Cause and Effect

Generally the eastern people tend to take the fatalistic view toward the occurrences on the life.  So the words Cause and the Effect having more fatalistic meaning to them.   Even if it looks just a rational consequence, easterner take it in fatalistic.   So that when a rock musician died with over dose of narcotic or drink drive, people feel less sympathetic and think it is natural and suits to the person.

What I found the reason of this WAS, unlike the Disney designed character (which was modelled Gilgamesh Myth) of the Western God which decision is not absolute but negotiable, —– but the Ether like Eastern God (? or Heaven itself) spread everywhere, penetrate everywhere IS inescapable, its mean if anybody made wrong, its Effect = punishment is must and Fatal. —– This IS what easterner feel their absolute God and the inescapable Fate. = So, they become a Fatalist. 

(In contrast, you need play hard to take attention of  the Western God who is busy over-worked to take whole population single-handed. = what a poor man !   😀 —– When Jesuit missionary came to Japan, Japanese asked “If your God is such almighty, why he can’t speak Japanese ?” = Hence, they failed to colonialize Japan.  Not only that, Dutch ( = Protestant who only think about a business) took a lots of Japanese girls to the west and sold as a slave = So, they became a hate figure.  Missionary took a free ride on those ships. = too bad for telling a God’s Blessing. = Who could trust such God !)

BBC seems to have the special anniversary programs to tribute to the late cellist, Jacqueline du-Pre who died 30 years ago.   Too early death to such talented musician seems to be so unfair. ( = exact opposite to a junky rocker. )    Its mean, we are expecting a kind of bias towards what happens on our life.  Not a simple cause and its effect.  Sometime get away without receiving any consequence or expect others to get much heavier retribution.  (That’s what we call self-centered Ego ! )  You may feel strange though, I may not hold the position to talk about this subject in the neutral stance. 

A while ago, I found a blog telling the man encountered severe storm in the mountain from first day till the end.  (By its route, they couldn’t have any other choice but to go ahead even under such condition —– It must be his fate, why he went to the mountain in such timing.)   I thought, A,Ha ! the man is receiving the “Good treatment after what he has done”—- Suddenly the story goes back 50 years !  This man did quite nasty things in the mountain, intended to make me collapse though I had the strongest physics among the members (in comparison to a student amateur climber, I was the almost professional mountain keeper as a keeper of the shelter = carrying up, up to 200 kg of food staff every week on the back etc)  So, I just carried on walking —– in the evening, the man got Snow-blind and became camp bound without able to open the eyes with severe pain for the rest of the week. 

Literally on the other hand, I got a so-called mystic cross in my palm = I was born to be psychic and having the protection.  —– (I fallen twice on the rock without any injury.  I broke two skis but no injury either.  I don’t get ill nor need to take any medicine. Eat anything yet no alcohol or drag, no smoking, no woman — ) Somebody said I’m out of the Karma or even out of Cause and the Effect.  —– (And the other made a joke, if there is no self, even the Effect couldn’t find where to go ! —– Good joke ! )   😀 

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 Then gave a thought, —– this joke might have some truth.   If you ARE clinging “You” = the SELF, you are quite conscious what you did and aware, there must be a certain reaction, Effect coming back.  But, if you ARE not a typical Greedy EGO person, naturally, your action = Cause may not be a kind of greedy act, nor forcing your dominance to others = therefore the reaction, the Effect can not be such hard, and if you were not such self-conscious Me Me Me person, you may not even noticed that Effect was aimed to you.  Being Selfless, you can have much quiet, peaceful life indeed ! = It’s not a joke.  😀  —– So, I might be ignoring many things while thinking  “It’s nothing to do with me” = I think, this kind of person would get no ill. 

In contrast, a person you might know, who is having a kind of ill-health and keep complaining about him (or her) self of the health, the daily feelings and conditions and so on —– it’s really questionable, was that his own ill-health making him thinking and talking, OR his mind, too much conscious and worrying about, making him ill-health ? —– Which IS Causing it ? ? ?

Look, a lots of things in the life were in fact, own making.   It was not because of the Fate, but to born to be the person who makes it WAS the Fate.   As you ARE causing its Fate, you can change.  It’s so simple, just stop, don’t cause it.

