From: Platt Holden (pholden@sc.rr.com)
Date: Tue Mar 04 2003 - 13:01:25 GMT
Hi Sam, Wim:
Thanks for reminding me of your previous answers to my query
regarding Christianity and your relation to its central tenants. Your
current discussion of your religious beliefs triggered my repeated inquiry
because the promise of life after death seems to me so basic in
Christian doctrine. Were it not for that prospect, I doubt if Christianity
would have appealed to millions throughout the ages. That neither of you
find the Resurrection a key part of your faith I find surprising, especially
in light of your apparent acceptance of many other Christian principles.
Pirsig's voyage into reincarnation is described in the Afterward to ZAMM
written in 1984. He describes the murder of his son, Chris, by two black
men in a mugging. With his philosophical bent, Pirsig kept asking
himself, "Where did Chris go?" His musings finally settled on the
question, "What is the 'he' that is gone?" If the "he" is defined simply as
material flesh and blood, there's no solution. Death is a dead end. But
seeing Chris as a pattern, " a pattern that was larger than Chris and
myself," a solution emerged. This pattern found material form again in
the birth of his unplanned daughter, Nell. "What is seen now so much
more clearly is that although the names keep changing and bodies keep
changing, the larger pattern that holds us all together goes on and on."
This is not the personal resurrection promised by Christianity, but it is a
a form of life after death that, so far as I know, is a first ever offered by a
nonreligious metaphysician. The mix of religious beliefs with
metaphysics is something I find most interesting. To further understand
your respective views in this regard explains as I best I can the reason
for pressing the question for a second time.
WIM:
> 'Patterns' exist in their recognition as such. In that sense Pirsig's
> 'son's "larger pattern" survived and was reincarnated in the birth of his
> daughter, Nell': he recognized aspects of his son (or of his son's role in
> his life?!) in his daughter. Nell restored some Meaning to his life.
In saying "Patterns exist in their recognition as such" I presume, Wim,
that you believe patterns of value have no independent existence of their
own, and that without someone or something to "recognize" them, they
wouldn't exist. Is this an accurate description of your view?
Thanks gentlemen.
Platt
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