Stop SMOKING

In England, there was a health campaign held on October, which was

dubbed as “Stoptober” to stop smoking.

—– I was talking with a local man, who remember me used to smoke.   As he has been

trying to stop smoking, asked me how I managed to give-up, “Was that thanks to Zen ?”

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My smoking seemed to be a mystery to others, long time. = How a Zennist who doesn’t

drink alcohol, never take drug, even managed to give-up woman, still keep smoking ? ? ?

My joke was “I’m perfectly clean Holy-man except smoking.   So, if I stop smoking

Lord Buddha wants me to work there. It’s mean, I will be called up straight.

—– in other words, me to stay in this dirty world, I was forced to smoke = if I stop,

I would be just gone.” —– then other friend advised me “If you need one vice to stay

in this world, change smoking to woman. It’s would be much healthier and exciting”

“I know, but to have a woman is much more expensive  :-D”

[]

The local man (in fact he is a musician) asked me what sort of mind-set needed to

stop smoking ? —– I answered, there was non. I just stopped. That’s all.

—– people seemed to have a misunderstanding such as

= [To Stop Smoking, it needs a firm determination and lots of efforts] —–

utterly contrary to popular belief, such mind-set has opposite effect.

= People think, [Stop Smoking] is [TO DO Stop Smoking] hence strong will and

the proper mind-set is needed = IT MUST BE a matter of Mindfulness.

—– is utterly wrong.   And it is not Zen.

[Stop Smoking] mean, [Smoking is no longer exists] = Just disappeared. 

Put a Mind or Effort to a thing which is not exists = is nothing but a delusion.

If you need to DO, you have to deal with it with your Mindfulness and the effort.

But, when you deal with a thing which is not exist = you do nothing

(can you DO anything ? ) = you don’t even notice it.

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So that, when I stopped smoking = I just stopped.

The last packet on the desk was still containing 4 cigarettes.  (I still remember  😀 )

Technically I could have re-started any moment = anyhow there was no obligation,

nobody watching me still, no such thoughts came up —– because, the notion of

smoking itself had been disappeared = when the target is not there where to put an effort ?

I didn’t need to have such high tension in my mind at all.  The harder, it will crack.

= So, it’s better to be relaxed. —– (easy, easy, it’s only about smoking 😀 )

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People has been inventing lords of excuse “Not to Stop Smoking” before-hand, such

as it is addictive etc etc.   Therefore, when they try to stop, they put so much Preparation

and the “Determination” —– from many Rituals (such as to destroy all the related objects,

ashtray, lighter, etc etc) to Declaration to others — 😀

In reality, the more you put Effort or Ritual kind, they stack to your mind and

remind you again and again = prevent you to get rid of the notion of SMOKING.

As long as the notion of Smoking is in your mind = it IS viable CHOICE to DO.

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So, the best tactics is, just stop it, even to take notice of it = when you see a

cigarette —– “What is CIGARETTE ?”

In Zen term, this is Mushin.

= vacates the Mind, not mention any related thinkings.

If you need to stop smoking = JUST DO IT IN THIS WAY

= You will succeed.

___/\___

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Can Ordinary Bicycle Rider become Zennist ?

I’ve wrote about many samples of the Natural Mushin, such as the examples,

Typing, Riding Bicycle even ordinary Walking, or through the practice to Cut

Lemon, Put a Pen onto a paper, just watching a Flow of Water, Sea Wave etc.

= In our daily life a Moment when our brain fallen into the state of the No-Mind [Mushin]

is not a rare occurrence, far from it, it is quite an ordinary psychological condition.

—– If so, you might ask, what makes the difference between those

common Moment of No-Mind to the ZEN.

= The answer is in the person’s Mind, or what the person thinks and accepts

[this is the ZEN] = then, it is the Zen or at least it is a start.

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While riding a bicycle or cutting a lemon, once you realized that your mind doesn’t have

any thinking other than a mere feeling of “ I’m riding” and the vision “ Land scape is just

passing by” and “ Air is just flowing on my cheek”, or you just see the Knife cutting a Lemon.