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根性悪い？

最近、このブログの『ヨシ禅縁起』なる古いポストに加筆をしたのだが、それを目ざとく見付けた人が「お宅本当に根性悪いなァ、5０年も前の話に末だ恨みを抱ている訳？」と言って来た。　　実を言うと5０年に渡りこだわっているのでは無く,　ふとその男が山で初日から下山するまで徹底して暴風雨に痛めつけられたという話をNetに書いていたのを見て　因果応報という言葉を思出したからに外ならない。　で、この場合、何が「因」なのかを辿ると昔の山岳部時代のしごきのエピソードに戻るという訳だ。　この男の場合岩場で滑落して死んでいても不思議は無かったのだが、死体を運んで長い雪道を歩かされてはこちらが迷惑。－－－まァ雪盲あたりが妥当な応報だったのだろう。　　　

「まるで仏教者らしからぬ言葉ですね」と言うので「仏教が底無しの慈悲などを語っていると思っていたらひどい誤解で、死ぬ程の苦行も経験した　

釈尊自身、人を殺しかねない程の厳しさで教えを施していたのです。　つまりそれは甘い慈悲などと言うものではなく、本人自身で答を見つける為の、鍵を与えるものだったのです。　しかも三回教えても見込無しとなったら、それまでとつっ放されていたのです。　慈悲とか極樂を語っていたら、それは

釈尊の教えではありません。教えの核心は何が真実か、であったのです」　つまる所誰もが己れの持って生れた運命を生きて行かねばならない訳で、その男が「唯物論はその状況での自由撰択を取るだけで、運命などと言う考えはナンセンス」と言うのは自由だが、死にそこなう程の暴風雨は現実に有無なくやってくる。　で、何故かそう言う時に山に出掛ける人が居ると言う遇然のフシギ ？？？    これを運命とか宿命と呼ぶのですが本人、自覚していないから避ける事もできない。ーーー 因果応報の不思議な所はそれがー見何の関係も脈絡も無い所に出る事で、当事者は単なる事故と思っていても, 改めて考えてみると自分の血筋は根絶やしになっていたと言うような調子で、それがいかなるメカニズムで機能しているのか、まるで不可解ながら何故かそうなる　ーーー　こうした超常現象がマインドパワー（念力、怨念）で働いていると言う説も有りますが、その割に丑の刻参りに効果が無いというのも周知の事実。　

つまり応報とは人間の思念ではなく　“天”が決裁して断罪するものなのです。　そこには普遍かつ永久不変、客観的に成立している善悪の絶対的基準が在り、イデオロギーや聖書と言ったものの解釈やイケニエの量で適当に変る西欧流の“正義”とは完璧に異った、絶対的な倫理空間が形成されています。　それが東洋で天とか神と呼ばれているもので、人々が現象の背後に直感している力（パワー）に外なりません。　　　

オーム教とかいうグループはこうした天の庇護どころか、その力の知識経験も無しに只、ヒンズー教グルの噂話を聞いてそのマネをしていただけだったのです。（２５００年前、しばらく苦行僧のグループに加った

釈尊はそうした苦行が何の足しにもならない事に気付き独自の教えを始めた）　当然のことながらインチキなオームでは天からの警告を聞く事も無く只ずるずると醜悪な泥沼の深みに沈んでいき決定的な応報、極刑の懲罰を受けるハメになったのです。　しかし最大の疑問は、何故もっと早い時点で幹部などのメンバーが癌にかかったり事故に会って死滅していなかったのか？？？　（まさか邪宗（まァ、ヒンズー教の一派みたいに見える）にも信仰の自由、平等な生存権が有るなどの屁理屈があったのか？）　－－－ーー　それにしても、それにしても巻きぞえを喰った他人さまにとってはえらい悲劇。

　＊＊＊＊＊　 ところで別の意見によると、このポストが書かれたのが　１３日の金曜日というのが怖いそうだ。（おヤ、そんな事には気がつかなかったが、しかしどうしてそうなるのかね？）　（笑）

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Heaven or God ?

I just found those photos in the net and I do know not more than any fact of what the photo was telling us. —– may be the photo was genuine = straight record of the aftermath, showing the remaining gate of the Shinto Shrine.

A person who found the photos must be utterly amazed hence just up loaded to the net.   As I have no information of original source, I have no idea whether the photo was taken by the professional journalist or just a passerby, let alone any fact whether the subject was intentionally picked up (such as the survey of all the Shinto Shrine — and the one / only one Torii kept standing — or one of many) or just a coincidence.

