Reviewed by Gary
Form is Emptiness
Reviewed by Gary Form is Emptiness
An interesting zen buddhist nun slice-of-life story. If it seems exceeding strange to our western way of thinking you only have to realise that our own christian culture has a long monastic tradition of its own predated by jewish monasticism.
The story does a great job of showing the humanity of the monks, nuns and layman alongside their humility. Even when seeking to attain oneness with whatever/wherever there is still the matter of our frail flesh.
Jan carries the story along with just enough action to make the necessary descriptions of the garb, rules and idiosynchrosies of the monastery flow. The hint of sexism, in the midst of seeking purity, as evidenced by the verse, "a nun of 20 yrs. must defer to a monk of 1 day", is startling.
The story comes as if from a diary, complete with room-mate hassles. Just like at school,eh? The ending left me a bit mystified by her roomies reaction to the elderly womans death. Maybe I missed something during my reading. If you've ever wondered what life is like in a buddhist or medieval monastery this story should answer your questions.
Reviewed by © Gary
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