—– You need to feel [Oh, this is the ZEN] or feel [I’m in the ZEN] = and

make it a kind of tag bound two together, so that the notion of ZEN is always

stack to the action, Riding, Cutting or Typing what ever be the action.

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And you must became aware, the subject you are acting on, and your action is just passing

on or going on, such as the Landscape, shape of the Lemon or the Letters you are Typing,

next by next and moment to moment, like as to see an endless continuing flow.

= As it is the Flow, it never stays the SAME (of cause, that is what Riding, Cutting or

Typing meant to be = otherwise you can’t reach destination, couldn’t make Lemon Slices

and a cup of tea, or finish Typing).

And you must become aware, “ This is what the action meant, or the situation IS”

= YOU just have to DO, hence the SITUATION CHANGES = You are seeing

its flow as if you are just an observer, despite YOU, Yourself is

ACTING and CAUSING this FLOW.

( You have to see and aware this, as it is just a passing phase = but NOT THINK,  just see

as if it is a distant land scape) —– And need to be convinced and become aware,

This IS the ZEN scape.

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This detached eyes is what called OPEN EYES and the OPEN-MINDED MIND.

= with this, you must become aware YOU CAN DO THE THINGS ALMOST

AUTOMATIC, IN QUITE DISPASSIONATE BUT EFFICIENT WAY.

While DOING this or HAVING this eyes, a landscape even a bottom of a woman become

just another landscape ! (fortunately or unfortunately 😀 😀 )

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Ultimately, ZEN is to have this MINDSET and the OPEN EYES (often called

Clear-Eyes), by which, strangely you might think

“ With the detached EYES, I can see the Real Detail more”

Details, hence the Change, in minute Moment to Moment = Hence YOUR response as well.

Because of the open-eyes, you can have more facts, hence you can be much

more PRECISE  or less SELECTIVE and more TOLERANT and FLEXIBLE,

(as you can have the More Freedom on YOUR  JUDGMENT and the CHOICE)

and able to pay more attention even to the others as well.

This is what the ZEN IS.

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When you try this and became able to DO this, go back to the old posts in this blog

= You must be realized Why, and see What is the psychological mechanism behind.

And see, amazingly all those were taught by

Lord Buddha, 2500 years ago already = this is nothing new or fancy novelty.

( In fact, they are the matter of Subconscious =To see and Feel is done by your intuitive 

Subconscious — but Reasoning and Rational Sorting etc is done by the Thinking. 

ZEN rely on the Subconscious perception and the straight response = hence

eliminates the bias or distortion caused by the intentional Thinking )

= Have a good try or many = it is not difficult as even I hthinkingave done (as DIY).

___/\___

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( Thinking ) in MUSHIN

While talking with people, I found even a person regularly reading this blog still having a

confusion about the subconsciousness and the state of Mushin.

—– giving a thought = It might be caused by my explanations, since I might have used the

term Mushin = Mind of No-Mind, too casually = since it is almost a crèche, I presumed that

the term must be well understood from other books or the sort, so that I just concentrated

to the way [How to reach or experience and learn it].

= Or, may be I haven’t been clearly defined about two different “Thinking” yet.

Mushin Without Thinking might be very deceptive words in deed 😀

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“ Mushin without Thinking” = In this “Thinking” mean, Higher level of the brain process

such as categorization and the sorting process = matching to an existing

references, and the conversion to the linguistic expression.

(All those process are the matter of the pattern-recognition)

On the other hand, Sorting is according to the value or its importance.

= this Value and Importance mean Personal Preferences, the Value or Significance

in the Society, Value in the Belief System, above all importance in the scope of the

Preservation of the Self and the Society / Species (Mankind)

= (All those are related to the Survival instinct).

= So, you may think “ How we can survive without thinking”

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It is a well known phenomenon that our brain is doing thinking process without us noticing it,

and when we became aware of “I thought”, subconscious has processed it 6 seconds ago.