—– yet still, seeing one more photo, they convinced me that there IS something.  Think, you were a person who encountered it on the spot.  Even if you didn’t bend your knee there, you must felt a chill on your back and felt, something like Heaven or somebody like the God is there and showing their providence.  (But don’t blame, why send a tsunami or ask why save only a Torii, not the city.   😀  )

This is THE basis of the Japanese Shinto.  We don’t need a fishy sweet words telling the Next life.  We are seeing and keep feeling it IS there.  Unlike an intentionally created, invented idea of so-called God, the supernatural power, or Heaven IS a part of our native sentiment or so-called spirituality.   (That’s why only few % of Japanese is christian. = To the Japanese, Disney like personified God is a joke that’s why no Christian, still almost all of them believe the Rule of a cause and the consequence / the punishment return by the Heaven = that’s their spiritual Ethos.)  So, we don’t steal, nor riot because we know the heaven IS watching us, or living with us.  We don’t need to be told and learn “The idea of Morality” = we have it.  Idea was an invention in the brain.  Japanese Ethos is a part of how we were born.  (Well, ideally —– we have Yakuza too. (But you know, Yakuza’s own rule is as tight as in the army)   And, if you know them, they ARE also nice people.   Ha ha ha   😀 )

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Sound of the Earth

In the past year or so, the BBC Radio-3 is sounding the birds song in the morning.  Birds song from the countryside and from all over the world.  

Being ex-climber myself, those kinds of sounds are rather familiar.  Not mention in the mountain, when I was traveling on the Eurail-Pass, I often used long distance overnight train.  Train will reach the destination early morning (5:00 ~6:00 kind), before the town get up.  I waited the shops to open, sitting in a park where the air was filled with the birds song. (in fact, mostly the Black Bird) 

So, that was my start of the day.  (What’s my day then was = first, buy a bread and the fruits drink etc, then go to the tourist’s information to get the map of the town — and start the tour of the town visiting / listen the church pipe organ, and so on.  Often go up the back hill of the town to have an over all view of the place. ( = We can have a great view from the hills of the Rhine River.)

—– Anyway, and what so ever the life you have.  Just enjoy those sounds.  (Listen the Radio is straight forward but if you are in the office etc, the other choice is on the Net — “sound of the earth, BBC, radio-3” though, you may asked to register / DL the Flash player etc a bit cumbersome.) 

Have a good morning listen. 

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Tea Ceremony — 茶の湯、侘び助

In relation to the Sazanka post, I was looking around the Camellia flower items in the Wiki.    There are many funny stories about a mystical rare variety of the Camellia called Wabi-suke.  

You may vaguely know about Japanese Tea Ceremony — how it was refined and sophisticated etc and saw many photos of the Tea bowl, Tea room and its garden, though you may not having any idea, who actually taking part of those gatherings in the time of Samurai era.

—– In reality, if you imagine a kind of political, financial salon or a gentleman’s club = it must be the closest.  The Tea master, who host the ceremony, was THE power dealer who pull the string.    The higher the reputation of the Tea master, the guest or friend is high in the power.  The Load of the country could meet the other lord in a completely isolated, safe environment such as a Tea hut in a temple.  (Anybody go into the room has to take off their sword and kneeling into the small room.)  Tea master arranged the meeting in the certain intention.  So, an alliance deal could be made or needy War Lord could meet rich merchant and able to borrow lots of gold for a war operation etc etc.

Naturally, there was an ugly battle between the Tea masters “Who is the most prominent”.   So, to have more valuable Tea bowl in “Wabi” became a stiff competition. = Who could offer the highest price for a bowl, kind of the battle of vanity.  (Photo above must be the most typical Wabi bowl = Left made by Koetsu)

—– then, a new variety of Camellia, which doesn’t fully open its small flower was introduced into the cercle.  The flower got instant hype “This flower shows really reserved humble face.  This is THE flower to be seen in the supreme tea place”.  The particular flower was named “Wabi-suke”.  Imagine, if the Lord was greeted by a bunch of flower worth hundred of gold — guess, its impact. 

So, the shady battle to get hold the flower was fought among the Tea masters which involved even fraudulent flower growers who try to trick with sham branch while asking huge money.  (Think, the Black Tulip hype in the 18C Europe = when the big money involved, it creates crazy hype.) —— The trouble was that the “Wabi-suke” was not an established variety, (even worse, the definition was rather vague, such as “Smaller” and “Flower wouldn’t be fully opened” kind = such flower could be just a result of a malnutrition or lack of water, and similar flower could be produced by a temporary hybrid — but no flower next year or so on !) —– So, even today, some says “I believe this is “Wabi-suke” but others sees not or “My one is Wabi-suke” but others doesn’t agree —– People could see every DNA of the “reputedly” or “claimed to be” Wabi-suke though, no-one is shure which one is true Wabi-suke.   It’s so dubious and funny.)   😀

(Now you must become aware, Tea Ceremony, Tea Masters are not necessary peaceful decent kind. — could have been a center of conspiracy.   In real histories, the association of War load (even Shogun) and the Tea master, Zen monk as an Adviser or Strategist were well-known.)    😀  

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Fancy Eat a Lamb ?

