on Grace and Beyond in IV

[Ian Livingston]

There is this, too, about Taoism, that, when one is able to rest
perfectly in the tao for some period, whether briefly or as an
"immortal," the resulting condition is very much like what the
Christians popularly refer to as "grace." Things just happen
mysteriously "right." Competitors talk of being "in the zone," and,
yes, it seems to arise as something more than just the casual
coincidence in P. As regards your Zen mentions, are you familiar with
the ox-herding pictures? As a map of Zen "enlightenment," they are
very interesting. http://www.jaysquare.com/ljohnson/ox-herding.html


On Thu, Nov 26, 2009 at 4:40 PM, Mark Kohut <markekohut at yahoo.com> wrote:
> This below was actually me responding to Robin's post:
>
>> Mark says: I think P is offering no
>> "beyond' here, just another
>> > embodiment of the necessity of accepting life and life
>> only.
>
> Ian adds:
>> This sounds very Taoist. When I last reread V. I was stuck
>> by the very
>> Taoist resonances there, including the many references to
>> "the street"
>> -- perhaps as "the way" or tao. There is no Taoist "beyond"
>> -- there
>> is only this, here, now. It is this perspective that Chan
>> brings to
>> Buddhism, which, upon the crossing to Japan, evolved into
>> Zen. I think
>> we are all aware of the importance of Zen in the postmodern
>> American
>> canon. Keep cool, but care.
>>
>> Ian
>
> Yes, this little virtual aside in Inherent Vice, this little coda, thanks, Kai, to his most ambitiously expressed themes is Taoist or Zen or otherwise Buddhist-like, align yourself, it seems to me.....it also reminds me of that sublime surprise in the Ascent portion of the last section of GR, page 774 in the Penguin edition: "The knife cuts through the apple like a knife cutting an apple. Everything is where it is, no clearer than usual, but certainly more present."..........perhaps an embodiment of the the "after enlightenment, mountains are again mountains" (supposedly) Zen insight:
> Before enlightenment, mountains are mountains and rivers are rivers.
> With enlightenment, mountains are no longer mountains and rivers are no longer rivers. After enlightenment, mountains are again mountains and rivers are again rivers. - Zen saying
>
> Echoing perhaps, as so much of the end of GR does, lines from the beginning
> of GR. Pirate's "Pick bananas" line as he detects a launch perhaps a TRP spin on the famous Pick Strawberries parable, as I've suggested elsewhere?
>
> "like the guy hanging off the side of the cliff in that old Buddhist story, you've got to pick your strawberries "...
>
> A...and plenty more Buddhist wisdom in Against the Day, of course.
>
> I say TRP threw it out here---another definition of grace---from Sortilege, in Inherent Vice, coda-like, offhandedly.
>
> Every line matters. Almost all are infused.....with resonant meaning.
>
>
>
>
>>
>> On Thu, Nov 26, 2009 at 8:32 AM, Mark Kohut <markekohut at yahoo.com>
>> wrote:
>> > Robin responds:
>> > "Again, there seems to always be some Christian
>> subtext to Pynchon's occult meanderings. Grace is something
>> that one cannot "Will" into creation, in order to work one
>> must let go of any expectation of reward for "good
>> behavior." Doc puts up with folks just dumping their whole
>> friggin' life story on him, often during first meetings. But
>> being a sympathetic and usually present ear absorbs and
>> mutates some of this bad mojo. While Doc has some hope of
>> getting new leads for his cases, when it really works it
>> works like Coy and Crocker Fenway, "Beyond,"one might say."
>> >
>> > Lew B. realizes the meaning of grace after he survives
>> the dynamite explosion. He realizes it is the acceptance of
>> things as they are.
>> >
>> > Here in IV, Sortilege, a good person with some
>> "occult' beliefs, articulatesa version of the same meaning:
>> that Larry should just accept that almost everyone dumps
>> their 'things as they are' life onto him.
>> >
>> > For the plisters who do not believe in P's embrace of
>> any occultism, I offer (for your argument. I sided with
>> duality, but not visible here) the line about Sortilege
>> finding new meanings for the word "Beyond" immediately
>> following. I think P is offering no "beyond' here, just
>> another
>> > embodiment of the necessity of accepting life and life
>> only.
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> "liber enim librum aperit."
>>
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-- 
"liber enim librum aperit."