Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Jedi not an option?


So, the results of my highly-scientific poll are in!

Don't know (33%)
A full third of the sample simply don't know why they started to practise Zen. Is this something to do with mokusho (non-thought)? Or are people really unaware of their own motivations?


Jedi not an option (26%)
Now this is a response I can relate to. My teacher may be be disappointed to discover that if Obi Wan Kinobi to appear to me in the desert offering me a lightsabre and paranormal powers, I would be very tempted to follow him. But it hasn't happened so I'll have to settle for the next best thing. Any Jedi masters looking for a new disciple can contact me at the email address above.

Mu (19%)
This response means 'I don't know, but I am a smartarse'.

Receeding hairline (11%)
Another valid response in my opinion. Would you rather be a disciple of The Way, a monk of the special transmission beyond words and letters, or would you prefer just to be a bald git? A no-brainer for me that one.

Like the outfits (7%)
Seems a bit superficial. I suspect that many people like the outfits because it allows them to imagine they are Jedi. If you want to be a Jedi, you should have the courage to admit it. The key question: have you ever swung around a toy lightsabre/cardboard tube/kyosaku while wearing kimono, kesa etc ?

'Nam (2%)
We had one respondant who gave this answer. I now have an image in my mind of a veteran tormented by PTSD going AWOL and trekking through jungles of Vietnam in search of a way to find peace; perhaps finding a Zen master there. How intriguing. Actually I once met someone who did almost exactly that except it was a master of kung-fu he followed. Please contact me if you'd be interesting in making a movie.

To annoy parents (0%)
So no one is prepared to admit that they practice Zen to annoy their strict Catholic/Evangelical parents? Come on - do you expect us to believe that?

2 comments:

  1. I see myself as a Jedi because I believe in the Force. I may have yet to discover the Jedi Mind Trick; And, the idea of Chi/Force has been around for longer than Christianity. A Christian religion labels itself as such because they believe in Jesus. Similarly, I think that the name Jedi can be used in the same way.

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  2. Damn thats the best gif Ive ever seen!

    Its amazing the influence StarWars has had on people. Empire was one of my favorite flicks as a kid and I could never understand why? Then I found out the Director; Irvin Kershner, was a student of Zen and he sprinkled alot of his thoughts into the film. I never was deluded enough to think I could be some kind of Zen-Jedi but that dose not stop one of the guys in my town.
    http://www.videosift.com/video/Kelowna-s-Own-Real-Jedi-Guy

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