India complains over ‘offensive’ Australian lamb commercial

(There was a kind of diplomatic / cultural conflict.)

India has lodged an official complaint over an Australian advertisement that features the Hindu god Ganesha and other religious icons endorsing lamb.
In the TV commercial from industry group Meat and Livestock Australia, a number of religious figures — including Lord Ganesha, Jesus, Buddha and Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard — are seen sitting down together to a lamb-based meal and raising a glass to the meat.
The image of elephant-headed Lord Ganesha, who is widely considered to be vegetarian, was met with anger in Australia’s Indian community.
The Indian high commission (embassy) in Canberra said it had taken the issue up with the Australian government.
Lord Ganesha along with other religious figures is found to be ‘toasting lamb’, which the Indian community consider to be offensive and hurting their religious sentiments, the commission said in a statement Saturday.
The Indian consulate in Sydney has also made a direct appeal to Meat and Livestock Australia to withdraw the commercial, according to the statement.
The industry body said it was meeting community groups to respond to their concerns.
It said it had undertaken extensive research and consultation when producing the advertisement, which was intended to promote inclusivity and not intended to offend.

(2017/09/12 14:22) – AFP-JIJI Press

It was an absolutely bizarre story, regardless whether any ground of complaint, even a shred of evidence whether any proven fact behind — or not.  Other than Ron Hubbard, no-one can proof even an existence of other figures like as what some of us are believing.  Not mention Hindu God, to believe the stories of those “religious figure” are just exists in the imagination of the people.  Think, to deny the story or alleged experience of UFO could make an insult to the person ?

Still, the “Real” trouble is, there are many attacks and killings of the person who is handling or eating Beef meat has been kept happening in India.

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Sazanka / 山茶花 (Sazanqua ?)

As a garden plant, Camilia Sazanka is a rather popular one.   She open the flower earlier than the real Camilia (Camilia japonica / Tsubaki / 椿).   But, as its name Sazanka (山茶花) suggests, it got rather funny story behind.   Camilia family is not a big family and the members share the character closely.   As one of the prominent member, Camilia sinencis (or Camilia Cha = Tea) can make tea, so does the other Camilia. (as, I heard though I haven’t tasted such tea ever.   😀 ) And the real Camilia = Camilia japonica is famous of its seed oil (Tsubaki oil / 椿油) the other member can produce the good oil too —– my guess is, that when the selling point is “Genuine Tsbaki” other oil might be used only to dilute and bulk-up the genuine one.    The name Sazanka (山茶花) seems exposing such kind of story.

The writing of its name Sazanka mean Mountain Tea Flower = regarded to be a tea but, branded to be the second class.  The funniest part of the story was in its reading of the name. = Mountain/山 Tea/茶 Flower/花 should be read San Cha Ka or San Sa Ka.  Though, even in its earliest stage after she was named, she has been called Sazanka.  The reason must be its better sound. (Sazanka sound nicer than Sanchaka !) —– Yet still, nobody thought to change its writing to/茶 山花.   Japanese is very fussy about those writing but in the same time they likes the relaxed joke as well.  (Reading Kanji correctly, you got to know it beforehand.)

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Japanese reading (of Kanji 漢字)

It’s no doubt, the hardest part to learn Japanese is in the reading of Kanji 漢字(so-called Chinese character, Japanese got other types of characters, Hiragana ひらがな and Katakana カタカナ as well). Reading of particular Kanji in its particular case may differ from the other.   It may be originated from the ancient Japanese word, or the word related to the Chinese word, hence taking its pronunciation from Chinese — though, there are many different Chinese Pronunciation, from north to south, the different historical kingdom etc.    In short, to read Japanese correctly, you need to know it beforehand. ( = You needed to encounter it before and refer to the dictionary then —– and remember it !)  Make the situation worse, that there are many peculiar words originated from the Buddhism, Confucius, Medical term, Scientific term etc etc. —– (Somebody said that to learn such system from the childhood, it must be a strong stimulation to the brain = so, it’s no wonder why Japanese is receiving so many Novel Prise, while Korean (Who use only simple Hangle ) got non.)

