Parables of the Middle Way
Combining fiction and commentary to provide new imaginative ways into Middle Way Philosophy
‘Parables of the Middle Way’ combines fiction and commentary to provide various imaginative ways into the core themes of Middle Way Philosophy already developed in Robert M Ellis’s other books. The stories are either original, or adapted from a range of sources: philosophical, Buddhist and Christian. They include the story of a ship caught in a strait between two intractably opposed ports, an inside-out version of Plato’s cave, a set of variations of the Good Samaritan suggesting all the other ways of doing good, and the early life of the Buddha transposed to eighteenth century England.
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Contents
INTRODUCTION
THE PARABLES
1. THE SHIP
2. THE LUTE STRINGS
3. THE WALLED CITY
4. THE TWO MULES
5. THE RAFT
6. THE FISHING NET
7. THE ACRE OF FOREST
8. ACHILLES AND THE TORTOISE
9. THE INFORMATION CONTROLLER
10. THE CHINESE ROOM
11. THE INSIDE-OUT CAVE
12. DESTROYING THE ONE RING
13. THE BOREDOM OF HEAVEN
14. TEN VARIATIONS ON THE GOOD SAMARITAN
15. THE BLACK SWAN
16. THE RAT AND THE PANDA
17. THE ARROW
18. LADDER TO THE SUN
19. REBUILDING THE HOUSE
20. THE TOWED BOAT
21. THE FIREFIGHTER AND THE STOCKBROKER
22. THE LEATHER SHOES
23. THE TALENTS
24. HARVESTING ON THE SABBATH
25. THE ANTI-CHURCH PROTEST
26. THE THREE BILLY GOATS GRUFF
27. THE GREAT DAM
28. THE STARVING CHILD EXPERIMENT
29. DISCOVERY OF THE MIDDLE WAY
COMMENTARIES
1. THE SHIP: THE MIDDLE WAY AND INTEGRATION
2. THE LUTE STRINGS: THE MIDDLE WAY AND PSYCHOLOGICAL STATES
3. THE WALLED CITY: CONFLICT AND THE EGO
4. THE TWO MULES: INTEGRATION
5. THE RAFT: PROVISIONALITY
6. THE FISHING NET: SCEPTICISM AND INFORMATION
7. AN ACRE OF FOREST: VARIATION OF BELIEFS IN AN INDIVIDUAL
8. ACHILLES AND THE TORTOISE: THE LEFT AND RIGHT BRAIN HEMISPHERES
9. THE INFORMATION CONTROLLER: POWER AND THE LEFT HEMISPHERE
10. THE CHINESE ROOM: MEANING AND THE BRAIN HEMISPHERES
11. THE INSIDE-OUT CAVE: REVERSING PLATO’S ACCOUNT OF DELUSION
12. DESTROYING THE ONE RING: EVIL AS DOGMATISM
13. THE BOREDOM OF HEAVEN: THE IRRELEVANCE OF PERFECT GOOD
14. TEN VARIATIONS ON THE GOOD SAMARITAN: MORAL PLURALITY
15. THE BLACK SWAN: UPSETTING OUR ASSUMPTIONS
16. THE RAT AND THE PANDA: ADAPTIVENESS AND ANTIFRAGILITY
17. THE ARROW: LETTING GO OF CAUSAL EXPLANATIONS
18. LADDER TO THE SUN: LETTING GO OF ULTIMATE GOALS
19. REBUILDING THE HOUSE: THE INTEGRATION OF MEANING AND ITS BENEFITS
20. THE TOWED BOAT: MIMESIS AND INTEGRATION
21. THE FIREFIGHTER AND THE STOCKBROKER: INTUITION
22. THE LEATHER SHOES: OBJECTIVITY AND THE ENVIRONMENT
23. THE TALENTS: INVESTMENT
24. HARVESTING ON THE SABBATH: RELIGION AND RULE-FOLLOWING
25. THE ANTI-CHURCH PROTEST: THE DEFINITION OF RELIGION
26. THE THREE BILLY GOATS GRUFF: DEFERRED GRATIFICATION
27. THE GREAT DAM: UTILITARIANISM
28. THE STARVING CHILD EXPERIMENT: MORAL DESCRIPTIVISM
29. DISCOVERY OF THE MIDDLE WAY: REWRITING THE LIFE OF THE BUDDHA