Here we see a man from the U.S.A. (a 'Westerner') practicing Buddhism in Japan, and a Zen´s practicer (an 'Easterner') surviving on the American and European streets. A non-sense? A contradiction? It's so weird that someone is at the same time so Asian and so occidental! These cultures are so different...
The problem doesn't lie on Seagal's mind (he's O.K.) but on the natural tendence of mankind to erect dividing walls. Actually, mankind has many cultures, but only one spiritual essence to which we all belong.
I've seen Seagal enduring terrible losses on his movies. It is like a pattern for him to be beaten by Destiny: losing his wife and maybe his son in 'Hard to Die', again his wife in 'Out for a killing', etc. He never weeps, or screams or beats his head against walls. He remains calm, as a real enlightened Buddhist. He knows that, as Siddharta Gautama taught, everything will pass away, everything is transitory; he knows that stubborn attachment to things (even the dearest ones) will mean at the end of the journey an unnecesary extra pain, when everything will fade away. He knows that everyone needs to accept things the way they are. As the great Hinayana abbot Ajahn Sumedho says: 'tHAT´S THE WAY IT IS'.
But, is not this the same attitude of the Bible, backbone of Western culture together with Classical thought, when says:'everything in the world (...) comes not from the Father, but from the world. The world and its desires pass away'? Another spirituality, the same conclusion. Not an exhortation, we must explain, to become a quietist who just becomes a fatalist and makes nothing. Man must be a fighter, a combatant for his inner righteousness and for the transformation of this world. The compassion of the Boddhisatva, the love of the Christian, both tend to make a better home for mankind. Making yourself a better person, you can do more for others.
Such a wisdom you will find it too in Quran, in prehispanic cultures, in African myths... Everywhere men and women are the same. We all have a common Destiny: building a better human being, and a better world. We all need to fight together, to accomplish our mission. Fighting in the same way as Seagal, modern Heracles, defeats gangsters, terrorists and other modern monsters that retard human progress. It's not just a fist fight what we see on Seagal's movies, but the ancient and permanent war between the non-eternal evil and The Eternal Goodness. Seagal is more than an actor. He is an archetype.
That's why I think that Steven Seagal is a symbol of the spiritual unity of mankind. Just seeing this man as a great martial artist and a famous Hollywood star, is not deep enough. I believe that. But, what do you, fellow -fans, think about it?
The problem doesn't lie on Seagal's mind (he's O.K.) but on the natural tendence of mankind to erect dividing walls. Actually, mankind has many cultures, but only one spiritual essence to which we all belong.
I've seen Seagal enduring terrible losses on his movies. It is like a pattern for him to be beaten by Destiny: losing his wife and maybe his son in 'Hard to Die', again his wife in 'Out for a killing', etc. He never weeps, or screams or beats his head against walls. He remains calm, as a real enlightened Buddhist. He knows that, as Siddharta Gautama taught, everything will pass away, everything is transitory; he knows that stubborn attachment to things (even the dearest ones) will mean at the end of the journey an unnecesary extra pain, when everything will fade away. He knows that everyone needs to accept things the way they are. As the great Hinayana abbot Ajahn Sumedho says: 'tHAT´S THE WAY IT IS'.
But, is not this the same attitude of the Bible, backbone of Western culture together with Classical thought, when says:'everything in the world (...) comes not from the Father, but from the world. The world and its desires pass away'? Another spirituality, the same conclusion. Not an exhortation, we must explain, to become a quietist who just becomes a fatalist and makes nothing. Man must be a fighter, a combatant for his inner righteousness and for the transformation of this world. The compassion of the Boddhisatva, the love of the Christian, both tend to make a better home for mankind. Making yourself a better person, you can do more for others.
Such a wisdom you will find it too in Quran, in prehispanic cultures, in African myths... Everywhere men and women are the same. We all have a common Destiny: building a better human being, and a better world. We all need to fight together, to accomplish our mission. Fighting in the same way as Seagal, modern Heracles, defeats gangsters, terrorists and other modern monsters that retard human progress. It's not just a fist fight what we see on Seagal's movies, but the ancient and permanent war between the non-eternal evil and The Eternal Goodness. Seagal is more than an actor. He is an archetype.
That's why I think that Steven Seagal is a symbol of the spiritual unity of mankind. Just seeing this man as a great martial artist and a famous Hollywood star, is not deep enough. I believe that. But, what do you, fellow -fans, think about it?
