Excellent! I would have delivered the arrogant bastard a knee to the groin as well. That, however, would have been an irrelevant side issue, though and not germane to the question, in the manner of Lateral Thinking.
Kim On 12 Apr 2014, at 9:31 pm, Platonist Guitar Cowboy <[email protected]> wrote: > Thompson's take on a Buddhist he knew, which you'll take with a huge grain of > salt, as with everything he writes. Just a small theological anecdote, if you > will. :-) PGC: > > "I knew a Buddhist once, and I've hated myself ever since. The whole thing > was a failure. He was a priest of some kind, and he was also extremely rich. > They called him a monk and he wore the saffron robes and I hated him because > of his arrogance. He thought he knew everything. > > One day I was trying to rent a large downtown property from him, and he > mocked me. 'You are dumb' he said. 'You are doomed if you stay in this > business. The stupid are gobbled up quickly.' 'I understand' I said. 'I am > stupid. I am doomed but I think I know something you don't.' He laughed. > 'Nonsense' he said. 'You are a fool. You know nothing.' I nodded respectfully > and leaned closer to him, as if to whisper a secret. 'I know the answer to > the greatest riddle of all,' I said. He chuckled. 'And what is that?' he > said. 'And you'd better be right, or I'll kill you.' > > 'I know the sound of one hand clapping,' I said. 'I have finally discovered > the answer.' Several other Buddhists in the room laughed out loud, at > this point. I know they wanted to humiliate me, and now they had me trapped - > because there is no answer to that question. These saffron bastards have been > teasing us with it forever. They are amused at our failure to grasp it. > > Ho ho, I went into a drastic crouch and hung my left hand low, behind my > knee. 'Lean closer,' I said to him. 'I want to answer your high and > unanswerable question.' As he leaned his bright bald head a little closer > into my orbit, I suddenly leaped up and bashed him flat on the ear with the > palm of my left hand. It was slightly cupped, so as to deliver maximum energy > on impact. An isolated package of air is suddenly driven through the > Eustachian tube and into the middle brain at quantum speed, causing pain, > fear and extreme insult to the tissue. > > The monk staggered sideways and screamed, grasping his head in agony. Then he > fell to the floor and cursed me. 'You swine!' he croaked. 'Why did you hit me > and burst my eardrum?' 'Because that,' I said, 'is the sound of one hand > clapping. That is the answer to your question. I have the answer now, and you > are deaf.' 'Indeed' he said. 'I am deaf, but I am smarter. I am wise in a > different way.' He grinned vacantly and reached out to shake my hand. 'You > are welcome,' I said. 'I am after all a doctor.' " > > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "Everything List" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. > Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/everything-list. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. ============================ Kim Jones B.Mus.GDTL Email: [email protected] Mobile: 0450 963 719 Landline: 02 9389 4239 Web: http://www.eportfolio.kmjcommp.com "Never let your schooling get in the way of your education" - Mark Twain -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Everything List" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/everything-list. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
