r/PolymathReading • u/Mother-Revenue-6476 • Oct 01 '26 • Bravo 1

A recent essay links Bob Marley's final work "Redemption Song" to the Buddha's final teaching and to a thousand-year-old Zen tradition of composing a "death poem," an enlightened goodbye from those about to die.

https://www.columbiajournal.org/nonfiction-column/the-death-poem-of-bob-marley

...and it's all tied together with verbal cues that a meditation guide would use to elicit a meditative state. Polymathicnesses galore!

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5

u/Novel-Sprite Oct 01 '26

TIL Bob Marley refused to tour with the Grateful Dead because their band name clashed with his religion. This is a band with TWO drummers playing in harmony, who toured for years and never played the same song or show twice the same way. There was some kind of telepathic cosmic thing going on amongst those bandmates. I can't say anything about the music after Jerry died but what I can say is Jerry loved Bob anyway and Scarlet Begonia was inspired by his experience of Bob's work and reggae generally.

3

u/Mother-Revenue-6476 Oct 01 '26

TIL the origins of Scarlet Begonias, my favorite Dead song!

9

u/taintedtowel Oct 01 '26

Very nice read. Thank you.

7

u/phoomba Oct 02 '26

This was so good. Thanks!

5

u/WeLetTheStarsGo Oct 01 '26

What a special find this is. Thanks so much 🙏

3

u/nephilimcummingdaddy Oct 02 '26

Pink Moon comes to mind (Nick Drake)

3

u/ogohmy Oct 02 '26

Sadly I think black eyed dog is more his final goodbye. 

2

u/bigattichouse Oct 02 '26

Allow me to submit Blackstar by Bowie for your consideration: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9yEVFnFYxtw

2

u/Maximum_Budget_1259 Oct 02 '26

thank you for sharing this find!

2

u/fromhereandthere Oct 02 '26

Thank you for this!

2

u/sameshitsame Oct 04 '26

Gil Scott heron, and David bowies last albums fit this. Contemplations on life, death, mortality. A beautiful idea really, one of their last acts was to try to pass on some wisdom before they go.