Thoughts

The fantasy of Road To Heaven and exploring the hermit culture of China is that there is this idea of the hermit in the hills who has deep practice, and has wisdom that you can go and tap into. One of the monks said it though, the people can't really listen, and all he gives is hints that there could be something there if they went for it. There's on odd feeling when you read Reddit, and people ask for worldly solutions to worldly problems on a spiritual subreddit. People give answers because there are always people who will give answers on Reddit, even if they're joking or know nothing. 

Romanticism or idealism, is in the way I want to use it for this essay, is an idea that you like. I think even with Buddhism, there's more of a reality focus and what seems nice but isn't put into action is useless. So my question is the romanticism of Road To Heaven useless? In some ways suggesting possibilities and saying, "you can do more", is a good thing.

OK, but what about me personally. I have a very specific memory of someone being afraid of my dreaming that a sangha bought some land and was building a retreat center. It was if my fantasy was somehow unskillful. That retreat center is complete, or almost complete, and there are many retreats at that site, and it has created much good. So I'm not sure what the danger of my dreaming about it was. But let's say being too dreamy isn't a great thing, being reality oriented is preferred, in the spiritual life. Maybe because the spiritual life isn't tethered by the world in a way, that it is susceptible to being untethered. Like a pure land sutra, you can dream about things, but in dreams begin responsibilities. 

At a certain point in my spiritual life, everything points to intensification. It's all a slippery slope to being a monk. 

The reality is different. Following up in Chinese Monks, Red Pine meets one idealistic and unintellectual hermit. There are more Taoist healers, martial arts people. Monks who think they know it all, and monks who think it's silly to talk to people. The city shimmers in the distance as civilization is closing in, cutting down on the wild places where hermits can exist. 

The devotion is what is amazing. They're not towering intellects, and even maybe super spiritually evolved people, they're just humble devout people who see through the illusion of modern existence. 

I read a book about daydreams. You can interpret them as much as you can sleeping dreams. They have information in them if you want. I like the idea of supporting hermit monks in the wilderness, or even being one myself. And yet I'm tethered to my worldly responsibilities. I'm a epigone manque who doesn't own the choices I've made. Inside myself there is a confederacy of dunces. I prefer confrontation to consolation in spirituality. 

I watched the movie Encanto the other day. As profound as Don't Look Up. It's about a family of magical talented people who have a sister who doesn't have any magic talent. The house is having a problem, but as usual it's intergenerational trauma rearing its ugly head. Lovely movie. Is there nothing Lin-Manuel can't do? I watched Tick Tick...Boom! and that was amazing.

Don't Look Up is about denial, self obsession and supposedly he had to rewrite it when the pandemic hit because it was just so obvious in a way that some jokes no long hit, in the pre-pandemic world they might have. It's puncturing instead of dream inspiring. What it punctures wasn't anything anyway, so it's OK.