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A review by olivia_piepmeier
Dharma Delight: A Visionary Post Pop Comic Guide to Buddhism and Zen by Rodney Alan Greenblat
3.0
I originally heard about this likely from a Booklist review. As it sounded right up my alley, I pre-ordered it and it's been sitting in my to-read pile since May.
Just before starting to read it, I read something saying how the author is an abstract artist. I can't be sure I would have come to that realization on my own, but it's spot on. I think the best way to describe this book is an artists book, though not an "artist book" that you'll find in art libraries and special collections. This is a collection of digitized copies of his art, strung together with words and a bit of sequential art. It seems like the art existed, then this book existed. It's status as a comic/graphic novel would likely be debated in the class I teach.
For someone who is very new to Buddhism and Zen, I was thinking that this would be a good introduction. Honestly I think this is better for folks who understand it more. I felt like I was missing a lot, like these were Buddhist inside jokes. The pages about how to sit in Zen meditation were useful. Hearing about the different Buddhas was interesting, but it's obviously not even close to being a complete guide.
The art is abstracted, cartoony, and bright. I enjoyed his pieces especially considering my knowledge of Byzantine and Christian medieval art. They feel very similar in style and composition; lots of symbolism that might not make sense to an outsider, seemingly piled into a picture plane. I don't know that much about Eastern medieval art (it's on my to-do list) but I bet it's also similar.
Overall it wasn't exactly what I wanted, but here it is. After reading the authors bio at the end, I discovered that he created PaRappa the Rapper. This fact is a lot more significant to Trey but it gave me a chuckle.
Just before starting to read it, I read something saying how the author is an abstract artist. I can't be sure I would have come to that realization on my own, but it's spot on. I think the best way to describe this book is an artists book, though not an "artist book" that you'll find in art libraries and special collections. This is a collection of digitized copies of his art, strung together with words and a bit of sequential art. It seems like the art existed, then this book existed. It's status as a comic/graphic novel would likely be debated in the class I teach.
For someone who is very new to Buddhism and Zen, I was thinking that this would be a good introduction. Honestly I think this is better for folks who understand it more. I felt like I was missing a lot, like these were Buddhist inside jokes. The pages about how to sit in Zen meditation were useful. Hearing about the different Buddhas was interesting, but it's obviously not even close to being a complete guide.
The art is abstracted, cartoony, and bright. I enjoyed his pieces especially considering my knowledge of Byzantine and Christian medieval art. They feel very similar in style and composition; lots of symbolism that might not make sense to an outsider, seemingly piled into a picture plane. I don't know that much about Eastern medieval art (it's on my to-do list) but I bet it's also similar.
Overall it wasn't exactly what I wanted, but here it is. After reading the authors bio at the end, I discovered that he created PaRappa the Rapper. This fact is a lot more significant to Trey but it gave me a chuckle.