Transformation

As mentioned in a previous post, I have begun reading Deepak Chopra's The Way of the Wizard. He recommends reading only one lesson a day. So I have not gotten far in it yet. The second lesson is about transformation and innocence, and I am reminded of yesterday's Sinfest, which portrays Buddha, whom the artist normally portrays as a young boy, sitting in his flying lotus while saying "Transformation." In other strips, the Buddha has used a zen zap to transform other characters in the strip. So Ishida's portrayal of Buddha here is echoing Chopra's conception of the wizard. The portrayal of Buddha as a young boy highlights the innocence with which he is able to participate in the alchemy of personal transformation.

This lesson also reminds me of when Jesus said that we must be like children to enter the kingdom of heaven. Incidentally, that's Jesus saying "Transcendence" in the Sinfest strip. The idea here may be that we need to get back in touch with our innocence to transform ourselves into heavenly beings.