Motley Kamuka

Already fascinated, reading Luminous by Silvia Park, by an imaginary future Bodhisattva called the Buddha of the Miasma . I'm not even sure what miasma is, but it was pretty big in Hellenism, the idea that is kind of putrid fog would pass diseases on. Like things that smelled bad would cause sickness. We know it's germs or fleas or whatever now, but it's possible that the smelly vapor had germs or fleas sometimes. Today it's mostly used as a metaphor for despair. Korea has a strong Buddhist culture, they have the two best Buddhist movies ( Mandala (1981) and Spring, Summer, Winter, Fall ... Spring (2001)). It's just a detail in this sci-fi novel, that is also a police procedural, and a family novel, three in one.  Ms. Park teaches in Kansas and lives in Korea when she's not teaching.  Notes on things I've learned, had to look up: There is a shopping center in New Zealand called Silvia Park.  Joseon architecture (1392–1910) is defined by simplicity, balan...

This week I'm reading my pile, not focusing on one book, moving on when I get tired of what I'm reading. I start my day with Blind Owl by  Sadeq Hedayat . A surreal, dark, and cyclical novella about a pen-case painter caught in an opium-induced state of alienation, heartbreak, and madness. Reread some of Meeting The Buddhas by Vessantara on the Vajrasattva sadhana, and he pulls up short, you need a teacher to get this full sadhana. This is a book for understanding Tibetan Buddhism and the panoply in their mythology, which you can use to supercharge your understanding of Buddhism. Rereading Boundless Heart by Christina Feldman. It's not a robot's disinterest, it's human not getting too caught up on the results. Sort of the opposite of capitalism that measures and expects and demands profits. She doesn't say that, I'm riffing off her. She dwell in the brahma viharas of metta, karuna, mudits and upeksha.  Reading  Itivuttaka for the first time. It's a s...