ZOOMING IN ON THE SOUL OF A BUTTERFLY
ZOOMING IN ON THE SOUL OF A BUTTERFLY
I have been sitting and listening to the audio book version of Muhammad Ali’s autobiography, Soul of a Butterfly. I have never been much of an Ali fan, believing him to have been an obnoxious and overrated fighter. I still believe that, as a fighter, Muhammad Ali was highly overrated, but then again, I am of the opinion that ALL heavyweight boxers have been overrated for the last 30-40 years. (And YES, that INCLUDES MIKE TYSON!) My reasoning is based upon the simple fact that physical skills (speed, agility, balance) and endurance, which define a quality boxer, are greatly diminished by excessive body weight. Thus, from my point of view, discussing the greatest heavyweight boxer of all time is comparable to discussing the greatest heavyweight jockey or gymnast of all time—uh, it’s really not of much interest or pertinence. A boxer should epitomize self-discipline and physical conditioning. If a man is the epitome of self-discipline and physical conditioning, he is extremely unlikely to fall into the heavyweight weight division. If an athlete desires to float like a butterfly, he has to be willing to cut out the butter! But now that I have chastised and inflamed the entire clinching and flinching heavyweight division, I will lay it to rest…for now! But beware, all you heavyweight fanatics, should you rise against this feisty flyweight, the floating keystroke will squash your mighty picks!
Moving on. In Soul of a Butterfly, Ali portrays his intense spiritual journey by means of poetry, parables, personal accounts, Sufa stories, personal references, and the devout testimony of his daughter, who assists her father with articulation. She also takes part in reading the audio book. Ali passionately recounts his philosophy of boxing and life, his memories, his hopes for humankind. Much to the chagrin of desperate fable clingers and bandwagoners, Muhammad Ali was not the greatest boxer of all time. But he is one of the most vivacious figures to have ever graced the wide world of sports. He was, and will remain, a stalwart figure in American history. Soul of a Butterfly is a marvelous time and money investment for those seeking inspiration and a glimpse at a man, once brazen, now devoted to peace. But I must caution that Muhammad Ali is a complex and multifaceted character, and the face that he puts forth in this book is clearly the one that he wants to project to the public. That is not a disparagement, insofar as the persona he emits is virtuous and noble, but I do wish to point out that human ideals and human actions are not always in accord.
I have often chuckled at the way in which humans attempt to bolster their egos and status by means of “charitable” deeds. Everyday we hear tell of a revered celebrity or some colossal organization giving a sizable donation to a charitable cause. But let me ask you, if a man has a billion dollars, and he gives away one million, is that really a spiritual gift? Many may believe that it is, but I laugh at that notion. The man with a billion dollars will not suffer in the slightest financially speaking by giving away that million dollars. In fact, that million-dollar donation is nothing more than an investment, for surely it will attract publicity and future tax breaks and credits. Hence, the benefactor has not truly “spiritually” given anything at all. He cannot truly relate to the predicament of the needy because he himself is not in a state of need. A TRUE philanthropist will live by the aphorism that it is not an act of charity to give a hungry dog a bone unless the giver is hungrier than the dog. Obviously, a TRUE philanthropist is an extremely rare breed.
At the conclusion of the book, I was of two minds. One mind was definitely inspired, uplifted…, and pacified. The other mind, the one that harbors my nagging critical faculties, was on the verge of erupting. (Can anyone wrap his mind around an erupting mind?) I began to wonder why it is that Muhammad Ali is not donating all proceeds from the sale of his book to either a charitable or an educational cause. After all, according to Ali’s own words, such gestures are the most spiritually satisfying. Certainly, there are many individuals who provide spiritual guidance—expecting NOTHING in return, so why have you not followed this path of which you speak? Muhammad Ali has upped the ante, and he has talked the talk, but in the end, he has balked; he has not yet walked that proverbial extra mile. On balance, I have reached the conclusion that Soul of a Butterfly tells a moving tale—a reader-friendly, sentimental tale—but it is the tale of a man—and not a SUPERman.
It seems to me, Great Ali, that free-spirit butterflies know no fee!
