Rating: 2 out of 5
I think Master Eckhart must have been a very special person. For a Christian theologian, his ideas sound refreshingly Eastern. Nevertheless, they are imbued with a philosophy that didn’t sound right to me when I listened to the old friar last month.
This is not a fault of Eckhart. How could he determine when someone would be looking into his work? Yet, the invalidity of love as the solution to most questions (not that this was the point of every riddle Eckhart presented to the reader) fell short of providing a comprehensive answer last month when it was clear that might was in much better company at getting ahead.
Yet, even in that climate, it was refreshing to look back eight centuries and to see that many if not most problems re-occur. While the form of Master Eckhart’s work really did bring to mind the koans I liked to puzzle over, there was to some of them also a certain enjoyable simplicity. Not many of the thoughts were easily actionable, but perhaps if this work was read several times, the rhythm of Eckhart’s views would stay with the reader.
I wasn’t a fan this time, but I think that in different circumstances the old Dominican will deserve another try.