(This must be measured while observing the brain activity on MRI or PET scanner though,

I wasn’t there = I know not whether it was 3 or 7 second in reality 😀 )

So, the question is, out of our conscious,

what our brain has been doing during those 6 seconds ?

—– As a matter of fact, even in the state of Mushin, our brain is fully working.

Even if the Sword- Master Musashi is fighting in Ichijo with his sword and with the

Rule of the Dharma, his eyes have to see his opponent’s movement and the brain has to

analyze other conditions or situation as well, not mention the control of his hand and the body.

= It is the moment to moment responses.

(Some are really done out of our conscious by the Motor-region of the brain, such as to keep

the body balance —– but to pay attention to such as to the road condition, not to tumble on

a stone, may needs a bit more of the instinctive body reaction = stone has to be seen and take

it into account)   It’s mean, even in the state of Mushin, your brain is not blank but

fully committed to the matter what you are committed in its moment

(hence this is called Mindfulness) still without you consciously noticing it

(hence this is called Mushin) while your hand, body, mind, your sword are

all in one unity or in perfect coordination (so,this is called Ichijo / Oneness).

To DO this, or to BE in this condition, you can’t have any noise or unrelated

obstrucing thought, therefore it was described  “ Not to have any useless or

intentionally conceived thought”

(hence this is called Mind of No-Mind / Mushin).

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Those invisible / hard to describe latent thought or unconscious process in a dark depth of the

brain was bracketed into “Feeling”, and often called Intuition, Inspiration, Spontaneous Thought,

even Spiritual Feelings. = As those latent Proto-Thinkings has yet to be categorized to the

existing type, selected, filtered, or scrutinized against rationality etc, often they are pretty

wild and irrational (just like our dream is ), still showing amazing truth.  😀

Hence, they are also the source of  Inventive-creativity,  Artistic-creativities

and Open-eyed Free-minded Thinking, Lateral thinkings etc etc. = I described

those Free-Thinking process is taking place in the  “ Blank Space” in the brain,

long time ago.

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In comparison, so-called (Conscious) Thinking is either HAD been processed and HAS been

converted to legible or translated into linguistic format from those latent feeling or thought

aforesaid, otherwise the information has come externally in the linguistic format. (read a book)

So that, it is always the parallel process in the brain though, as the conscious process needed

additional formatting, it loose the reality (such as, processed words “red blood” doesn’t have a

fresh bloody reality in comparison to one’s experience = actually in the accident) and far slower

than the process which subconsciously done in its moment = Yet, Conscious Thinking is easy to

remember as it has been sorted and converted to the words, still, Original Latent Thought

has much more fresh facts / reality = much closer to the TRUTH.

This Truth is what Zen Buddhist is after = But it needs clear eyes and the Mind.

With clear eyes and the Mind, we can sense the situation in every moment = and

able to respond as it is happening. = This is the Life [Live in its moment].

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It must be clear now, the real meaning of Mindfulness, Mushin, Ichijo (in fact, they are

the words to describe the same state of the MIND in different angle)

= “ Without Thinking” has to be understood as “ The Mind has no Conscious

Thinking, still it is not blank but keeping all the perception fully open and

making intuitive up-to-the-moment response, without us noticing it”

= clear eyes and the mind is to capture those intuitive response in the depth of

subconsciousness,  without a distortion caused by useless Thinking and Ego.

= This is how ZEN with clear eyes and the mind can lead you to reach truthful

answer or the best judgement, even inventive totally new idea.  

And ultimately  “Able to reach to the Dharma”

= We might be retaining even ancient, ancient memory of the primeval time

which has been written in the DNA, where we came from, how we been evolved

= the reflection of the rationality in the Dharma = Rules of the Dharma.

To discover and reach this wisdom is the ultimate quest to the Zen Buddhists.

___/\___

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PS : You might be realized here something is missing

= What is the control of our thinking ?

Conscious Thinking is parallel with Subconscious Thinking and if we can’t escape

Subconscious Thinking which is invisible hence out of control mean,

“ Can’t we escape from wrong thinking ?”

—– If we were imprisoned in wrong thinking down to the bottom of subconscious, there is

a remedy what the Buddhism has been specialized.

