Ok, so yeah, I don’t know what it means, either. It’s a nice thought exercise, though, in the tradition of a koan. Indeed, one of the characters in that scene is a Zensunni master, the other a Bene Gesserit madre. The origin and significance of both names should be clear to anyone with a passing knowledge of world religions.

I recently spent time with this series, listening to all six of the original novels of Frank Herbert. When I was a young man, I only read as far as God Emperor of Dune, the ending of which signaled to me then a good stopping point.

I was wrong. The remaining books of the series were truly enlightening, showing me the real, quotidian power in mindfulness and curious detachment, among many other virtues.

It will be impossible, of course, to translate the books into the movies, which will inevitably degenerate into spectacles of violence, sex and power, while missing the entire point of the series. You have only to refer to the pathetic reduction of the Foundation series on Apple to guess how the blockbuster film studio will destroy the spirit and depth of this one.

The printed word, even read aloud, is always going to be better than the film adaptation. But again, no one cares. A crass culture produces crass people.

Expedient diversion, please! Cheap, fast, loud! Now!