GrailHeartEinstein the Plumber?In November 1954, Albert Einstein wrote a letter to a magazine in which he declared that, were he a young man again, he would not try to…Aug 3Aug 3
GrailHeartThe Glass Bead GameHermann Hesse (1877–1962) was a 20th-century German author with a stature in that language more or less equivalent to Hemmingway or…Jul 22Jul 22
GrailHeartAnts Contemplating EinsteinThe book of Genesis in the Bible famously says that God created humanity “in our own image.” We’ve returned the favor — creating Gods in…Jul 13Jul 13
GrailHeartThe book of Genesis in the Bible famously says that God created humanity “in our own image.”It’s called “anthropomorphism” — “anthropos” = human beings and ‘morphos’ = the form of something. So anthropomorphism is projecting human…Jun 20Jun 20
GrailHeartI recently encountered the story of Rengetsu (1791–1875) — a Japanese Buddhist nun with an…She was the love child of a geisha and a high ranking samurai. At 10 days old she was adopted by new parents. As a teen she was called to…Apr 15Apr 15
GrailHeartOur Minds in Two Worlds at the Same TimeIt seems to me that humans occupy two worlds at the same time. One is the external physical world, the other is our inner psychic world —…Apr 4Apr 4
GrailHeartWe’ve had the “Age of Reason.” Can we please try an “Age of Wisdom?”Which raises the question: what’s the difference? Here’s my take:Mar 20Mar 20
GrailHeartWhat Cathedrals and the Grail Literature Can Teach Us About CommunityThere isn’t just one ‘Grail’ story, it was a story concept addressed by many authors over decades. A few of the more significant examples…Feb 25Feb 25
GrailHeart“I Don’t Know” Your Way to Greater SerenityOnce upon a time, there was a farmer. The farmer had a stallion, and one day it got out and ran away. All the neighbors said, “Alas…Feb 6Feb 6
GrailHeartSir Edmund Hillary, who with Tenzing Norgay was the first to climb Mount Everest, famously said…Buddha: “It is better to conquer yourself than to win a thousand battles.”Jan 17Jan 17