Here, Practice of Buddhism come to play their role ! As

Lord Buddha found, the main cause of wrong thinking bore out of the Ego or Self.

Against this, unconditional endless practice of the practice ware-out one’s Ego.

= If one’s Ego is no longer there = no instinctive drive of Self-Preservation = no greed, no fear,

no fear of the death = This is the fundamental change in the basis of thinking = If the basis

changed = upper structure changes as well.

If there is no Self = Nothing to loose = Freedom. (If mortal Self is no longer there,

why afraid to make a failure and own demise or even death. = Anything is

possible though, as neither Ego is there, there wouldn’t be a possibility to

conceive self enriching act or having grudge against others.)

So, Freedom here but not a sign of selfish wrong thinking !

= What a contented, peaceful life. = WHAT you want more.

(This is the reason why the Great Zen Masters having so many extraordinary jokey stories !

= They must have had lots of fun in liberated mind  😀 :-D)

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” What are you doing ?”

Somebody, supposed to be a Zen Buddhist teased me

“If you are Zennist, how come, what are you doing in your blog ?”

I answered to him “If you only see it so, your Buddhism is wrong”

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The reason why the Buddhism after the Nirvana of

Lord Buddha was formed as known as Hinayana was because the followers just copied the lifestyle

of Lord Buddha (as an Bhikkuh) and kept his teachings.  And it took 500 years for the followers to

realize what the real meaning of his teachings were.

—– It is obvious, if all the people in the country become keen Buddhists / Bikkuh,

Who else can feed those Bhikkuh. Who grows the rice to make foods or fish in the river.

(You may give a thought, in a scope of a sustainability of the society = the socio-economical size

= how may Bhikkuh can the society sustain ? —– number is very limited.)

Lord Buddha was not such idiot.   Buddhism is not forsake the LIFE, but to live with it.

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Zen is a psychological technique / Mind-set to DO the THINGS = to have the

LIFE in the best efficiency without having useless hindrances.

Me to do a photography —– after all I used to be a photographer / technical-writer

= What’s wrong, a man keep doing what he was (a sort of) good at.   😀 😀

DOING all those, I need the Zen (such as so-called Mindfulness, Mushin etc etc, hence I keep

my tools in the best condition, let alone to make them etc etc) and I have, at least, having the

results which leaves no (well more or less) regrets.  😀  — (still, I want to do even better

= this is not a greed as my work is not producing any profit or fame.   😀 😀 )

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My approach to the camera or photography which is in most of the case, non-conventional,

quite inventive way would solve and help other’s trouble well,  (without costing them  :-D)

—– such as, when the camera or Mob-devise was dropped in the sea water or toilet = just

wash under tap water then dry it with Hair-dryer,  or jammed, stacked Zoom lens may be

saved with just hitting it in all directions.  Or utilizing Chinese toys would save a time and cost,

instead of building a new circuit for electronic controller etc etc.  😀

Life is to live, hence it got be fun, as you can’t avoid — any how.

Make it fun, instead of resenting or complaining.

And by making something would be even more fun.   🙂

___/\___

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Snap shots in the Park (a Month ago)

Among the photo-file, I found those photos — Yah yah, I did those but been forgotten.

Just to have a walk,  I carry my camera and just click for no purpose,  hence I forget.

May be I’ve been doing too many project,  but I’m dealing them only one at the time

—– unless it is on front of me,  I’m not necessary remember another matter.

( May be this is the Zen though,  others might say ” Oh, you are just getting old”  😀 )

As it was the Independence Day of Jamaica,  there was a local event for the people.

Lots of cyclists.   I found this family has mounted 5 bicycles on the car !

Yes it was yet another peaceful day.  Nothing to write about.  

Hence it has been forgotten — still,  photos was in a memory card   😀

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Inside — Jippos Circus !

Next day I went to the Circus again with more appropriate  24~70mm f2.8 lens.  🙂

Circus is a typical Circus with the staffs what we expect to see.

