The way to see what looks good and understand the reasons it looks good, and to be at one with this goodness as the work proceeds, is to cultivate an inner quietness, a peace of mind so that goodness can shine through.
Robert M. PirsigRead
The Buddha resides as comfortably in the circuits of a digital computer or the gears of a cycle transmission as he does at the top of a mountain.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote suggests that wisdom and enlightenment can be found in all aspects of life, whether in nature or technology.
Robert M. Pirsig highlights the notion that enlightenment and spiritual understanding are not confined to traditional settings like mountains or serene landscapes. Instead, the presence of wisdom, represented by the Buddha, can be found everywhereβin modern technology such as computers or in everyday mechanistic processes, indicating that the pursuit of knowledge and understanding transcends our physical environment.
Themes
BuddhaWisdomTechnologyNatureEnlightenmentUnderstanding
In practice
Example use cases
During a lecture on mindfulness in technology, you could reference this quote to inspire students.
More from Robert M. Pirsig
All quotes βWhen analytic thought, the knife, is applied to experience, something is always killed in the process.
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It's better not to see than to see wrongly.
Robert M. PirsigRead
The truth knocks on the door and you say, go away, I'm looking for the truth, and it goes away. Puzzling.
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You want to know how to paint a perfect painting? It's easy. Make yourself perfect and then just paint naturally.
Robert M. PirsigRead
This inner peace of mind occurs on three levels of understanding. Physical quietness seems the easiest to achieve, although there are levels and levels of this too, as attested by the ability of Hindu mystics to live buried alive for many days. Mental quietness, in which one has no wandering thoughts at all, seems more difficult, but can be achieved. But value quietness, in which one has no wandering desires at all but simply performs the acts of his life without desire, that seems the hardest.
Robert M. PirsigRead
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