Hey everyone -- hello from Toronto!
Mary, thank you for that webpage! Browsing through the quotes really
helped me sort things out as I have not read Pirsig since a few years
ago. It inspired this post!
One problem I have been having with the MOQ, is a secondary emphasis on
sensitivity, compassion and love. Although it is great that ideas and
concepts are freeing us from silly cultural traditions and whatnot,
ideas and concepts do not seem to me as being the highest of value.
Let me give a hypothetical example. Suppose I had a son and was
preparing to take him to school. I get a call from the hospital. My
dad had a heart attack and is dieing. Dad has expressed his wishes to
be alone with me -- his only child. Based solely on the MOQ, what do I
do?
I know social (bonding with my father) values are less important
intellectual values (kid learning concepts in school). As dictated by
the 4 levels, I would probably explain to my son that grandad is soon
gone. I would take my son to school rather than making him wait around
the hospital where dad is going to die anyway.
I also know it is moral for dynamic quality to dominate the intellect.
Yet, "A dynamic advance is meaningless unless it can find some static
pattern with which to protect itself from degeneration..." (Thank you
Mary!) Dad is going, how does being with him help advance reality
thereafter. In no way!
The problem with MOQ is that "the moment" has no value for the sake of
"the moment". Love has no value for the sake of love.
My favorite mystic -- Krishnamurti -- has said that a loving mind is one
that is sensitive to reality. To see pain in someone's eyes and want to
help, is a known state that has nothing to do with intellect. It is
imperative to synthesize love into the MOQ. I directly challenge anyone
to find something more important that doing what they love.
With a little tinkering of the MOQ, the contradiction is solved. Add a
new level. The highest level of them all -- love -- emerges from the
intellect. This is very intuitive to me, since my own philosophizing
has brought me to realize the importance of love.
Let me trace back. When society first began, love was not a motivating
factor. Clans were together for survival and division of labour to make
life easier. I imagine there would be great fear in trusting someone the
first time, but the fear of the cold or being killed by another clan
would be worse. The movie "Quest for Fire" is a great portrayal of the
what the first society. I'm also reminded of being a kid in an
unsupervised playground. Clans developed admist fights for lunch money,
popularity and so forth. Little sensitivity to others. "I" came first.
Clans and societies needed cohesion. As Pirisig explains, that is where
tradition, honour and so forth come to play. People were taught to love
their clan, country, and so forth but that was not really love. It is a
fear that creates insensitivity to those outside the clan or country.
"Us and Them" mentalities are the basis of war, racial intollerance, and
so forth.
Now here is the important point.
While deliberating on things seriously and openly, we will begin to
question introspectively. I think that with an genuine attempt, we will
observe all the traditions, needs, insecurities, that are causing us to
be insensitive. We will understand that we will not be happy while
clinging to desires to be popular, wealthy, and so forth. True
happiness comes to the selfless who does not think in fear. I am not
Catholic, but imagine the good and satisfaction Mother Teresa felt and
the insecurity, hatred, and restlessness Hitler felt.
The intellect is subservient to love. Freedom of speach is not moral
when it spreads hatred. Taking my hypothetical son to school would not
be moral when my dieing father waits to see me. The value of
meditation, intimacy, laughter and sensitivity will conquer. What could
be more important?
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