Chan teacher Guo Gu on silent illumination, punk music and his teacher Sheng Yen's legacy.
Tag: Culture
‘Nature is Never Finished’ – Artist Robert Smithson on Cultural Confinement and Finding Real Freedom in Art
Robert Smithson's brand of land art went against the hegemony of galleries and museums who he accused of dictating the context, meaning and value of art.
This is the Life: Annie Dillard Asks, Then What?
Annie Dillard celebrates humanity by taking the widest view of its activities, hopes, dreams and values. She then asks, what would we really do with this new, expanded perspective?
The Culture of Healing: Louise Glück on Art’s Restorative Power
Louise Glück's essay condemns current trends of pathological optimism, as well as the tendency towards 'the pornography of scars.'
Gregory Pardlo – Raisin
The anxieties of fatherhood and the tension of generational and racial dynamics weave through Gregory Pardlo's vibrant and dense poem, Raisin.
Alan Watts on Beat Zen and Square Zen
Our favorite rogue Zen philosopher, Alan Watts had a gift for contextualizing the principles of Zen and translating them in a way that non-Buddhist people would be able to comprehend. In this excerpt from his short book, 'Beat Zen Square Zen and Zen', he talks about the importance of understanding our own culture thoroughly so… Continue reading Alan Watts on Beat Zen and Square Zen