Three stars. ***
I have been sitting and listening to the audio book version of Muhammad Ali’s autobiography, Soul of a Butterfly. I have never been much of an Ali fan, believing him to have been an obnoxious and overrated fighter. I still believe that, as a fighter, Muhammad Ali was highly overrated, but then again, I am of the opinion that ALL heavyweight boxers have been overrated for the last 30-40 years. (And YES, that INCLUDES MIKE TYSON!) My reasoning is based upon the simple fact that physical skills (speed, agility, balance) and endurance, which define a quality boxer, are greatly diminished by excessive body weight. Thus, from my point of view, discussing the greatest heavyweight boxer of all time is comparable to discussing the greatest heavyweight jockey or gymnast of all time—uh, it’s really not of much interest or pertinence. A boxer should epitomize self-discipline and physical conditioning. If a man is the epitome of self-discipline and physical conditioning, he is extremely unlikely to fall into the heavyweight weight division. If an athlete desires to float like a butterfly, he has to be willing to cut out the butter! But now that I have chastised and inflamed the entire clinching and flinching heavyweight division, I will lay it to rest…for now! But beware, all you heavyweight fanatics, should you rise against this feisty flyweight, the floating keystroke will squash your mighty picks!
Moving on. In Soul of a Butterfly, Ali portrays his intense spiritual journey by means of poetry, parables, personal accounts, Sufa stories, personal references, and the devout testimony of his daughter, who assists her father with articulation. She also takes part in reading the audio book. Ali passionately recounts his philosophy of boxing and life, his memories, his hopes for humankind. Much to the chagrin of desperate fable clingers and bandwagoners, Muhammad Ali was not the greatest boxer of all time. But he is one of the most vivacious figures to have ever graced the wide world of sports. He was, and will remain, a stalwart figure in American history. Soul of a Butterfly is a marvelous time and money investment for those seeking inspiration and a glimpse at a man, once brazen, now devoted to peace. But I must caution that Muhammad Ali is a complex and multifaceted character, and the face that he puts forth in this book is clearly the one that he wants to project to the public. That is not a disparagement, insofar as the persona he emits is virtuous and noble, but I do wish to point out that human ideals and human actions are not always in accord.
I have often chuckled at the way in which humans attempt to bolster their egos and status by means of “charitable” deeds. Everyday we hear tell of a revered celebrity or some colossal organization giving a sizable donation to a charitable cause. But let me ask you, if a man has a billion dollars, and he gives away one million, is that really a spiritual gift? Many may believe that it is, but I laugh at that notion. The man with a billion dollars will not suffer in the slightest financially speaking by giving away that million dollars. In fact, that million-dollar donation is nothing more than an investment, for surely it will attract publicity and future tax breaks and credits. Hence, the benefactor has not truly “spiritually” given anything at all. He cannot truly relate to the predicament of the needy because he himself is not in a state of need. A TRUE philanthropist will live by the aphorism that it is not an act of charity to give a hungry dog a bone unless the giver is hungrier than the dog. Obviously, a TRUE philanthropist is an extremely rare breed.
At the conclusion of the book, I was of two minds. One mind was definitely inspired, uplifted…, and pacified. The other mind, the one that harbors my nagging critical faculties, was on the verge of erupting. (Can anyone wrap his mind around an erupting mind?) I began to wonder why it is that Muhammad Ali is not donating all proceeds from the sale of his book to either a charitable or an educational cause. After all, according to Ali’s own words, such gestures are the most spiritually satisfying. Certainly, there are many individuals who provide spiritual guidance—expecting NOTHING in return, so why have you not followed this path of which you speak? Muhammad Ali has upped the ante, and he has talked the talk, but in the end, he has balked; he has not yet walked that proverbial extra mile. On balance, I have reached the conclusion that Soul of a Butterfly tells a moving tale—a reader-friendly, sentimental tale—but it is the tale of a man—and not a SUPERman.
It seems to me, Great Ali, that free-spirit butterflies know no fee!
Three stars. ***
posted by Todd Reinhard at 5:51 PM
2 Comments:
I have been sitting and listening to the audio book version of Muhammad Ali’s autobiography, Soul of a Butterfly. I have never been much of an Ali fan, believing him to have been an obnoxious and overrated fighter.