Though, I admit, I missed some important shot while changing the camera setting

such as for a slow shutter speed to make blurred image by change to low ISO setting.

( I should have preprogrammed Custom setting for one-click operation. ) 

Things has gone too fast. = Ideally, it need to see the performance twice and need to

prepare in anticipation. (So, photos here is a kind of easy snapshot. = Sheer excuse.  🙂 )

Before this, those black boys preformed a kind of Street Dance using Hopping Rope,

hence a sheer athleticism in exact synchronized body movement = it was a

jaw-dropping performance.  = (so that, I forgot to take picture.)  😀  😀

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禅の源流 ／ How Zen was started

勤行や禅における日常の勤め，実践について具体的に説明した言葉は古代の経典の中には登場して来ません。  単に善き仏教者である為の身だしなみ，心構えが書かれているだけでそれが実際上,

本人の心理生理に いかなる変化をもたらしているのか，そのメカニズムに対する考察が行われた事は仏教２５００年の 歴史の中で，かつてー度たりとも無かったと言えるでしょう。

唯ーの例外でそれに近い考察はアーラヤ識という概念（潜在意識に近い）の登場でしたが実際にそれが構造的に,いかに仏教と関っているかが考察された訳ではなく単に存在論，認識論＝存るのか無いのか＝単に存ると思うだけなのか＝＞「アーラヤが捕えたものこそが真実」という考えであったにすぎず，

仏教における 空，無，無心，在＝不在，不立文字，以心伝心 といった概念の全てが実は［不可視の潜在意識］故に出て来ていたという事には思い至らなかった訳です。

そもそも２５００年前には［潜在意識］という概念は無く，その透徹した眼で己れの深奥に在るそれを見すえながらも，それを説明するのにはさすがの釈尊も手甲ずったようで，色々な喩えにたよらざるを得なかった。

例えばダルマ／法とともに在る喜びを「ー切矛盾の無い理想境，極楽に暮すようなもの」と描写すればそれが潜在意識中の満足感，ドーパミンホルモンの横溢による気分のことと理解できなかった者，後世の読者は字づらから「釈尊は極楽が存在すると言われた」と誤解する。

眼前に無くても，潜在意識はその存在を知っている場合。逆にそこに在りながらも，その確証が無い。理屈で解っても，どうしても受入れられないとか。そうした意識はどこに在るのか？

大乗仏典独特の｢在るのではなくして在る」といった苦しまぎれの表現は全てこの不可視の潜在意識が存在する故に出て来たものです。（しかしこの不確定性は物理学上のものではなく人間の知覚，認知の　ニ重性から生じるもので，先ず潜在意識で直観した情報を選択的に処理してから思考領域で概念化，言語化する為に起る=つまり無心というのは潜在意識での直観，判断に従い，追加処理の思考を排除する事。  ー方，無私というのは受覚した情報を情動域との連鎖無しに処理する事に外なりません。＝情動抜きであるから心は平穏）

[]ほとんど所有物もなく比丘としての生活を続けていれば毎日の生活は単純なパターンになり殊更「自分がこれをやっている」という意識を抱くまでもなく，無意識のうちに作業を完遂できるようになるものです。　　これが［無心］というものの出発点ですが

釈尊につき従っていた弟子達は同じ作業，同じ所作を無条件に模倣し毎日それを繰返していたので［無心］で作業するという事はわざわざ言われるまでもなく自然に身についていた訳です。 つまり，わざわざ書く必要も教える必要もなかったが，はるか後，孫，孫孫弟子の時代に，それ程の人徳もカリスマも無い老師の元に何十人もの弟子，しかも中には懐疑的反抗児も居ると言った情況になると，何か特別な教育法を考え出す必要が出て来た訳です。

[仏伝に登場するシュリバントクの庭掃除十年の話も，芥子の実（英訳ではマスタードの種子となっていますが）を捜して走り回ったキサーゴータミの話も，いかに

釈尊の教え方が臨機応変，方便に満ちたものであったかを言うのみで，そこに在った延々と繰返される反復動作というものの側面は忘れ去られていた。（反復動作＝同ー信号の入力は脳の情動域が無視するようになる為，｢自己の｣というタグ無しに処理されるようになる。－方，運動域には動作全体がパターンとして刷り込まれ自動的に処理されるようになる＝結果として自己意識／自覚／自我を抜きにして行動できるようになる＝これが無我無心です）

