Kim Duty Quotes

How we cite our quotes: (Chapter. Paragraph)

Quote #10

'Sister,' said the lama, using that form of address a Buddhist monk may sometimes employ towards a nun, 'if charms comfort thee—'

'They are better than ten thousand doctors.'

'I say, if they comfort thee, I who was Abbot of Such-zen, will make as many as thou mayest desire. I have never seen thy face—'

'That even the monkeys who steal our loquats count for again. Hee! hee!'

'But as he who sleeps there said,'—he nodded at the shut door of the guest-chamber across the forecourt—'thou hast a heart of gold... And he is in the spirit my very "grandson" to me.' (15.45-9)

After the lama finds his Enlightenment, he can admit that his feelings for Kim are not just based on the duty of a teacher to a student or whatever. He really loves Kim, and regards Kim as a grandson. He will do whatever he must to look after his almost-grandson, even writing endless stupid charms for the Kulu woman's grandsons. Why do you think it is so important to the lama's quest that he understands how he truly feels about Kim? What is the relationship between his spirituality and his emotional life in this book?