[MD] Zen at War

[Andre]

Marsha to Andre:
What self? There's no one to kid, you kidder, you.

Andre:
Nice, Marsha. You must have learned that by heart by now. If, as you say 
there is no self ( may I remind you we are discussing Pirsig's MoQ 
here), that there is really no 'self' then you would not write these 
words 'cos you wouldn't know to whom to send them. If there really is no 
self when you are eating you would, literally, not know what mouth to 
put the food in. It would make no difference whatsoever.

But you mean, of course; dynamically or 'in the world of the Buddha's'. 
 From a static point of view (which is where most of us live) it is 
quite useful to make that distinction. After all, 'while sustaining 
biological and social patterns...'

Marsha:
And I still hold that the fundamental nature of the world is Quality, 
while static (value) patterns are useful projections (conventional 
reality). Dynamic quality and static (patterned) quality rise and fall 
together.

Andre:
I have no problems with this except for your use of the word 
'projections'. I prefer to call them 'manifestations'. I see sq as a 
'manifestation' of DQ. Form as a 'manifestation' of the formless. That 
is why sq is grounded in DQ. For metaphysical reasons (and some others) 
there must be a discrepancy between static concepts and reality (DQ). 
This is not the Heart Sutra we are discussing. We are here discussing a 
metaphysics. Namely Pirsig's MoQ.

What are you doing here?