct, rather than the same (or connected). I'm not sure what you mean by art or journalism in this case. For instance, the word in Sanskrit for birth and death is birth-and-death. We have two separate concepts and ideas that are different, whereas thinking in other places at other times has been of more similarity and sameness and connection.
How is Buddhism overly concerned with feelings? Your response to that little koan baffles me. I don't understand.
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