The Laughing Sutra

THE LAUGHING SUTRA

The Laughing Sutra is a novel about a young boy, who travels from China all through the United States to find the Laughing Sutra, a legendary scroll. It has been said, that the scroll would enlighten anybody who read it and would understand its true meaning. He travels with Colonel Sun, who represent the immortal being who has reached Nirvana (life goal according to the Buddhist). Throughout the novel the author provides examples of Confucianism, Buddhism and Hinduism to tell the story. These three “belief systems originated [from] ancient India or China. . . Most [of the religions now days] share certain characteristics [such as the] belief in the existence of spiritual power, gods and respectful worship by followers, often through prayer” (Ellis and Esler 83). He combines religious beliefs and historic events with the main character’s life and adventure to the United States, along with his companion.

Confucius, the founder of Confucianism “offered guidelines about how to live virtuously, his goal [was] to ensure social order and [have a] good [well-organized] government” (Ellis and Esler 83). Confucianism is shown through the relationship among characters in the novel, through loyalty to Wei-Ching, keeping the promise to bring back the scroll. Wei-Ching didn’t want Hsun-Ching to find the Laughing Sutra because his ‘father’ told him so; he wanted the young boy to want to find it himself, without being told. Throughout the novel, Colonel Sun teaches Hsun-Ching the true meaning of loyalty, honesty, and friendship, meanwhile as he also helps him find the Sutra at all cost. Certain details in the novel appear as important Confucian beliefs, such as WEN (art messages that help build a better society), as Alison’s painting is important to her meeting Hsun-Ching again in China.

Buddhism’s founder was Siddhartha Gautama. His teachings spread throughout Asia. “Buddhism grew from the same traditions as Hinduism. [They both] believed in karma, dharma, and [the] cycle of rebirth. Instead of focusing on priests, formal rituals and [polytheism] Buddha urged each person to seek enlightenment through meditation” (Ellis and Esler 80). Wei-Ching’s lifestyle as a Buddhist monk shows how he lives with no desire to possess material things, and unnecessary. He lives a simple life and dedicates himself to the transcription of scrolls to preserve them, as to find the enlightenment everyone should attempt to achieve, following a life of meditation and self-discipline. For Hsun-Ching, experiencing this trip made him realize that nothing is better than living in freedom with oneself. “Enlightenment cannot be found in books but experienced directly” (822) meaning that all Hsun-Ching lived during his trip, all he saw and learned made him a free man, free of materialism, of suffering from not having it all, accepting life as it comes and living

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