Noner is Our Storied Past

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“The Greeks escaped occasionally from logic in paradox and poetry, but reason was almost always too strong for them.

The Chinese had little or none, the Japanese littler or noner.”

~ R. H. Blyth, Zen and Zen Classics (Volume Five) Twenty-Four Essays. p. 137

Tokyo:  Hokuseido Press, 1962.

First published as volume seven of Zen and Zen Classics, 1962 but as volume five, 1966.

Our Eastern thought is sometimes too, too deep

For common sense or normal language ways.

The Greeks believed in mountains made for steep

Divinities.  The human mind as maze

Contains the Minotaur and other beasts

Like poetry and painting.  It is these

That helped us sometimes, freed us from the priests

At last and helped to make the temple frieze

Up on the Parthenon.  That squared escape

Meant mathematics always had been there

Despite the myths.  We sailed around the cape

Of nonsense.  Sailing since then hoists sails fair.

  We do not need the noner thinkers now.

    Our ship moves forward using physics’ prow.

~ Phillip Whidden