Zen

Ik herlees Pirsig, Zen and the maintenance of the motorcycle en Mark Richardson over deze roman in Zen and Now. Ik bots op een citaat om te delen:

“As students of Eastern philosophy, they were familiar with Eugen Herrigel's seminal Zen in the Art Of Archery, publlished in English in the 50’s, which argues that even ordinary tasks can have a spiritual dimension- tasks like shooting arrows and fixing bikes. The ‘art of Archery’, wrote Herrigel, does not mean the ability of the sportsman, which can be controlled, more or less, by bodily exercises, but an ability whose origin is to be sought in spiritual exercises and whose aim consists in hitting a spiritual goal, so that fundamentally the marksman aims at himself and may even succeed in hitting himself”. The title of Pirsig’s essay, and the larger book that he knew he wanted to write came from this text” (Richardson, Zen and Now, p. 113).

Misschien moeten we zo tuinieren?