Song of Myself and The Heart Sutra Comparison

These two works of literature find their focus, their central message in peace. How they go about advocating that inner peace is very different. This distinction between the two is a complete contrast.

First impressions of the “Song of Myself” are, besides its length, the title and the language used. Song of Myself… the most impressionable word there is myself. A self-centered wording that implied to me a self-important, pompous “Song”. The language then, at least at first, only served to reinforce that first impression, yet that began to change by the third line of the song, “For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you.” Here, and throughout the rest of the passage, my first impression was out the window.

The rest of the Walt Whitman passage can be argued to be the mans outlook on how humans should look at each other and how we should treat each other. One of the most common notes I’ve found myself writing on the page was “We are all human”, that and that one can relate with almost everyone else in some way. From a southerner to northerner, to the woman the same as man, to the friendly savage. Whitman even calls on everyone to stand up to the unknown. To be brave and strong and above all human. So then it’s a matter of what it means to be human.

Throughout the entire passage the reader and simply feel the emotions that Whitman portrays. The entire piece is about finding tranquility, peace and humanity through emotions. By accepting who we are and not just that but accepting others for who they are. Accepting that emotions good and bad are an important part of us and are a part of the balance. That we are a contradiction, and that’s ok. We are deeper than a simple decision, or choice. We are through him, multitudes.

In contrast the Heart Sutra is a passage about how to attain enlightenment according to the Buddhist faith. It’s clear through the short passage that there is nearly no mention about embracing emotions as a human part of ourselves, quite the opposite in fact. Calming oneself to the utmost is what is advocated most here. “Here, o Sariputra form is emptiness and the very emptiness is form” emptiness. Emptiness is what is stressed, the most common word throughout the entire passage is no. “No cognition, no attainment and no non-attainment.” Killing what Whitman would call a part of humanity to attain that which is more than humanity, Nirvana.

As such these two passages both discuss achieving a state of peace and tranquility of a sort. A state of enlightenment if you will, through very different means. Personally I agree more with Whitman, than I do the Buddhist Sutra, simply because it is more in line with my world views. All that said, both passages can be put under a lens of far more critical scrutiny and a much longer response be produced, particularly the “Song of myself”.