Really? (I wonder if you can play it if you use it as an adjective, like so many marketers do — “I totally beat all of my Scrabble opponents, because I get all zen in my approach.”)
I’ve got to hand it to Lady Gaga. Not only is she, when it comes to fashion, rather like the Honey Badger — but she really goes out there to find and create harmony for those among us who feel a bit more “on our own” than others. Her song, “Born This Way,” is all about accepting people despite, and because of, their differences, and now she’s guest-edited the ubiquitous free newspaper, The Metro, with an eye towards acting “as a nurturing and compassionate force to those in need.”
As a Buddhist, it’s really refreshing to see a pop-star so outwardly embodying these values. But I also have to say that — again, just as a Buddhist — it’s also disconcerting to see her quote on the of cover her Metro issue: “Let identity be your religion.” I understand that Gaga’s not a Buddhist, and we’re all of course allowed to have different views, but I thought it was worth exploring some of what the Buddha had to say about identity.
Following up on the story of “Sex and Zen” — a 3D porn film the Horse first told you about way back in January of ’09: that film has now, according to AFP, “broken [Hong Kong's] first-day box office record previously set by Hollywood blockbuster Avatar.” Not sure how I feel about this Dharma-Burger’s massive success. But then, I like sex, I like Zen, and I hated Avatar. So hey.
Here‘s the story. Thanks to dharma-bruddha Josh Bartok for the tip. Josh is a respected teacher and a maker of Buddhist books (as an editor at Wisdom Publications). Check out his Boston-based sangha here.
How do you render something so decidedly “downmarket” as Costco appealing to twenty-first-century, “mind/body/spirit”-friendly Yuppies like (presumably) me? Easy: just throw a little “Zen” in there.
CNN.com understands this, selling one writer’s gushing “I love Costco” screed (actually titled “Bulking Up at Costco”; yecch) in its Featured box today with this highlighted tease:
And now, that Same Old Question: What does this have to do with “Zen”? The answer, of course, is: Not A Danged Thing.
Perhaps the most striking contrast with Zen here — which emphasizes the concept of taking and eating “just enough” in its formal and beautiful ritualized meal ceremony, oryoki — is found at the end of the CNN article: “I’m full and my shopping cart is full. Mission accomplished.”
Here’s a link to the piece, in case you want to bulk-shop your way to enlightenment or what have you.
According to DailyIndia.com:
A British couple has received a threatening letter from an anonymous detractor for trimming one of their bushes into the shape of ‘Buddha’ in their five-bedroom 1850 home [... ] “It is with sorrow that we saw you cutting and shaping your bushes into a Buddha. Are you not aware that having such an idol of worship will bring a curse upon you?” the letter read.
Surely this bit of topiary can’t be as offensive as the letter it inspired. (Or, my headline here.) What I don’t understand is how anyone could even tell the thing is supposed to be a Buddha. The Daily Mail has a photo; I’m not really seeing it.
“Western Buddhism has a long path to travel before becoming something that resists, rather than supplements, consumerism,” argues a new article from The Guardian. That’s sort what The Worst Horse is about, so I have no beef with that contention. The article raises some good points. Which isn’t to say it doesn’t sweep through things and oversimplify, etc, but hey, I’m short on time.*
Though not so short on time that I can’t have a good laugh. Which I definitely did.
What I don’t understand about the article — besides the headline, “Buddhism is the new opium of the people” — is the choice of accompanying imagery. The Guardian, to my mind, often does things right. So why the paper chose a cross-legged, shirtless, hair-gelled Bro-Dude to illustrate the article is beyond me.
But, again, it sure did make me laugh. That really is about the silliest thing I’ve ever seen.
* And following up: the article really does have some notable weaknesses. For example: it says that “There is no word for meditation in the early Buddhist lexicon” — which is simply untrue. As my friend Joshua Easton of Dana Wiki writes: “Sure there is: jhāna [dhyana]. Bam! That took two second on Wikipedia.” And the ending contention is so needlessly black and white in a way that The Worst Horse has been trying to undo here for some six years now: “This is the choice: genuine reform, or a tawdry golden statue in the corner of your living room.”
CBS News online actually found a way today to cover the book — and classic Dharma-Burger — The Zen of Farting.
Sri Lanka is considering banning miniskirts.
Why? Because of Akon’s 2010 video — you know, the one that included scantily clad women dancing around a pool overlooked by a big ol’ Buddha statue? (More on that here. Though, sadly, the actual video is now offline.) And so the pendulum swings…
Apparently. The newly (and successfully) sober crazy stunt-dude practices Nichiren Buddhism, as mentioned — but not touched on further — in the introduction to this new interview.
