“If you ever meet the Buddha, kill the Buddha.”(Buddhism teaching)
Just finished reading some Arnold Eisen wrote about Heschel, a hero of his no doubt. it got me thinking as well, thinking about becoming an adult, becoming responsible, becoming a ‘grown up’.
Truth is, if you ever want to get the best out of yourself then even the thing you love must also be challenged. You cannot be happy with song you just wrote, the story you just made, or your latest poem. Those were good, but if you think it’s the best you can do then your in the wrong field of art.
Mentors are made to be outgrown. The same can be said of parents. Those things you will always love and cherish are the same things at some point you need to challenge to become like them or better.
So when you see the Buddha, don’t kill him, just know that his aim was like yours.
