The Barrow-Downs Discussion Forum - View Single Post - Tolkien spiritualty... A hint of Buddhism?

Child of the 7th Age · 11-28-2004, 07:16 PM

Burra, Son of Numenor,

I think we have to be careful in this context in judging what is and is not relevent. On the one hand, I think we can all concur that Tolkien was not Buddhist. To what extent the author was or was not familiar with Buddhist ideas and legends, I unfortunately do not know.

However, I remember that, for many days, dozens of posters engaged in debate on the canonicity thread concerning the degree to which the reader can bring his own ideas and backgrounds to the text versus the need to ferret out the intentions of the author. I am an historian and a curmudgeon and, because of that, I lean more to the latter camp. But it does seem to me there are points to be made in favor of the former approach.

All these folk with academic backgrounds in English actually "drove" me to search out the viewpoints of critics like Michel Foucault and Roland Barthes, especially the latter who advocates the "death of the author". In this situation, the reader has wide latitude in how he or she approaches the text without regard to a particular author's background or ideas. While I don't believe anyone here would advocate the "death" of Tolkien in this extreme sense, I do think there is something to be said about examining the text through our own experiences and viewpoints. The search for Buddhist or Jewish or explicitly environmental motifs would certainly fall under such a rubric.

Let me say that there are other scholars who have at least read LotR while searching for similar ideas. In the Lord of the Rings and Philosophy there is one chapter entitled "Talking Trees and Walking Mountains: Budhist and Taoist Themes in the Lord of the Rings" by Jennifer McMahon and B. Steve Csaki. I have not read it yet but it does seem to be a fairly serious philosophical treatment.

While I can contribute little that is substantive to this particular topic, I think we should be careful before we dismiss the idea overall. To talk in an abstract sense about the "freedom of the reader" in the canonicity thread is not enough. If that concept of freedom has real merit, we have to be willing to consider the possibility that some readers may find elements of Buddhism or another philosophy when they read LotR. As long as the viewpoint brought forward is not explicitly rejected by the text in question, I have no trouble living with that.

Anyone else have any opinions on this, or see elements of eastern thought as they read through LotR?

11-28-2004, 07:16 PM	#7
Child of the 7th Age Spirit of the Lonely Star Join Date: Mar 2002 Posts: 5,133	Not blablabla..... Burra, Son of Numenor, I think we have to be careful in this context in judging what is and is not relevent. On the one hand, I think we can all concur that Tolkien was not Buddhist. To what extent the author was or was not familiar with Buddhist ideas and legends, I unfortunately do not know. However, I remember that, for many days, dozens of posters engaged in debate on the canonicity thread concerning the degree to which the reader can bring his own ideas and backgrounds to the text versus the need to ferret out the intentions of the author. I am an historian and a curmudgeon and, because of that, I lean more to the latter camp. But it does seem to me there are points to be made in favor of the former approach. All these folk with academic backgrounds in English actually "drove" me to search out the viewpoints of critics like Michel Foucault and Roland Barthes, especially the latter who advocates the "death of the author". In this situation, the reader has wide latitude in how he or she approaches the text without regard to a particular author's background or ideas. While I don't believe anyone here would advocate the "death" of Tolkien in this extreme sense, I do think there is something to be said about examining the text through our own experiences and viewpoints. The search for Buddhist or Jewish or explicitly environmental motifs would certainly fall under such a rubric. Let me say that there are other scholars who have at least read LotR while searching for similar ideas. In the Lord of the Rings and Philosophy there is one chapter entitled "Talking Trees and Walking Mountains: Budhist and Taoist Themes in the Lord of the Rings" by Jennifer McMahon and B. Steve Csaki. I have not read it yet but it does seem to be a fairly serious philosophical treatment. While I can contribute little that is substantive to this particular topic, I think we should be careful before we dismiss the idea overall. To talk in an abstract sense about the "freedom of the reader" in the canonicity thread is not enough. If that concept of freedom has real merit, we have to be willing to consider the possibility that some readers may find elements of Buddhism or another philosophy when they read LotR. As long as the viewpoint brought forward is not explicitly rejected by the text in question, I have no trouble living with that. Anyone else have any opinions on this, or see elements of eastern thought as they read through LotR? __________________ Multitasking women are never too busy to vote. Last edited by Child of the 7th Age; 11-28-2004 at 07:58 PM.