はたして中国に禅を伝えた菩提達磨師がこうした情況をどこまで把握していたのかは全く不明ですが　（達磨大師にまつわる伝説は荒唐無稽なものばかりで，その最たるものに師は青眼であったというのがあるが絶対有得ないハナシ）　間違いないのは，師自身は古代ヨガ　（含む，古代の舞踏ヨガ＝南印度のバラットナットヤムダンスの源流）　の達人であったという事でしょう。このヨガの動きがブラジルのカポエラ様の，複数の人間による瞬間的対応のゲームといった過渡期を経て云わゆる小林寺拳法に進化したというのは疑いない事です。－－－瞬間的な対応は無意識だからこそ可能なので，モタモタ考えていたら即ー発喰う。

菩提達磨師の着目したものはここに在る［無心］とその效果で，これこそが［無我，無心］に達し［ダルマ／法に身を委ねる］最上の道と喝破した訳です。

己れの生に対する執着，｢これは殺されるかも」などといった恐怖が有ると体が萎縮して元々持って生れたダルマの自然（じねん）すら働かない。思考も感情も抜きに，｢己れを捨ててこそ浮ぶ瀬もあれ」と言われる由縁です。

[菩提達磨師が空観，無我無心に立った仏教を説いた中国には既に［無為］を説く老荘哲学が流布していた。「意図的には何もやるな。全てを天命に委ねよ」と説く老子の教えは｢己れを無にして法に身を委ねよ」という大乗の教えと共通のものがあり，概念の翻訳設定や用語の選択をする上できわめて都合が良かった訳です。　しかしながら既製の用語を使う為に，どうしても元々のニュアンスが出て常人の日常生活に主眼を置いた大乗印度仏教も中国化し，むしろ通念に縛られない事を旨とした独特な禅仏教が生れたと言えます。　

（同様な意味で，日本の禅には神道の純粋主義，武士道が影響して，仏教の中でも特異な硬派となっているのでは？ —– 同じ禅でも中国人は［無為］は言うが［無私］はやらない。最も悲観的，厭世的で［捨身］（しゃしん）と言うのは日本人だけで，お寺が喪式専門になるのも日本独特と，うなづける　）

[]人間も含め，万物＝ダルマ／法が元々［無我］であると言うのは，バラモン教／ベーダの言うアートマンに 対立して示された

釈尊独特かつ当時としては革命的な発想ですが，この本源的［無我］ゆえに自己意識，我欲などは全て己れの想念の作り出した妄想に過ぎないという教えを納得するには既に［無心］を体感し実践している中国人にとってもいささか時間がかかる。それが納得でき潜在意識の深奥まで 染みつき，無意識に［無我，無心］の行動が取れるようになるまでの修業が［禅］と名付けられたプロセスです。

－－－で，本人無我無心の内に作業を続けそれが完成したとする。

＝それでは，これを作ったのはいったい誰なのか？　

＝それが外ならぬ持って生れた，内なるダルマ／法であるというのが

釈尊の教えです。

つまり，禅に限らず仏教は現に作業してみない事には体感もできなければ，その体感の経験に立って考えてみる事も納得もできない。座って考えていても何も把めない訳で，仏教の全ての宗派が延々と続く反復作業を修業として課しているのはこの理由からです。

当然ながらー二回禅寺に行って座禅をしても足が痺れるだけで何の足しにもならないし，釈尊にすら説明できなかった事は解説書を読んでも把めない。つまり禅には学んで理解すベき事は何ーつとして無いし，禅を理解するというのは有得ない。　実際にやってみて，出来るか出来ないかしかない訳です。だからこそ，自転車に乗れるか乗れないかの喩えが使われる。

