Short Story by Daniel Gauss: Monsieur Pilleur and the Starving Buddha Head from Home Planet News

 

This is a Public Domain image taken from the Metropolitan Museum of a "starving Buddha" with its head removed by plunderers for sale to antiquities thieves.

“Monsieur Pilleur and the Starving Buddha Head” is a reflective and satirical (fictional) short story about a middle-school teacher who stumbles upon a rare, emaciated Gandharan Buddha head in a Manhattan gallery during Asia Week. 

His awe and moral concern clash with the suave, cynical attitudes of the art world, embodied by a mysterious figure named Pilleur who delights in owning looted antiquities. 

Through their encounter, the story explores themes of spiritual insight, cultural theft and the seductive power of possession in a world where art is both sacred and commodified.

Please read the story here: Monsieur Pilleur and the Starving Buddha Head

Short Story by Daniel Gauss: The Cambodian Ghost in Mobius: The Journal of Social Change

 

“The Cambodian Ghost” by Daniel Gauss is a thoughtful (fictional) short story about an American educator contemplating a teaching position at a Cambodian monastery. 

Disillusioned by the country's oppressive dictatorship and the callous and selfish attitudes of many expatriates, he forms a meaningful connection with a local student who reveals an obscure and largely overlooked monument to him commemorating victims of political violence. 

This encounter compels him to confront the complexities of complicity, resistance, and the moral responsibilities of bearing witness in a society grappling with its past and present injustices.

Please read the story here: The Cambodian Ghost