This essay is about a paradox. The paradox consists of our learning is based upon what information we get from others. That is the bedrock of all learning. However, all learning can be good or bad. The dilemma is not only learning but being careful to check out the truth of what we learn.

Here is a splendid example of that tension about determining the truth of a statement or fact. I had to memorize a hundred lines of poetry or prose each semester in high school. I absolutely hated that requirement. Nonetheless, it has benefited me all my life.

I remember standing in front of Mrs. Davis reciting the first stanza of the English poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s poem, Kubla Khan Or, a Vision in a Dream. A Fragment. None of the class used that title; we called it In Xanadu. I also memorized a much longer section of Coleridge’s The Rime of the Ancient Mariner. I understood what he meant in that poem, but Kubla Khan confused me and made no sense. Therefore, I memorized the first stanza because I would be five lines closer to fulfilling the semester’s requirement.

Since graduating from high school in 1961, I have learned a great deal about Kubla Khan. One of my learnings was that Coleridge used opium for much of his life. Apparently, he had recently read about Marco Polo. Polo wanted to see the world, so he traveled East along the Silk Road to China. In fact, he went to Xanadu (Shangdu), the summer capital of the Mongol Empire. Kublai Khan ruled for the last half of the 13^th century. He was so impressed by Polo that he hired him as his special emissary for his empire and worked in that capacity for nearly twenty years.

Xanadu

Coleridge had knowledge of Kublai Khan by way of Marco Polo. Coleridge had just come down from his experience with cocaine, and he started writing his poem. Feverishly, Coleridge penned the first fifty lines in a frenzy when someone came to the door of his cottage. He went to the door, returned to writing his poem, and got nowhere. Coleridge’s psychoactive stimulant benefited him until he had to go to the door of his cottage. That ended his ecstasy.

That explains the title, Kubla Khan Or, a Vision in a Dream. A Fragment. Cocaine had opened up his dream-like state, but when someone came to the door, he lost most of the poem that had been floating in his mind. That accounts for the term A Fragment in the title of Kubla Khan.

This is another paradox about knowing things. Another thing we know about Kubla Khan is that he was inclusive when running his empire. He asked Marco Polo, a foreigner from faraway Italy, to be the emissary in Kubla Khan’s empire. His inclusiveness wasn’t limited to officials who worked for him. He was open to all foreigners.

Additionally, Kubla Khan was inclusive regarding the various religions within his empire. Buddhism, Daoism, Christianity, and Islam benefited from the acceptance of their various beliefs. His attitude toward those religions included granting them tax exemptions.

Reading and exploring the past is essential to learn important ideas from long ago. Assuming we will do that, we must incorporate it into our behavior in life. Kubla Khan, a Mongol emperor in China, was an inclusive leader.

Dreaming Dreams is a subdirectory of my website. It is about my desire to create a place like Xanadu. This is what it looks like.

This is my Xanadu.

My Xanadu is a 21^st-century utopian experiment. It looks different than Kubla Khan’s version. It is a lake with mountains in the background. I have met many people on my travels like Marco Polo did. They come from various countries throughout the world. Some live in Asia, the Middle East, Europe, and America. They possess different ethnic backgrounds, cultures, religions, and beliefs. It is a place where people will be an example of how the rest of the world can function.

Granted. At eighty years of age and without vast riches, my dream has limitations. However, it is a far better alternative to Trump’s mindset for our country. He won’t change from controlling everything, but maybe some Republicans will begin to think. Think about what Trump says and determine whether that is something you wish to learn.

This is an excellent video of Coleridge’s Kubla Khan.