しかし［無心］の作業というものは日常生活の中にいくらでも在り（当ブログの中で「レモン禅」のカテゴリーに分類されている例），＝それこそ単に歩くだけでも体験できるものです。その体感を出発点に禅の世界に入っていくというのは誰にでも出来る事。道元禅師の僧食九拝の教えは将にこの事です。作法として細かく様式化されたそれぞれの作業に集中しそれを緻密にやり遂げていく、この作業を修業としそれを雑念無く無心に行える事をめざすのが禅に外なりません。(無念無想、一切のこだわりを捨てよと教える一方で徹底してこだわった細部までを習得させる矛盾はともかくーーーまァその作業を五年十年、百万回も繰返せば無意識でも完璧にやり遂げられるようにはなるでしょうが）

逆に言えば禅，及びその心理作用は必ずしも宗教に直結したものではなく，むしろ心理工学と呼べる ようなもので，

無我無心である事で心理的拘束から解放される自由度にむしろ利点があります。（情動領域での　好嫌，損得，エゴといった自我意識を誘発する事なく判断行動できるという事） ＝当ブログに奇抜な試みや変った造形物が色々登場して来るのはその自由発想の見本です。 （しかもそれを黙々と作る手作業は，禅以外の何物でもない－－－で，結果として出来上ったものも満更悪くないと，本人マンゾクしておりますが如何？）

－－－つまる所，人生楽しく生きる事が肝心！＝それが本来の禅というものです。（強もての達磨師が弟子達と，踊るように体をひる返している様を思い浮ベてみられよ－－－渋っ面の老師のやる事ではないでしょう。　笑）

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Fun Clock for James

One of my friend James Stevens is going to have his 50^th Birthday party in this week.

James is the organizer of the OWN (Open Wireless Network) and having a workshop,

advising the people for their use of computer, network connection etc.

What remarkable about him is, this [etc] part.

He does everything about electronics = from lighting to PA, audio system to how to

organize and set-up the event. Hence, he knows everybody in the field and knows

“Who got which equipment, in where etc” = therefore, able to hire (or let the others

to hire) thence able to organize fully equipped film event, art event, about anything.

He is everywhere, in fact he is the Don.

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This remarkable character came from his fundamental open minded attitude to see

anybody and help anybody who came to him.   So that naturally he learned everything

and acquainted right people in every field.  He himself isn’t an authority of everything

but a man to know the authority who can help him = therefore he doesn’t need to be

an authority nor boss still he can solve all the issue as others follow him.

In my eyes, he is a Good Buddhist at work = helping others and make things happen !

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—– anyhow, as he said he is going to have a birthday party, I prepared a present

for him. = I made a fun clock.

(I never sold my work but just give them to the people for such occasion).

( I don’t think I need to explain about this = this is what it looks and function as it is,

that all though, if I may boast, its looks silver wire is in deed Staring silver ! )

Happy Birthday James.

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Double Density Pinhole Photo (2)

As I promised before this is the sample photos of  “a bit sharper Double-Density-Pinhole

Images”, and those photos were taken by the Canon 5D Mk 3  and Nikon D810 camera.

Both of left images were taken by Tamuron 90 mm Macro Lens with F-setting 2.5 (fully open)  2000th second.  ISO 100.

Top two were by Canon 5D Mk3 and the Pinhole image was taken ISO 1600 and AV setting  (0.8 sec with +1 1/3).

Bottom two were by Nikon D810  and the Pinhole image was taken ISO 6400 setting.(Non-CPU-Lens setting  = Camera says F45.  1/2.5 second ).

—– By the way, I haven’t found why the Canon’s image (Top two) having Magenta and Green cast.  Both Cameras were set to AWB (Auto White Balance) though, as cloud moves, lighting condition was not exactly the same, therefore don’t make a conclusion about the color contribution of each camera on those photos.

Above those 6 photos were taken by D810,  ISO 6400,  F-setting was F45 or F64, Shutter time was  1 second ~ 1/4 second.  (with lots of Re-try  😀 )

On this time, Outer Pinhole was 1.2 mm and a smaller pinhole was made in the center of Metal-coted film, and the  panel was mounted on Nikon Revers-Ring  (hence, it enables to use it in different focal length, with or without extension ring. 

