Quote:
Originally Posted by Sparrow
I actually thought of the Buddhist ideas of letting go while I was reading the article.
I kind of overlooked the relying on the kindness of others that other posters have commented on. It was the ditching of possessions that appealed to me - and how far that could go.
Added: it just occurred to me that the relying on others' kindness is a Buddhist thing too. I remember reading about a Buddhist monk being asked about the tradition of going from village to village, eating food that the villagers would provide - wasn't it improper to take food from poor people? His reply was that this tradition gave an opportunity for doing good - it struck me as a very profound response. In the West it would never normally occur to us that providing opportunities for others to help us is a good thing to do; and yet it is often the saddest of sights to see an offer of help being refused. We are generally very bad at taking aid graciously, and would much rather refuse it if possible - it reinforces our self-esteem, but dimninishes the worth of others by rejecting what they seek to offer.
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I am very close to your way of thinking. Not specifically about Buddhism, but on the rejection of everything except few essentials. And again, considering what are the essentials of these poor souls -that probably see themselves as trend setters - I get the image of the void inside.