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I watched a vid on Zen Buddhism, and got further interested in it. So I tried to find as good a book as I could. This was a good look into Zen Buddhism. At least from my perspective. It was odd hearing a very British voice reading it. It almost felt culturally voyeuristic.

The book goes over the history and believes and methods of Zen Buddhism.

I was surprised to learn how violent some of the prominent Zen figures of the history were. 30 lashes with a stick, someone thrown off a building, even a brutal death of a cat to make a point. Also be ready for some rather blunt language from some anecdotes.

Also be ready for inconsistent themes. Zen is not so much about a peaceful mind. As it is freedom from a consistent mind. Defying definitions, and logic. Even defying Buddhism.

It was a fine read. Still churning on some of the ideas.

CW: physical harm, rough language, death of an animal

#Books #Bookstodon #Buddhism #Zen

Another great Redwall book. I had fun with Mariel, and the party she had. Also the rabbit trio including Rosie. The dibbons were lil' shits, but they were fun. And surprise double villains, kinda.

Tho, I will say, it is starting to feel a bit samesies. Some very familiar story beats being repeated. Not in a problematic way. I still have good fun with the additions of the changing era. But it does sort of.. uncomplicated the things. I can see things coming. But am still amused by the new characters, and slight-to-broad variations. But it still has the slight stagnant vibe present.

And I was glad when the story stopped with the 50th creative woodland food stuff. It was fine in moderation. But this went over board.

Still, I love this abbey. And still want to hear more. Hopefully direct continuations from eras I already read. Like with Matemao, where I can hear some familiar names along with new ones. Instead of -very- separate generations.

So I love Brian. I love these books.

But this guy needs to stop talking about food. So far, every 5 paragraphs is about some woodland food stuff, in - detail. I love these actors in the audio', but even they can only do so much.

I just feel like the time and words spent on describing the nuts roasted in garlic and wrapped in reeds or whatever, detracts from the characters. And I was prepared for A LOT of characters, as is normal for these books. But the food is given as much time as a character is. And it's just what they are eating that night. And I have doubts that is going to be important.

I dont feel it's contributing to a thick story. It's world building, but also too much of a specific area. It's uneven. And not what I came here for.

Still having fun, by and large. But I do need this to cool down, severely.

This is a book dripping in US-southern aspects. But also paints a much more complex picture of this region. One that is not of a monolith of attitudes. It still has the bad behaviors the region is known for. But shows them to be bad behaviors that one can be guilty of anywhere. It also shows those that dont engage in said behaviors. And even for those that do, to show them as more than just ill tempered people. But complete humans, rather than 2D cartoons that are easy to hate and insult.

I grew up in the US-south, and it was eerie to encounter some of this. Most of which I managed to get away from. But still odd to revisit. And to see how long it has existed.

This was written in the 50s, and works to show an accurate picture of how people spoke in the 30s in the US-south. So there are frequent uses of the n-slur, by even the main characters. Other characters use harsh or hateful language and actions that are anti-black. However, the black community within the setting are treated sympathetically. The main plot of the book is in support of a black man. It is worth knowing, and preparing for racist moments, which seem to be ways of exposing racism and its effects.

CW: anti-black racism, frequent n-slur, harm to children, abuse