After collecting about a dozen ‘Batman Black & White’ statues, which are released periodically into the market, I decided to give up. Okay, lest you mistaken, these are really statues worthy of showcasing – individually hand-painted porcelain ones – not tiny plastic action figures. They cost about SDG$100 each. I started collecting them because they were really well-crafted, bringing out the physical and emotional essence of how various renown Batman artists over the ages interpreted him. I consider these pieces works of art – originally of two dimensions made three-dimensional. Part of me identified with the angsty righteousness of Batman too – there is a sense of empathy mixed with admiration over how he unrelentingly faces his outer and inner demons.
So why did I stop? Although the statues are each certified limited editions (with a rough average of about 3,000 of each made), I recently realised that the Batman Black & White series itself is not a limited one – it seems to go on and on with more and more new statues, probably because it is rather profitable! DC Comics is even churning out a Black & White Joker and Penguin! I began collecting with the thought that there would be an end to the collection, based upon the versions of Batman featured in the three volumes of the acclaimed Batman Black & White comic series, but DC even came up with a Gotham Knight (the animated film) Black & White statue (the last of which I bought). It made me sit up, to look objectively at each upcoming statue to see it for its worth, instead of buying just to collect. I stopped rationalising the worth of each just to to buy.
It struck me that all our samsaric material (or even experiential) collections, even if they have educational or inspirational qualities, are really likewise – of limited editions part of an unlimited series – as long as we are unenlightened and cling to wanting more. What do I really need to collect? It’s Dharma realisations that really matter; not just Dharma lessons. On a related note, I don’t make it a point to track and read complete graphic novels series sequentially anymore – I just read what’s available in public libraries. There are still good self-contained lessons to be gleaned from each episode. This is how I’m now less of a ‘gatherer’, more of a ‘picker’ – I get what I can with less attachment to complete the uncompleted. What matters more is how completely we learn from each episode of our lives; not how many intriguing episodes we experience or collect – especially in terms of countless memorabilia and photos! (For the record, I ‘pick up’ small Buddha statues too – they are expressions of benevolent compassion to me, while Batman ones are of wrathful compassion!)
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Related Article:
Infinite Secret Gaps
https://moonpointer.com/new/2009/05/infinite-secret-gaps