Yo Mo Fo
Take a look at my translation of the Anglo-Saxon poem known as "The
Wanderer" and you'll see a western mind struggling with the memory of a
massacre and the destruction of his paideuma. Is his resignation comparable
to the Buddhist worldview?
Tim
www.aimsdata.com/tim


At 11:15 PM 3/5/03, Peter Bi wrote:
>O Mi Tu Fo
>
>--- these famous Buddhism words mean nothing. And this is exactly Buddha
>would suggest one to face tragedies like Nanjing Massacre, Holocaust, or
>Dresden Bombing.  I found this is kind of sorry that in western cultures,
>there is lack of good solutions for treating unfairness, death and sadness
>etc. "Forgiveness", for example, comes with the implication that one's side
>is right and the other is wrong. "Memorial", would not only ask one to
>remember the glory but also to extend one's hatred to the next generations.
>
>If Pound was here, would he have another look at Buddhism ? (I read in
>several places that he might not like it.) Anyway, in history, there is
>never a war under the name of Buddha, not even a complaint of unfairness!
>(correct me), although the whole religion or philosophy, which consists of
>hundreds, if not thousands, times more pages than the Bibles, is dedicated
>to the topics.
>
>(To the above two concept: Buddhism does not accept "rightness" at the first
>place and "memorizing" is especially harmful for the peace of mind.)
>
>
>Hongguang
>
>
>----- Original Message -----
>From: "Jennifer Wilson" <[log in to unmask]>
>To: <[log in to unmask]>
>Sent: Tuesday, March 04, 2003 6:54 PM
>Subject: Pound's nomination to Writers Corner
>
>
> > Several years ago Pound was nominated to the Writers Corner of the
>Cathedral
> > of St. John the Divine in New York.  His nomination was subsequently
> > rescinded when a member of the congregation circulated a petition noting
> > intention to demonstrate.  She was a converted Jew and several of her
>family
> > members had perished in the Holocaust.  Because the Cathedral considers
> > itself a national ecumenical institution, church leaders determined in
> > conference with others in the community that a reversal was in the best
> > interest of the church.
> >        Although the Writers Corner is a program of rather recent vintage,
>the
> > reversal of a nomination was and is unprecedented.  Perhaps in a gesture
>of
> > protest, E. L. Doctorow made note in his induction of F. Scott Fitzgerald
>the
> > evening that Pound would have been inducted, that Fitzgerald was
> > anti-Semitic.
> >        In response to the rescission, Donald Hall, the Elector who
>nominated
> > Pound, resigned in protest.  I have a letter from him describing the
>events.
> > A recent phone conversation with Elector Carolyn Kizer generated her
>comment:
> > "Disgraceful."  I have also visited with Lynn Chase, who endowed the
>Writers
> > Corner, and Daniel Hoffman, who chaired the nomination committee.  At the
> > time Hoffman noted that he would maintain the blank stone for Pound's
> > eventual inclusion, but in our recent phone conversation he didn't sound
> > optimistic.
> >        I would be most grateful for any information you may be able to
>offer
> > on this nouveau Bolingen.
> >
> > Jennifer Wilson