And with [Nikon —> Canon Mount Adapter] the same can be used on Canon as well)  🙂

As Pinhole panel was fixed on a revers-ring,  it enable ( just 🙂 )to use ordinary Lens-hood (Lens-hood is essential) = two photos above are the sample when hood was dropped and direct sun light hit the pinhole, though some might like a photo with strong halation  😀

By the way, I cover the Camera etc, with lots of stickers to conceal Camera name, Model name etc —– to make it looks cheap,  and my friend who actually possess D810 adopted the same attitude = It would discourage a mugger  😀

After dealt with a lots of Pinhole pictures —– ordinary photo looks rather fresh.

It looks not too bad too.     Ha ha ha  😀 

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What Photography to do with Buddhism

Someone asked me “ Why Photography in a Zen blog ?”

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The understanding of Zen is so wildly varied, let alone the understanding of the Buddhism.

It spreads from vague spiritualism to an endless peculiar practice.

A reason is that it lays in the person’s subconsciousness. Hence, the person oneself couldn’t

see it clearly, let alone the others, even the teacher.

Since, it was not clearly written down like as a Dogma, and to memorize it doesn’t mean

understood the Buddhism. (Though, some sect says, they got 100 of the rules written down

and follow them is the completion of the Buddhism.)

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My discovery of the Zen came from a peculiar practice = Disco Dancing  😀

With a peculiar mental tendencies habituated in my subconscious, I realized, this is

what people called the Zen —– Like a Pathological diagnosis, I found the symptoms all

matches to the description of the Zen of the past masters =

hence I understood, what I’m living is the Zen.

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So that, in Zen, the matter is a mental state or so-called mind-set, while the one is DOING

something. = Doing it unconsciously with the mind-set of what

Lord Buddha stated = IS the Buddhism. = Hence, able to receive all the benefit to live with

the Dharma. —– Here, it is crucial to be unconscious (=in Mushin). 

We can do a thing without thinking but not able to do thinking without thinking  😀

Try to do Mushin or talking it consciously is just a pretense or mimicry  😀

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Photography is a secondly art (it doesn’t mean second class art 🙂 ) = unlike an abstract

drawing or sculpture, unless the subject is there, its photograph couldn’t be created.

In other words, photography has to follow the existence and its moment.

That moment is the only moment. Photography is to capture and deals with this MOMENT.

As Lord Buddha stated, “Nothing stays the same and they change moment to moment”.

= Photography has to face this situation straight.

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Why and how you encounter its situation or subject was not necessary what you expected or

designed.  = To encounter it was what the Karma has worked.   You may think that

the idea to come to the garden to take picture was what you conceived and planed by yourself

alone though, without Karma has had pulled a string, you didn’t get the idea in the first place.

Whether you are aware or not this is how the system works.

And this system = the mechanism of the Dharma is what

Lord Buddha elucidated. = This is the Buddhism which is applicable even to a non-Buddhist.

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And we have to follow the subject = we didn’t create it, hence this is a secondly art =

we have to accept a humble position to be a secondly creator. Therefore, we have to see

the world with humble open eyes but at most diligent way, down to the minute details.

Once we start to see the subjects, what we are seeing is the environment or most likely

the nature. —– In fact, we are seeing the Dharma.

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When we try to capture and focus the subject, are we thinking what to eat for lunch ? =

Not only the lens, we are focusing what we need to do without any thinking but with full

attention to the subject on front of the camera whole heartedly.

This is the moment of Mushin and the Mindfulness.

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Then “Got it” = but what we got ? —– Even though we might think “I’ve got iconic image”

it is a mere reflection of the subject in the memory card, which could just disappear with a

glitch in a computer. —– And in most of the case, it wouldn’t do anything with the person’s

finance = it is nothing but a selfless, greed less act = expect no reward, still needs to put

so much effort for taking.

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—– Isn’t this Zen Buddhism ? —– If not,  What else   🙂

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