The most important book yet to be written by a new and necessary Gilberto Freyre will describe what happened in Rio de Janeiro in the last century. Such a work, if undertaken seriously, will be the most significant of the century. It is a perhaps unprecedented human catastrophe that separates the Rio de Janeiro of Machado de Assis from the Rio de Janeiro of the 2000s, and even though it is scandalous, it is difficult to trace the succession of events that made it possible. To do so, it would be necessary to gather documents and delve into history with unusual awareness and acumen, capable of identifying the psychological roots of a physically crystallized phenomenon. Someone will have to do it. From a destruction like this, something very important must be learned. Possibly, Brazil’s destiny depends on the success of such an undertaking.
Category: Notes
It Is Impossible Not to Enjoy a Good Fisherman’s…
It is impossible not to enjoy a good fisherman’s tale, even if we do not believe a word of it. But here, the adventures, exaggerations, and even absurdities provoke laughter rather than aversion. Why? It is interesting to note that there is this type of lie that entertains, stimulates, and generates a positive feeling in the listener. And it opens the door to an entire literary genre in which creativity is free to manifest itself. The more ingenious and implausible the story, the more easily it is sometimes engraved in the memory, and the more it increases the merit of its author. Perhaps the mystery of this phenomenon is not a mystery at all: in it, the lie only works because it is based on purity of intention.
When We Encounter a Man Who Boasts…
When we encounter a man who boasts about something that should shame him, we see how easily cleverness turns into vice. To have such a quality, it is better to always be deceived! Undoubtedly, there is no moral embarrassment in being a victim, nor in giving credit to those who do not deserve it. If something is lost, it goes without leaving a mark on the conscience, and time never exacts the price of remorse. The one who wins, however, will realize that what he has gained is little, and will be happier to the extent that the vileness he nurtures leaves no room for objections—complete happiness, as we can see, is only possible for an animal.
It Is Striking to Note That, After Reading…
It is striking to note that, after reading Meetings with Remarkable Men, in which George Gurdjieff recounts, sometimes indifferently, sometimes boastfully, the countless times he took advantage of others’ innocence, manipulated, lied, and deceived, there are still those who want to have him as their spiritual master! It brings to mind that saying from Rio de Janeiro (surely it is from Rio): “Every day a trickster and a sucker go out into the street. When they meet, there’s business.“ Gurdjieff is one of those who reeks of lies, and a connoisseur of this type of nature easily notices that some of his accounts, if not invented, are interspersed with exaggerations and falsifications aimed solely at impressing. What a thing! “Magnetic personality,” “mystical guide,” “spiritual master”… Through these stories that should not be told outside a confessional, Gurdjieff proves himself to be nothing more than a professional con artist.