In his book Silence, John Cage states, “The I Ching told me to continue what i was doing, and to spread joy and revolution.” I recently got a fiftieth anniversary edition of this book, originally published in 1961. I felt some of that joy, particularly as I read again Cage’s collection of anecdotes scattered amongst the more serious essays in this book. My original paperback copy is long gone on its mission of spreading joy.
Roger Ebert’s book Life Itself: A Memoir expands on this same idea. This excerpt from Salon got a lot of visibility immediately after Ebert’s recent death;
“That does a pretty good job of summing it up. “Kindness” covers all of my political beliefs. No need to spell them out. I believe that if, at the end, according to our abilities, we have done something to make others a little happier, and something to make ourselves a little happier, that is about the best we can do. To make others less happy is a crime. To make ourselves unhappy is where all crime starts. We must try to contribute joy to the world. That is true no matter what our problems, our health, our circumstances. We must try. I didn’t always know this and am happy I lived long enough to find it out.”
More from Salon and Roger Ebert can be found here;
More recently I ran across the most concise statement of these lessons in someone’s posting on Facebook.
Cantinflas, like the others, has passed to the next realm. The impact of these three men came about because they spread their joy to others.