Rather recently, there was a political farce involving even Japanese PM around a word Sontaku (忖度 = mean consideration — I didn’t know such word existed, let alone its reading ) whether the PM gave a special favour when a government land was sold to a private organisation with a huge discount.  (It could be a scandalistic corruption !)  (Think, does the word “Attention” mean favourable special treat ? — or just a handling equal to the other ? = Whether a recipient can sue the officer as the attention the person received was not what expected ?)

See a sample.  Climb a mountain = Yama ni noboru = 山に登る = To-Zan = 登山 —– The word Yama is an original Japanese, we’ve been using it thousand of years. —– Then, the Chinese Kanji was imported = 山 was assigned to Yama which Chinese pronounce Shan or San and here a character 登 was used to express climb = noboru (though, Chinese use it in a bit different meaning)  The same Kanji 山 was read as Yama or San (Zan).  (If you mixed up, you would be only a laughing-stock = Similar to a situation when you ask the direction “Where the Gare Nord” in Paris.   😀 )  ——  In the next post, I’ll show you when Japanese made complete mistake. (or made a joke knowingly )

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Ideally ~~~~ or Typical

Think, about your own life, — how can it be “Ideally” re-organized.    Then think about how is your typical daily life ?  —– In either case you may need to think quite deep.

—– So, how about, can you imagine “Typical Buddhist” or “typical Muslim man” ? You may say that you don’t know about them deep enough, or you might draw an image of a caricature = funny exaggeration based on the popular stereotype.   As those Notion of Ideal, or Typical kind were artificially created abstract notions for the convenience of communication or try to show how I am intelligent, they never represent a reality.    Real truth is always stays few steps behind of “Ideal” or “Typical” —– and we all know it.

So, the obvious FACT is, what so ever the imagination you have made-up here just now, in the actual daily life, you ARE just carry on your same old daily Life = You must be realized here, extreme or exaggerated idea came up when you INTENTIONALLY THINK = otherwise you are not having such image or notion = In a real daily life, you ARE living without any artificial conscious of “I AM carrying out my living operation”.  —– As a matter of FACT, while reading this blog, you are even NOT aware of YOU are reading this.   While away from intentional thinking, we ARE naturally following the way of the commonsense or what the Buddhists call Dharma.  Of which we unconsciously follow.

This IS what all about of SELFLESSNESS, and the real situation of the Middle way. (Both extreme were created by the intentional thinking = live without such thinking  (Selfless Mushin)  we can follow the Dharma and it IS the very Middle Way.

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Bach — Bernstein — Gould — Zen

Oh my Goodness.    I bumped this old film clip, on Youtube = Leonard Bernstein and Glenn Gould talked about J.S.Bach.
Film was shot on 57 years ago, 1960 then Glenn Gould was 28.   Naturally the film showed the two’s younger looks but what surprised me most was, on that time Bernstein was already “the Educator Bernstein” and Gould was “the Only one, Gould”.

(Other nearby Youtube posts, Gould or Bernstein posts are very educative and highly recommended to watch !)
In fact, me to encounter Bach first time was in the Fellini’s film, “La Dolce Vita” —– in the film, a gossip journalist, Marcello met a church organist and the organist played Bach’s music, Toccata and Fugue in D-miner (the most famous and popular organ music — famous still it was the first encounter to my 15-years-old ear)   (incidentally, that the same actor who played the organist later appeared in the other film “Emanuel” as a sex-gulu ! )

I think, it was the early 90s, I listened a BBC annual radio 3 event, the Christmas Lecture, Bernstein talked about the structure and the music language.  It opened my eyes. —– in fact, it taught me more about our emotion than of the music. —– If the music could expect the same effect, it is the proof of that our emotional pattern is much simpler = such as how we feel from major or minor key, even B-miner is associated with the feeling of death ! — how accurate his view was the other matter, but such a view-point to analyze the relation of us to the music was a shock to me. 

So that, that was the same stance, how and why I adapted my view toward the Zen = instead to see it as a holly spiritual mumbo-jumbo but the scientific / medical phenomenon of the neuro-physical function.

Amazingly looks ordinary young man, Gould was already a master of the finger of a Harpsichordist and already know what is the Bach = mean what he is going to do with him = the man aware of his own karma.  (People became aware of their own karma on their later life —– I wonder how he found it in such early life ?)

***** PS:   Related post (following links)  J.S.Bach,  Aaaaaa~~~~~!  are highly recommended post to go. (They clearly explain what I said here.)

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