[Noisebridge-discuss] update on the shrine!

Jason Dusek jason.dusek at gmail.com
Sat Jul 16 06:21:43 UTC 2011


It is strange that someone with a Tibetan title and robe is
"activating" a Chinese Buddhist (and Daoist) folk diety. It is a
little like a priest holding forth over a traditional Torah
scroll. Not completely without sense -- the text of the Torah
being substantially included in the Old Testament -- but very,
very fusion. To say he "activated" it is a little ridiculous and
imparts a strange quality to the shrine -- which is no more
"active" than it was before he did anything with it.

Naturally, as a follower of Zen, I would like to see Buddha's
way more widely known. For some time, I lit incense for Saintly
Emperor Guan and some members of Noisebridge would join me. Not
too many did, though, and I set aside the practice. Everyone's
karma is different. For those who love temples, there are
temples.

Just the same, our community's feeling about religion is
hypocritical and counter productive. We embrace sci-fi beliefs
and cherish symbols of popular culture in a way that can only be
characterized as folk religion, rejecting the symbols of other
cultures and times in the manner of provincial extremists.

--
Jason Dusek
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