My brother turned down Harvard job and entered Zen Buddhist monastery

[many a good man]

After years and years of achieving and excelling in medicine and AIDS research he finally got the plum job of all plum jobs at Harvard's virology center. The week before he was supposed to start he turned it down and entered a Zen Buddhist monastery instead.

I was shocked but I can understand where he is coming from. I think it is an extraordinarily brave thing to do. I'm not sure I could have done such a thing. I wish him the best in trying to figure out what he wants to do with the rest of his life.

[bluedigger]

1. That's fucking crazy!

With all due respect. Good luck to him!

Somebody else just got a great opportunity.

[qnr]

2. You'd think his karma would take a serious hit for abandoning all those AIDS victims n/t

Edit: typo

[Drunken Irishman]

3. lol. Maybe he'll make a list.

[qnr]

4. heheh - possibly n/t

[many a good man]

5. I couldn't help thinking that myself

Apparently after just three years of research he discovered a new method that cuts DNA testing time in half and had some other breakthrough in the ways AIDS is transmitted in the seminal fluid. I know if I had the slightest kind of talent or skill to help mankind I would do so. Unfortunately I don't.

Maybe he'll go back to it. He's still undecided. He just finished his first 3-month cycle and after 3 months he decides if he wants to do another 3-month cycle. In the meantime he'll do a temp job in ICU at the VA. He still has a boatload of med school loans to repay.

On the other hand, after working 3 years very intimately with diseased seminal fluid I can see how one might like a break!

[qnr]

6. Yes, I can see your point there. He does seem to have made a significant

contribution so far.

[old mark]

7. magm: A doctor I used to work with spent his vacation time every year

in a monastery - washing post in the kitchen. We worked in a mental hospital, and we used to make each other laugh so much the nurses got mad at us for distracting them. Or maybe just for being happy.
He was one of the smartest persons I met while working there.


mark

[Tuesday Afternoon]

8. Sounds like he needs a much deserved break. I wish him the best.

~~~ peaceful and restorative vibes for your brother ~~~

[Odin2005]

9. I wish him well.

[Swede]

10. “Tension is who you think you should be. Relaxation is who you are.”

To stay in the spirit of the thread. Good luck to your bro.

[pitohui]

11. oh man some people just can't stand prosperity/success

i think he will have many bitter regrets in later life but what can you say?

it is not a brave thing to do to throw away a lifetime of work or to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory -- it's a self sabotaging thing to do

i think it's called masochistic/self-defeating personality disorder (can't remember exactly) but it is deeply rooted in self hatred, apparently he thinks after all his hard work and struggle he is still undeserving of success

i've known people to do similar to this -- none of them were glad after a couple of years that they'd fucked up THIS majorly

ok, i read more and see that it's only for 3 months and then maybe he'll get another chance, in that case, i hope he gets good advice and rest at his retreat so he doesn't keep going down a path that he'll regret -- burn out makes people make some pretty terrible decisions

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

14. Do you ever have anything positive to say about anybody?

This guy made a choice that seems to be the right thing for him at this time. It doesn't mean he has a personality disorder. Maybe he needs a break; maybe the monastery is just something he feels is a positive choice for him. The fact that someone has made a choice *you* think is odd or misguided doesn't mean there is something wrong with them.

[Odin2005]

26. Wow, what a disgusting post

Some people don't believe in our society's demented notions of "success".

[La Lioness Priyanka]

12. i am not sure that its bravery. much more likely he is burnt out

and needs a quiet period in his life

[theNotoriousP.I.G.]

13. Good luck to your brother

Hopefully he made the right choice for himself and humanity.

[Fire Walk With Me]

15. Perfect timing.

[Kutjara]

16. Interesting how quick some are to criticize his choice.

Even more interesting are the comments that seem to think Zen is some kind of rest-cure or retreat for burnouts or neurotics.

If your brother was a Zen practitioner before he entered the monastery, then he's already "fugure(d) out what he wants to do with the rest of his life." Or, rather, he's figured out HOW he wants to do it.

Among other things, zazen (Zen meditation) is a powerful tool for focusing the mind and clearing away extraneous concerns. It is a discipline that improves concentration, focus, and cognition. In spite of the best efforts of the Western "self-help" movement to characterize it otherwise, Zen is not some flakey pseudo-spiritual hodgepodge of feelgood platitudes and wishful thinking.

It is not a means of withdrawing from the world, but of engaging more closely with it.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

17. Good point. I do not see this choice as a negative one in any way,

or as merely a "vacation" from a difficult profession. If this is what he has chosen, it is the right thing for him to do. It is definitely not for the psychologically fragile.

[many a good man]

19. Thanks for chiming in

It's kind of a hard thing to relate to for most of us.

In my only conversation with him so far he kind of concentrated on the philosophical (read not religious) nature of Zen that appeals to him. He majored in Philosophy as an undergrad at a Jesuit college. I think my influence combined with the Jesuit's dedication to the Social Gospel helped instill in him a sense of service to humankind. I'm not familiar enough with Zen Buddhism but the conventional wisdom says that Buddhism is much less concerned with service to others. Do you have an opinion on the truthfulness of that ... stereotype.

He stated that all his life he has been studying, and testing and succeeding. Always doing the next most logical thing given his gifts and opportunities. He said that now that he has achieved what could be considered the epitome of all he's worked for it is time that he stops and finally consider for the first time if any of this is what he really wants to do. He's in his mid-30s so I think it is the perfect time.

[Kutjara]

21. It's probably fair to say that Buddhism is less concerned...

...with physical suffering than with mental suffering. As a result, most teachings focus on freeing the individual from the illusions that cause distress and suffering.

That said, compassion is a central tenet of Buddhism, and a necessary trait of an "enlightened" being, so there's no sense in which Buddhism is incompatible with a life of service.

Zen Buddhism is perhaps the most "austere" of the various forms of Buddhism. While most forms require a level of dedication and self-denial that is incompatible with modern life, Zen evolved out of the need of the Japanese Samurai class for a Buddhism that could be practiced alongside secular duties. Zazen meditation and koan study, once mastered, can be carried out anywhere, at any time, and are intended to complement, not replace daily life.

[tigereye]

25. maybe after so much hard work, he really needed a calm and thoughtful

break... and he will emerge refreshed and ready to make whatever choice benefits him.

Good for him! I know a number of friends who did similar things when they were in their 20s and really benefited. Glad to hear folks still seek answers in this way.

[AsahinaKimi]

18. He might learn about

Chinese medicines there.. you never know! Alot of the study of Chinese herbs and medicines started from places like that.

[many a good man]

20. That would be interesting

He's always been super-rational when it comes to all things medicinal. His qualms with herbalism and traditional medicine was that it lacked rigorous scientific analysis. He is infatuated with China and Japan and there's no telling where that may lead! He was, however, surprised to see that the lead monks at the monastery were all Brits - English and Welsh!

[Kutjara]

23. Unless the monastery teaches more than Zen practice...

...I don't think he'll be exposed to Chinese medicine there. Though Zen grew out of Chinese Chan practice, it expressly avoided the absorption of other Chinese spiritual beliefs. I haven't yet experienced a Zen sect that practices Chinese medicine. In many ways, the philosophical underpinnings of the two traditions are contradictory.

[UndertheOcean]

22. Leonard Cohen did the same , don't worry , someone with his credentials will be snapped up

in a minute once he is done with the monastery .


Their is a dearth of people really useful to society.

[Brother Buzz]

24. Where is the monastery located?