Hey Todd,
Well, it had to happen sometime. I strongly disagree with a lot of what you say here. Now where did I put those gloves? heh heh
Muhammad Ali--obnoxious? Yes, as obnoxious as the day is long. His epic trash talking always annoyed me. Even as a boy, I disliked that excessively brazen bravado.
However, overrated? No way. Ali was a great boxer and a great champion. Maybe you can convince me otherwise, but I'll be surprised if you can (assuming you'd consider such an attempt at persuasion a good use of your time).
I still believe that, as a fighter, Muhammad Ali was highly overrated, but then again, I am of the opinion that ALL heavyweight boxers have been overrated for the last 30-40 years. (And YES, that INCLUDES MIKE TYSON!) My reasoning is based upon the simple fact that physical skills (speed, agility, balance) and endurance, which define a quality boxer, are greatly diminished by excessive body weight. Thus, from my point of view, discussing the greatest heavyweight boxer of all time is comparable to discussing the greatest heavyweight jockey or gymnast of all time—uh, it’s really not of much interest or pertinence. A boxer should epitomize self-discipline and physical conditioning.
Now wait just a cotton-pickin' minute, Todd. Are you saying that all heavyweight boxers are overrated and necessarily poor boxers because of their weight? Or are you limiting your complaints to the heavier/heaviest of the heavyweights? If you yearn for the days when heavyweight boxers weighed less--say, 200 pounds or less--then I can probably see your point and agree with you. However, if you are going to dismiss all heavyweights as per se lacking in the physical skills and endurance that "quality" boxers have, then we don't have a lot to discuss on that point.
Boxers are neither jockeys nor gymnasts. We're talking about three different sports here. For one thing, jockeys must be small to minimize the weight placed on the horses they ride. Gymnasts, well, they have to deal with some sort of strength to weight ratio (that I don't totally understand) and tend to be more muscular and short.
Boxers on the other hand have weight classes to allow men of different weights to be competitive with one another. Having weight classes makes sense for boxing. I don't think weight classes make sense for horse racing because the sport is an expensive one; I don't know that you'd be able to have enough jockeys to hold races for all different weight classes. I don't know if weight classes would make sense for gymnastics.
If we were to limit participation in boxing to just a few very small weight classes, then I might agree with you. However, any such limitation would be arbitrary. Moreover, let's remember that boxing recently seems to be teetering on a precipice. (What else is new?) To try to force all boxers to fit into the smallest weight classes would probably push it over the edge.
Furthermore, strength is also important in boxing. A boxer must have strong legs and at least average upper-body strength.
If a man is the epitome of self-discipline and physical conditioning, he is extremely unlikely to fall into the heavyweight weight division.
Sorry, my friend, but I just don't buy that. Again, though, perhaps we're arguing over something that we could easily solve with more precise definitions. The threshold for the heavyweights has fluctuated a lot. If you're willing to call a heavyweight boxer one who weighs more than 170 or 175 pounds, then I tend to agree with you. We can talk about percentiles and say that X percent of adult men will not exceed a certain weight and go from there.
If an athlete desires to float like a butterfly, he has to be willing to cut out the butter!
That's clever, but I still disagree, I think, for the reasons I stated above. :-)
But now that I have chastised and inflamed the entire clinching and flinching heavyweight division, I will lay it to rest…for now!
Hey, remember that I agreed with you about the clinching and flinching!
But beware, all you heavyweight fanatics, should you rise against this feisty flyweight, the floating keystroke will squash your mighty picks!
Choose your weapon of choice: keystrokes or boxing gloves will be fine with me! Hehe!
I have often chuckled at the way in which humans attempt to bolster their egos and status by means of “charitable” deeds. Everyday we hear tell of a revered celebrity or some colossal organization giving a sizable donation to a charitable cause. But let me ask you, if a man has a billion dollars, and he gives away one million, is that really a spiritual gift? Many may believe that it is, but I laugh at that notion. The man with a billion dollars will not suffer in the slightest financially speaking by giving away that million dollars. In fact, that million-dollar donation is nothing more than an investment, for surely it will attract publicity and future tax breaks and credits. Hence, the benefactor has not truly “spiritually” given anything at all.
Perhaps he has not truly "spiritually" given anything in that particular gift, but it's probably worthwhile to look at the benefactor's giving as a whole. He might be giving much more to other causes. He might also be giving in other ways that he considers even more valuable. We can give of our time, our talents, and our treasures. We don't always feel comfortable giving of all of those, but we often give some of them.
