Re: Salingertori

J J R (jrovira@juno.com)
Thu, 28 May 1998 16:30:58 -0400 (EDT)

I have to agree that Seymour/Buddy's and maybe even Salinger's
understanding of the teachings of Christ are filtered through an Eastern
Filter.  This is looking at it a bit backwards from the quoted passage,
but I think the idea of interplay between the New Testament (yeah, I
don't see too much of the OT) and Taoism is unavoidable.  

The possible link between Seymour's refusal to wed and classical Taoism
sounds interesting.  Do you have references to Taoist works?

Jim

On Thu, 28 May 1998 09:06:05 -0700 (PDT) Michael Sussman
<qironzh@rocketmail.com> writes:
>Is there any reason not to take Buddy at his word about Seymour and
>about himself (i.e., Salinger) when he writes "...both Seymour's and
>my roots in Eastern philosophy...were, are, planted in the Old and New
>Testaments, Advaita Vedanta, and Classical Taoism?" (SAI 208)
>
>Though I see no reference to the Old Testament in his works, the rest
>of the stuff rings true. Indeed, I have come, over the last weeks, to
>understand Seymour's original refusal to wed because of his
>over-happiness as coming out of the Classical Taoist tradition, what
>Seymour calls "indiscrimination" (in the diary excerts in RHTRC). 
>
>------Sussby
>
>===
>One should depart from life as Odysseus parted from
>Nausicaa---blessing it rather than in love with it.
>
>
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