He cannot truly relate to the predicament of the needy because he himself is not in a state of need.
Perhaps he had been in a state of need before. Maybe he does know the predicament of the needy.
A TRUE philanthropist will live by the aphorism that it is not an act of charity to give a hungry dog a bone unless the giver is hungrier than the dog. Obviously, a TRUE philanthropist is an extremely rare breed.
I suppose we can define true philanthropists by such exacting standards that very few people will ever qualify for that distinction.
At the conclusion of the book, I was of two minds. One mind was definitely inspired, uplifted…, and pacified. The other mind, the one that harbors my nagging critical faculties, was on the verge of erupting. (Can anyone wrap his mind around an erupting mind?) I began to wonder why it is that Muhammad Ali is not donating all proceeds from the sale of his book to either a charitable or an educational cause. After all, according to Ali’s own words, such gestures are the most spiritually satisfying.
That's an interesting question. Since I can't answer it, I'll just say that people give of themselves in many different ways; money is just one of those ways.
Since the book seems to have raised some big questions for you, I am inferring that you enjoyed it.
Certainly, there are many individuals who provide spiritual guidance—expecting NOTHING in return, so why have you not followed this path of which you speak?
Some people offer that guidance because that is what they must do. When one discovers a great truth, one may feel he must share it, regardless of what he receives in return for that sharing.
Muhammad Ali has upped the ante, and he has talked the talk, but in the end, he has balked; he has not yet walked that proverbial extra mile.
That's hard to determine. At the risk of seeming evasive, I don't have any conclusion on that issue yet.
On balance, I have reached the conclusion that Soul of a Butterfly tells a moving tale—a reader-friendly, sentimental tale—but it is the tale of a man—and not a SUPERman.
Hey, leave Mr. Nietzsche out of this!
It seems to me, Great Ali, that free-spirit butterflies know no fee!
And they lay off the butter, too, dammit! :-)
Three stars. ***
Not bad. I may check it out sometime. Then again, I may not.
In conclusion, I look forward to any reply you care to post. I learned a lot from this one and, despite my disagreement with several points, I enjoyed it. And who knows? You may have been deliberately dropping your hands to draw me into the disagreement, while you wait for the opportunity to throw counterpunches! We shall see what we shall see!
All the best to ya!
Ah, my good friend and great foe Steve has dared to step into the ring with yours truly and take his beating like a man! HA! I pity the fool! Resign to your stool! Suck in the druel! You're all out of fuel! This ain't no bull--I'm just too cool! Wow! Was that ME? Damn! Amazing what a little blood sugar can do for those poetic neurons! Just sparks them with brazen bravado! What a rush! Might as well go with the flow! So here I go! No, actually, I will keep this rather short. My main point on this is that Muhammad Ali does not meet the criteria that he HIMSELF sets--and he has NEVER met that criteria. Mr. Ali claimed that he was the GreatEST. Now that is a SUPERLATIVE--meaning better than ANYBODY ELSE PERIOD. The fact is that MA, even in his "prime", made MANY mistakes in the ring and frequently suffered from fatigue--despite the fact that he threw very few punches. I challenge ANYBODY to compare the punch output of a typical heavyweight fighter with that of a typical lightweight fighter. There is absolutely no comparison. In general, the heavier the weight, the fewer the punches, the more the clinches. In my opinion, a boxer is defined by the number of quality punches he can deliver per round. Heavyweight fighters just don't deliver the bang for the buck, and Ali was really no exception to that rule. In regard to giving, let me ask you something. Could you imagine JC, Siddhartha, Ghandi, or any of the great spiritual figures SELLING their messages to the people? I cannot. Again--Muhammad Ali sets the criteria here. I do not set the criteria. I simply point out that he is not in fact abiding by his own principles. This is not a "sin"--it is HUMAN nature. I simply point out that it is NOT SUPERhuman nature. Well, Steve et al., forgive the crappy and cursory writing here, but I had to retaliate quickly and spontaneously! Oh yeh--Steve--read the damned book next time before you go shooting from the lip! HAHA!! Thanks for the commentary Buddy! War and Peace!
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